Free Speech

Our support of the Bill of Rights and the first amendment right to free speech is unequivocal. This includes challenging activities or actions that seek to curtail, limit or erase the free speech of others. However, we reserve the right to exercise our free speech by critiquing the speech of others, such as hateful speech, that is contrary to our core values, which support liberty and justice for all.

ACLU responds to excessive force used on protesters. Read more

ACLU defends "I can't breathe" t-shirts at school... Read more

Your free speech rights at demonstrations and protests. Know Your Rights

$1M settlement for pepper-sprayed UC Davis students. Read more

News

ACLU of California Statement on Trump Administration’s Discriminatory Executive Orders

January 25, 2017

File Under :

Free Speech, Immigrants' Rights, Racial Justice

Today, President Trump and his new administration confirmed the institution of draconian, punitive, and discriminatory immigration policies that ignore the lessons of the last 30 years of immigration policy and betray our most basic values as a... Read more

News

Executive Director Abdi Soltani Condemns Trump’s Discriminatory Immigration Ban

January 25, 2017

File Under :

Free Speech, Immigrants' Rights, Racial Justice

The ACLU of California condemns the anti-immigrant actions taken this week by President Donald Trump. >> Contact us re: SFO, OAK, SJO, FAT airport arrivals affected by Trump's executive order On behalf of the ACLU of Northern California, I... Read more

Blog

man holds sign saying "Fascism is not our national policy yet"

Dissent is Patriotic. It’s also a Powerful Antidote to Propaganda - #ACLUTimeMachine

January 11, 2017

File Under :

Free Speech, Privacy and Government Surveillance

Fifty-five years ago this January, the ACLU of Northern California was busy filling orders from across the country for copies of its recently produced film, “Operation Correction.” The film was a response to a piece of Red Scare propaganda, “... Read more »

Case

Gill v. DOJ (Challenge to Federal Suspicious Activity Reporting)

File Under :

Free Speech, Privacy and Government Surveillance

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-... Read more

Blog

United States flag being burnt in protest, in New Hampshire on the eve of the 2008 election.

ACLU to Trump: Flag Burning is Free Speech

November 29, 2016

File Under :

Free Speech

President-elect Donald J. Trump tweeted that anyone who burns a flag should be jailed or even stripped of their U.S. citizenship. The idea that the government could use citizenship as a punishment for political speech is not simply unconstitutional... Read more »

Blog

Post-Election Protesting? Know Your Rights to Demonstrate - #ACLUTimeMachine

November 10, 2016

File Under :

Criminal Justice and Drug Policy, Free Speech

Rallying in response to the news of Donald Trump’s election? Read, print, and share our new demonstrators’ rights wallet cards. Read more »

Know Your Rights: Pocket Guide to Your Right to Demonstrate

Issues :

Criminal Justice and Drug Policy, Free Speech

Tips and legal resources for activists, demonstrators, and direct action takers. Speak out, speak up, speak freely! Know your rights. Read more

News

ACLU Challenges California Ban on Ballot Selfies

November 1, 2016

File Under :

Free Speech, Technology and Civil Liberties, Voting Rights

The ACLU of California filed suit Monday against Secretary of State Alex Padilla challenging two statutes that prohibit voters from sharing ballot selfies. Read more

Case

ACLU Foundations of California v. Alex Padilla (Ballot Selfies)

File Under :

Free Speech, Technology and Civil Liberties, Voting Rights

The ACLU Foundations of California filed suit against Secretary of State Alex Padilla challenging two statutes that prohibit voters from sharing ballot selfies. The suit asks for a temporary restraining order to prohibit the state from enforcing the... Read more

Blog

Government of the People, By the People, and for the People

September 28, 2016

File Under :

Free Speech, Voting Rights

In the 2010 Citizens United decision, the US Supreme Court ruled that independent political expenditures by corporations and unions are protected speech. Citizens United became a flashpoint because Americans are increasingly concerned about the... Read more »