Archive

In response to Gov. Jerry Brown’s unveiling of his proposed 2017-18 budget, the ACLU of California’s Center for Advocacy and Policy issued the following statement on behalf of its Center Director, Natasha Minsker. Read More

The Richmond City Council last night voted to approve a “Fair Chance Access to Affordable Housing” ordinance to protect the rights of people who are re-entering society and find themselves excluded from housing opportunities because of their criminal record. Read More

Finding affordable housing is tough. Finding affordable housing when you’re returning home after serving time is nearly impossible. Last night, the Richmond City Council passed a historic law to protect the rights of people who are re-entering society and find themselves excluded from housing opportunities because of their criminal record.  Many people who have been convicted of a crime fa... Read More

A lawsuit filed today by civil rights groups charges the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) with violating the constitutional rights of homeless people by confiscating and destroying their property in ongoing sweeps. On multiple occasions, Caltrans has failed to give proper notice before raiding encampments—refusing plaintiffs an opportunity to move their belongings before destroyi... Read More

The ACLU Foundations of California filed a lawsuit challenging the federal government’s Suspicious Activity Reporting program - a vast expansion of the federal government’s domestic intelligence network. The SAR program targets First Amendment-protected activity, encourages racial and religious profiling, and violates federal law. The plaintiffs are five U.S. citizens whose information has been en... Read More

A coalition of community groups recently announced a groundbreaking partnership with Facebook and the cities of East Palo Alto and Menlo Park to address affordable housing, displacement, and economic opportunity in the region. Read More

Almost 30 years ago, a study showed that people of color were more likely to live near incinerators.  Since then, the dangerous conditions and exposure to environmental dangers have  gotten worse. In California, CalEnviroScreen data recently demonstrated that race and environmental harms are directly correlated. Considering this, it’s alarming to think that a California agency that has t... Read More

On opening day of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture in D.C., I crossed the threshold with a memory deeply embedded in my psyche. Read More

California now has some of the strongest protections against policing for profit in the country. Although we had several legislative successes this year, two important, ACLU-sponsored bills died in the Legislature. Read More

Gov. Brown signed a groundbreaking bill to limit civil asset forfeiture abuse in California, marking a victory for the larger asset forfeiture reform movement underway throughout the US. California lawmakers overwhelmingly approved SB 443 in October. The new law will go into effect Jan. 1, 2017. Read More