Home : Women's Rights : Pregnancy/Parenting

NYCLU and Fossil, Inc. Settle Discrimination Claim Brought by Breastfeeding Woman (07/03/2007)
NEW YORK - The New York Civil Liberties Union today announced the settlement of a discrimination claim against Fossil, Inc., arising from an incident in which a woman was harassed for attempting to breastfeed her infant son while on a buying trip in the company's Manhattan showroom. New York's civil rights law provides that a mother has a right to breastfeed her baby "in any location, public or private, where the mother is otherwise authorized to be."

Toys “R” Us Violates Law by Barring Breastfeeding in Store, NYCLU Warns (09/14/2006)
NEW YORK -- The New York Civil Liberties Union today warned the Toys “R” Us company that it violated civil rights law by telling a mother that she could not breastfeed her infant in a store.

ACLU of Maryland Declares Victory as High Court Unanimously Rules Pregnancy Prosecutions Are Illegal (08/03/2006)
BALTIMORE, MD – The American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland applauded today’s decision by the Maryland Court of Appeals unanimously ruling that the reckless endangerment statute does not apply to women who take drugs while pregnant.

NYCLU Defends Pregnant School Teacher Fired By School (11/21/2005)
NEW YORK -- The New York Civil Liberties Union today charged a private Catholic school with discriminating against an unmarried Catholic schoolteacher by firing her because she became pregnant.

ACLU and Northwest Women's Law Center Back Washington Woman's Right To Divorce (03/10/2005)
SPOKANE, WA--The American Civil Liberties Union of Washington, the ACLU Women's Rights Project, and the Northwest Women's Law Center today filed a friend-of-the-court brief supporting the right of a Spokane woman to obtain a divorce from her abusive husband who was convicted of assaulting her. The woman was denied a petition for divorce by Spokane County because she is pregnant.

ACLU of PA Sues Beaver County Child Welfare Agency Over Wrongful Seizure of Newborns (10/02/2003)
PITTSBURGH -- The American Civil Liberties Union's Greater Pittsburgh Chapter today filed a federal civil rights lawsuit on behalf of a young mother, Selina Underwood, saying that Beaver County officials violated her rights when they seized her children - including a day-old newborn -- without evidence that they were in any danger.

Judge Imposes Birth Control To Prevent Michigan Woman From Having More Children (07/08/2003)
DETROIT - In a blatant attack on personal privacy rights, a Lapeer County judge has ordered a woman to submit to a medically ""verifiable"" method of birth control in an abuse and neglect proceeding regarding her two children, according to the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, which filed a friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of the woman.

In Victory for Working Families, High Court Says States Must Comply With Family & Medical Leave Act (05/27/2003)
NEW YORK -- In what the American Civil Liberties Union called the most important sex discrimination case since the Virginia Military Institute's male-only admissions policy was struck down, the Supreme Court today held that state government employers are not immune from lawsuits under the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

Pregnancy Discrimination Case Comes Before State Supreme Court (02/11/2002)
HARTFORD-The Women's Rights Project of the American Civil Liberties Union and the Connecticut Civil Liberties Union today filed a friend-of the-court brief in a case that examines the grounds for wrongful dismissal in a private employment setting. The Connecticut Supreme Court today will hear arguments on whether protections against pregnancy discrimination should be extended to employees of small companies with fewer than three employees. 

Virginia Military Institute Pregnancy Policy Discriminates Against Women, ACLU Warns (12/07/2001)
RICHMOND, VA--In a letter sent today to the Virginia Military Institute Board of Visitors, the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia advised against adoption of a policy requiring pregnant women, or men who cause a pregnancy, to leave the school.

ACLU Applauds Appeals Court Decision Upholding Minors' Right to Confidential Abortions (08/24/2001)
CINCINNATI--In a victory for both minors and doctors, a federal appeals court ruled today that a doctor cannot be punished for providing an abortion to a minor without parental consent when the minor had no confidential and expeditious alternative to obtaining that consent. 

Appeals Court Hears Arguments Today in Case of MD 'Trooper Dad' Denied Family Leave (01/26/2001)
RICHMOND, VA --The American Civil Liberties Union will appear before a federal appeals court here today to argue against the Maryland State Police Department's appeal of a $375,000 jury award to Kevin Knussman, the state trooper who was illegally denied leave from work to care for his newborn daughter because he is male.

ACLU of Massachusetts Asks Court To Order Release of Pregnant Woman (09/07/2000)
BOSTON, MA - The state cannot take a pregnant woman into custody and order her to submit to a medical examination against her will, the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts in a friend-of-the-court brief submitted before a court today.

ACLU Urges High Court to Void South Carolina Law That Strips Pregnant Women of Their Rights (06/09/2000)
WASHINGTON -- A South Carolina public hospital policy mandating drug testing of pregnant women unfairly singles out poor and minority women and should be struck down, the American Civil Liberties Union urges in a friend-of-the-court brief filed before the U.S. Supreme Court.

High Court Weighs Government Right to Interfere with Parents' Child Rearing Decisions (01/12/2000)
NEW YORK - The Supreme Court today is hearing arguments in a case that will decide whether the government can overrule parents' decisions about how to raise their children, the American Civil Liberties Union said.

ACLU Supports Ohio Mother Prosecuted For Nude Photos of Her Daughter (01/03/2000)
COLUMBUS, OH -- Saying that parents across the state could be arrested for taking innocent photographs of their children, the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio today filed court papers supporting a mother who is being prosecuted for photos of her eight-year-old daughter.

ACLU Settles Kentucky Case of Pregnant Teens Denied Entry to Honor Society (10/22/1999)
COVINGTON, KY - A settlement between two teen mothers and the school district that denied them membership in the National Honor Society will pay the women $999 plus attorney's fees, the Associated Press reported today.