A collage containing images of civil liberties of the United StatesA collage containing images of civil liberties of the United States

Firewall For Freedom: States Must Safeguard Our Rights

States are the frontlines of our freedom — communities expect state and local officials to protect us from Trump’s assault on our rights. Donald Trump began to make good on his promises as soon as he was inaugurated in January.

Though Trump has falsely claimed he is not connected to Project 2025, many of its authors have become a part of the Trump administration, and many of the attacks on our rights are no longer just threats. Project 2025 is a roadmap for limiting our personal freedoms and instead letting bureaucrats and politicians tell us how we have to live.

To push back against this aggressive federal agenda, states and cities are building a Firewall for Freedom to ensure their officials do not voluntarily assist in attacking our civil liberties and civil rights — and many have already begun to do so. Dozens of state legislatures have passed laws to protect our rights, state officials — including governors — have issued dozens of guidances telling state agencies to safeguard our information and our families, and municipalities are starting to pass Firewall for Freedom policies. Nearly half of the states have said they will not let President Trump disregard the Constitution and violate our rights.

We, along with the ACLU affiliates in each and every state as well as D.C. and Puerto Rico, have called on officials to defend our fundamental freedoms and given them tools to address attacks on reproductive rights, immigrants, free speech, and more to uphold our rights in the states where we live.

State Actions

Last updated on January 12, 2026

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