Friday, January 20, 2012

Happy Birthday?

January 20, 1920 American Civil Liberties Union founded:

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonpartisan non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States."

It works through litigation, lobbying, and community education. Founded in 1920 by Crystal Eastman, Roger Baldwin and Walter Nelles, the ACLU has over 500,000 members and has an annual budget over $100M. Local affiliates of the ACLU are active in all 50 states and Puerto Rico.

The ACLU provides legal assistance in cases in which it considers civil liberties to be at risk. Legal support from the ACLU can take the form of direct legal representation, or preparation of amicus curiae briefs expressing legal arguments (when another law firm is already providing representation).

The ACLU has played a role in many landmark court decisions, including the Scopes Trial, Brown v. Board of Education, Gideon v. Wainwright, Griswold v. Connecticut, Roe v. Wade, New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, and Miranda v. Arizona.

In addition to representing persons in lawsuits, the organization also lobbies for policies that have been established by its board of directors. Current positions include: opposing the death penalty; supporting gay marriage and the right of gays to adopt; supporting birth control and abortion rights (as established in Roe v. Wade); eliminating discrimination against women, minorities, and gays; supporting the rights of prisoners and opposing torture; supporting the right of religious persons to practice their faiths without government interference; and opposing any government preference for religion over non-religion, or for particular faiths over others.

The ACLU also maintains a variety of educational programs, intended to educate the public about civil liberties. It seems to very rarely, if ever befriend and advocate for Christian groups or positions. So, I don't know if we would want to "express Happy Birthday sentiments" or simply say "Oh My!"

2 comments:

RHYTHM AND RHYME said...

"To be or not to be" springs to mind with your post Gregg,

Thanks for your visit, I agree it would have been lovely to meet up when I get across the big pond.

Yvonne.

Mike said...

I call it the Anti-Christ League of the Ungodly...

...and I've heard it called Anti-Christ Liberals Union.


All things born must die, so when is it the ACLU's time? Thank God for organizations like Alliance Defense Fund and others who fight the ACLU's bone-headed stances.