News: RSU fights for poster rights, ACLU speaks

Derrick Perkins reports for the Daily Collegian in this article about a free speech rally at UMass Amherst. The story quotes Bill Newman, director of our Western Massachusetts Legal Office, who spoke at the rally.

News: Three blind mice?

Columnist Dianne Williamson at the Worcester Telegram cites the work of the ACLU of Massachusetts in this great piece on free speech in Spencer.

At issue is whether a citizen had the right to refer to town selectmen as "the three blind mice" during a meeting last September. The chairman, Vincent Cloutier, ruled her out of order for the comment.

Does this mean even mild criticism isn't permitted at a public meeting?

In a letter, Sarah Wunsch, our Staff Attorney, wrote:

“The town has created a citizen comment period, and the chairman does not have the right to silence those who are critical of the performance of town officials and employees, including the board members themselves."

Williamson writes: "Mr. Cloutier... is an elected official and needs to toughen up."

News: Boston Police vs. political protest?

Boston Now's Senior Reporter James O'Brien looks in this article at whether the Boston Police have been cracking down selectively on the free speech rights of demonstrators.

In a recent case, performance artist Milan Kohout stood outside a downtown Bank of America location with a pile of nooses and a sign saying "Nooses on Sale." He says they referred to the bind that stock market and mortgage problems have put people in, but police confiscated the ropes and sign and charged him with being an unlicensed vendor.

The article quotes John Reinstein, our Legal Director, and there's also an audio recording of the interview with some detailed discussion of free speech issues.

News: Federal Court: No Parent Notification on Gay-Themed Books OK

Joan Oleck at School Library Journal quotes Sarah Wunsch, our Staff Attorney, in this article about the federal court rulings allowing schools to continue using books that teach about diverse families, including families headed by gays and lesbians.

Press Release: Ellsberg, Maddow to headline ACLU of Mass. Membership Conference

Amid 2008 election season, gathering will focus on "Reclaiming Our Civil Liberties," Saturday at Bentley College

BOSTON -- More than 300 people from Cape Cod to the Berkshires plan to attend the first annual membership conference of the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, this Saturday, January 26, 2008, at Bentley College in Waltham. The conference theme is "Reclaiming Our Civil Liberties."

WHAT: ACLU Membership Conference: Reclaiming Our Civil Liberties
WHERE: Bentley College, Waltham, Massachusetts, Lindsay Hall, 1st Floor
WHEN: January 26, 2008, 12–6 pm

Speakers include Daniel Ellsberg, the writer, activist, and former U.S. military analyst who released the Pentagon Papers in 1971, and Rachel Maddow, the Air America host and frequent commentator on networks such as MSNBC, CNN, and LOGO. Ellsberg will speak on "2008 and Beyond: What will it take to end the abuse of power?" Maddow's speech is entitled "Don't Wait for November '08!"

The conference also features ten workshops:

• Moving Beyond the War on Drugs
  
• Confronting the Surveillance Society: Real ID, NSA Spying, Warrantless Wiretapping, and Fusion Centers
  
• Torture, Rendition and Guantánamo
  
• Next Steps for LGBT Rights
  
• Freedom of Speech and Association in the Post 9/11 World
  
• Racial, Ethnic & Religious Profiling in the Post 9/11 World
  
• Ensuring Reproductive Freedom
  
• Which Way Forward for the Immigrant Rights Movement?
  
• Blogging for Civil Liberties
  
• Building and Sustaining Strong Student Groups
  

"Many of us concerned about the abuses of power we've seen in our country in recent years are focused on the 2008 elections. That's important, but for our conference this year, we've chosen to focus on specific issues and what individual people can do about them," said Carol Rose, Executive Director of the ACLU of Massachusetts. "The erosion of our civil liberties has been so severe that it is unlikely that the next president and Congress alone will be able to undo the damage. We need the sustained involvement of concerned, committed citizens, and that is what the ACLU is working to develop."

Press Release: ACLU of Massachusetts voices concern over punishment of Brandeis professor

BOSTON -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts joins with other free-speech advocates and the faculty union in criticizing Brandeis University for reportedly having punished political science professor Donald Hindley for use of the word "wetbacks" in his class. Hindley asserts that he used the term to demonstrate a pejorative word that has been and continues to be used to describe some immigrants to the U.S. The faculty union has condemned the university’s investigation, which failed to provide adequate notice to the professor about the accusations against him, to interview many witnesses, or provide a process for appeal.

The ACLU of Massachusetts supports the right of all students to equal educational opportunity. Severe, pervasive, or targeted harassment of a student based on race, national origin, or ethnicity can interfere with the ability of students to obtain an education and would violate our state and federal civil rights laws. However, incidental comments by a professor in class, even if offensive to some, do not constitute illegal harassment under the law, and imposing punishment on a faculty member for occasional comments significantly jeopardizes freedom of thought and academic freedom which are so integral to a university and the quality of education that students will receive there.

Students plainly have the right to complain about a professor, to raise their complaints with a professor, organize with other students to discuss with the professor their objections, and debate what has gone on. However, faculty members also have the right to a fair process when they have been accused of wrongdoing, and Brandeis appears to have denied that process to Professor Hindley.

We are also troubled by this incident because it comes after several other recent incidents at Brandeis in which the University administration’s initial impulse has been to shut down unpopular expression rather than affirm the principles of freedom of speech and academic freedom which are integral to a university community. For example, the university closed down an exhibit of art by Palestinian children after complaints were made that the exhibit was not "balanced." Later, at the request of Brandeis' president, the university Committee on Exhibitions and Expressions investigated the matter and concluded that removing the exhibit was a mistake. More recently, the university was criticized for placing conditions on a speech by former President Jimmy Carter -- which he rejected -- because of complaints about his use in a book of the word "apartheid" to describe Israeli policy toward the Palestinians. Although Carter later was permitted to speak, the incident was troubling in what it revealed about Brandeis's commitment to freedom of expression.

We urge Brandeis to retract the punishment of Professor Hindley and to send two messages to the community: that all students are entitled to receive an education at the university free from unlawful harassment, and that freedom of expression and academic freedom are critical to receiving a good education.

ACLU protects your politically incorrect speech, sweeties!

On Jan. 5, Carol Rose, our Executive Director, sent this email to NPR's popular Car Talk radio program:

> --------------------------------------------
> From: Carol Rose
> --------------------------------------------
> ACLU oportects your politically incorrect speech, sweeties!
>
> Yo -- Ray and Tom,
>
> You expressed concern today that by calling
> a listener "sweetie," you might get in
> trouble with the ACLU for
> being "politically incorrect"
>
> As the Executive Director of the ACLU of
> Massachusetts, I want you to know that the
> ACLU is here to protect all speech,
> politically incorrect and otherwise --
> including yours.
>
> Here's to ensuring that the Marketplace of
> Ideas always has a place for Car Talk!
>
> Sweetly yours,
> Carol Rose
> ED, ACLU of Massachusetts


They took it in stride:

> From: Doug Mayer
> To: Carol Rose
> Subject: Re: ACLU oportects your politically incorrect
> speech, sweeties!
>
> Thanks Carol! We all agree here-- glad to know you're out there, the
> next time Tom or Ray say something that has us all looking at each
> other with severe and dubious skepticism....
>
> Best,
>
> Doug Mayer
> Car Talk

News: Speaker policy criticized

Brenda J. Buote of the Boston Globe cites the work of the ACLU of Massachusetts in this article about a School Committee policy requiring teachers to get approval from the principal before bringing outside speakers to class.

News: State forsakes speech appeal

The Springfield Republican cites Bill Newman and Sarah Wunsch, attorneys for the ACLU of Massachusetts, in this article about the State dropping its appeal of a ruling that the Department of Education violated the free-speech rights of Alfie Kohn, a speaker invited to a 2001 education conference.

Press Release: ACLU rebukes U.S. Government for maligning South African professor

Group renews legal challenge, says U.S. should either substantiate claims of terrorist activity or grant distinguished scholar's visa

BOSTON -- In response to the unjustified denial of a visa to renowned South African scholar Adam Habib, the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Massachusetts today renewed their legal challenge to the Departments of State and Homeland Security.

The State Department refused Habib a visa after months of inaction, now claiming that he is barred because he has "engaged in terrorist activities" -- but the government failed to provide any evidence to prove its accustion. The ACLU, in today's legal complaint, is now demanding that the government either substantiate its ban on Habib or grant him a visa.

"In one fell swoop, the U.S. government has stifled political debate in this country and maligned the reputation of a respected scholar without giving one shred of evidence to support its claims," said Melissa Goodman, a staff attorney with the ACLU's National Security Project. "It appears that Professor Habib is being excluded not because of his actions but because of his political views and associations."

"Our government continues to silence critics of U.S. foreign policy by labeling them as connected to terrorism. Time after time, we have later learned that the government can't justify these accusations. But in the meantime, reputations are harmed and our residents are denied the right to hear these voices," said Sarah Wunsch, Staff Attorney for the ACLU of Massachusetts.

Today's legal challenge amends a lawsuit filed in September in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. The lawsuit charges that the government's exclusion of Professor Habib amounts to censorship at the border because it prevents U.S. citizens and residents from hearing speech that is protected by the First Amendment. The ACLU went to court on behalf of organizations that have invited Professor Habib to speak in the U.S., including the American Sociological Association (ASA), the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) and the Boston Coalition for Palestinian Rights (BCPR).

"The next meeting of the American Sociological Association will be held in Boston next August, and we want to make sure that Professor Habib is allowed to speak if he is invited again," said Wunsch.

Habib is a renowned scholar, sought after political analyst, and Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Research, Innovation and Advancement at the University of Johannesburg. He is also a Muslim who has been a vocal critic of the war in Iraq and certain U.S. terrorism-related policies. Habib has repeatedly condemned terrorism but urged governments to respond to the terror threat with policies that are consistent with human rights norms and the rule of law. Until the government suddenly revoked his visa in October 2006 without explanation, he never experienced any trouble entering the U.S.; in fact, Habib lived in New York with his family for years while earning a Ph.D. in Political Science from the City University of New York.

The October 2006 revocation of Professor Habib's visa prevented him from attending a series of meetings with representatives from the National Institutes for Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Bank, Columbia University and the Gates Foundation. When he landed in New York, Habib was detained for seven hours and interrogated about his associations and political views. Armed guards eventually escorted him to a plane and deported him back to South Africa. The State Department later revoked the visas of Professor Habib's wife and two small children, again, without explanation.

"As someone who studies democracies around the world, it is deeply upsetting that the U.S. government refuses to allow me to cross its borders because of my political views. While I have criticized U.S. foreign policy as a political commentator, it is utterly absurd that anyone would associate me with terrorism," said Habib. "Although the harm the government's inexplicable 'terrorism' label has caused my family and reputation is very real, this is not just about me -- it is about protecting the free exchange of ideas that America is supposed to be about."

Last May, Habib applied for a new visa that would allow him to travel to the U.S. to attend speaking engagements. The government's failure to process Professor Habib's visa in time for him to attend the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association in August 2007, and the fact that the application continued to languish after Professor Habib received numerous new U.S. invitations, prompted the filing of the lawsuit.

Professor Habib's exclusion is part of a larger pattern. Over the past few years, numerous foreign scholars, human rights activists, and writers -- all vocal critics of U.S. policy -- have been barred from the U.S. without explanation or on vague national security grounds. In 2006, the ACLU filed a similar lawsuit on behalf of U.S. academic groups and Professor Tariq Ramadan, a widely respected Swiss scholar of the Muslim world. When the government revoked his visa in 2004, Professor Ramadan was prevented from assuming a tenured teaching position at the University of Notre Dame. The Ramadan lawsuit challenges the legality of his exclusion and the constitutionality of the Patriot Act provision under which he was initially excluded. He remains excluded from the U.S. to this day.

More information about ideological exclusion -- including a podcast with Adam Habib, plaintiff statements in support of Habib, and the legal complaint in today's case -- is available at:

http://www.aclu.org/exclusion

The ACLU recently launched a new interactive web feature that tells the stories of the artists, scholars and politicians the U.S. government has kept out of the country since the inception of ideological exclusion in 1952. It is available at:

http://www.aclu.org/passportflash

Attorneys in the case are Goodman, Jameel Jaffer, Nasrina Bargzie, and Judy Rabinovitz of the ACLU, and Sarah Wunsch and John Reinstein of the ACLU of Massachusetts.

News: Lawsuit: Scholar Kept From US Over Views

The Associated Press wrote a widely distributed story about our lawsuit on behalf of Adam Habib, a South African scholar who, along with his family, has been denied the right to reenter the United States. We believe that's because he has been critical of the Iraq war and other US policies -- and that Americans have the right to invite him to speak and hear him if they want to.

The story quotes Sarah Wunsch, our Staff Attorney, who is one of the lawyers working on the case.

The Boston Herald, Boston Globe, and Washington Post carried the AP story, and the New York Times did its own coverage.

Press Release: ACLU Sues Over Exclusion of South African Democracy Scholar

BOSTON -- The Departments of State and Homeland Security are illegally blocking South African scholar Adam Habib from entering the U.S. under circumstances that suggest he is being excluded because of his political views, according to a lawsuit filed today by the American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Massachusetts. The ACLU charges that censorship at the border prevents U.S. citizens and residents from hearing speech that is protected by the First Amendment.

"Immigration officials should not be in the business of blocking our borders to people with political views they dislike," said Sarah Wunsch, staff attorney with the ACLU of Massachusetts. "Silencing critics and forbidding Americans the right to hear dissenting voices harms academic and political freedom in the United States. For example, the next meeting of the American Sociological Association will be held in Boston next August, and we want to make sure that Professor Habib is allowed to speak if he is invited again."

"Once again, the Bush administration is stifling debate by preventing U.S. audiences from engaging prominent scholars face-to-face," said Melissa Goodman, a staff attorney for the ACLU's National Security Project. "When the government excludes scholars from the U.S. -- particularly scholars who frequently traveled to this country without any problems in the past, but who happen to be vocal critics of U.S. policies -- it sends the cowardly message that our government is afraid of opposing voices. This kind of political litmus test is both unconstitutional and un-American."

The ACLU's lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts on behalf of organizations that have invited Professor Habib to speak in the U.S. in the near future, including the American Sociological Association (ASA), the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) and the Boston Coalition for Palestinian Rights (BCPR). The lawsuit, which names Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff as defendants, seeks the immediate processing of Professor Habib's pending visa application and a declaration that his exclusion without explanation since October 2006 violates the First Amendment rights of U.S. organizations, citizens, and residents.

Habib is a renowned scholar, sought after analyst, and Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Research, Innovation and Advancement at the University of Johannesburg. He is also a Muslim who has been a vocal critic of the war in Iraq and certain U.S. terrorism-related policies. Until the government suddenly revoked his visa last October without explanation, he never experienced any trouble entering the U.S.; in fact, Habib lived in New York for years while earning a PhD in Political Science from the City University of New York.

The October 2006 revocation of Professor Habib's visa prevented him from attending a series of meetings with representative from institutions such as the National Institutes of Health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the World Bank, Columbia University, and the Gates Foundation. When he landed, Habib was detained for seven hours and interrogated about his associations and political views. Armed guards eventually escorted him to a plane and deported him back to South Africa. The State Department later revoked the visas of Professor Habib's wife and two small children, again, without explanation.

"I find it profoundly disturbing that the U.S. government continues to deny me the opportunity to participate in the kind of robust academic and political debate that is central to the American democratic system," said Habib. "Now more than ever, people from around the world recognize the consequences of American isolation within the global community. By letting in outsiders who represent ideological diversity, the U.S. can make good on its democratic ideals."

Last May, Habib applied for a new visa that would allow him to travel to the U.S. to attend speaking engagements, including the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association in August 2007. However, on the eve of his scheduled departure to New York, the State Department informed Habib that his visa application would not be processed in time for the meeting. As a result of the State Department's unexplained visa denial, Habib was prevented from speaking to the ASA and its members. His visa application continues to languish.

Professor Habib's exclusion is part of a larger pattern. Over the past few years, numerous foreign scholars, human rights activists, and writers -- all vocal critics of U.S. policy -- have been barred from the U.S. without explanation or on unspecified national security grounds.

In 2006, the ACLU filed a similar lawsuit on behalf of U.S. academic groups and Professor Tariq Ramadan, a widely respected Swiss scholar of the Muslim world. When the government revoked his visa in 2004, Professor Ramadan was prevented from assuming a tenured teaching position at the University of Notre Dame. The Ramadan lawsuit challenges the legality of his exclusion and the constitutionality of the Patriot Act provision under which he was initially excluded. He remains excluded today.

Today, the ACLU also launched a new interactive web feature that tells the stories of the artists, scholars and politicians the U.S. government has kept out of the country since the inception of ideological exclusion in 1952. It is available at: http://www.aclu.org/passportflash

Today's complaint is available at: http://www.aclu.org/safefree/general/31921lgl20070925.html

More information about ideological exclusion is available at: http://www.aclu.org/exclusion

Attorneys in the case are Goodman, Jameel Jaffer, Nasrina Bargzie, and Judy Rabinovitz of the ACLU, and Wunsch and John Reinstein of the ACLU of Massachusetts.

Press Release: ACLU Constitution Day Tonight Features National Speakers, Release of Congressional Civil Liberties Scorecard

BOSTON - Today, the ACLU presents its Constitution Day program, "Standing Up To The PATRIOT Act, Rolling Back Real ID: How Can We Reclaim Our Civil Liberties?" The event will take place in the Rabb Lecture Hall of the Boston Public Library, Copley Square, from 6 to 8 p.m.

The event features three nationally known speakers:

* Barbara Bailey, Director of the Wellesley-Turner Memorial Library in Connecticut, who is one of only four people in the country who can talk about being served with a National Security Letter -- out of more than 200,000 who have been permanently gagged after getting a National Security Letter from the FBI;

* Mike German, a former Special Agent with the FBI, who infiltrated domestic right-wing terror groups and later blew the whistle on the FBI's counter-terrorism operations;

* Tim Sparapani, national ACLU Legislative Counsel, who focuses on protecting privacy and opposing abuses of government power.

In addition, the event will feature a preview clip from a not-yet-released Robert Greenwald Executive Productions film on Government Spying.

The ACLU is also releasing a Congressional Scorecard, a detailed look at how members of the Massachusetts Congressional delegation have voted on 11 key "Abuse of Power" issues in the Senate and 10 in the House. The Scorecard includes a lifetime score from the ACLU on civil liberties issues, and highlights the bills that members of the Massachusetts Congressional delegation have been leaders on, by sponsoring or co-sponsoring important legislation.

The Scorecard includes a lifetime score from the ACLU on civil liberties issues, and highlights the legislation that members of the Massachusetts Congressional delegation have been leaders on, as sponsors or co-sponsors.

Constitution Day celebrates the rights established by the U.S. Constitution, adopted on September 17, 1787.

Press Release: ACLU of Massachusetts praises Tufts President and Dean for protecting freedom of speech on campus

The ACLU of Massachusetts praises the decision by Tufts University yesterday to drop a punishment imposed last spring on The Primary Source, a conservative student journal.

In May, the Tufts University Committee on Student Life ruled that The Primary Source had violated the student code by publishing two pieces that other students complained constituted harassment. One appeared to condemn the Islamic religion and the other mocked the academic qualifications of students of color. The Committee ordered that the journal had to henceforth publish a byline for every article, thus identifying each author and preventing anonymous speech.

The Journal filed an appeal with the Dean of Undergraduate Education at Tufts, James Glaser. The ACLU of Massachusetts wrote to the Dean and to the President of the University, expressing concern for freedom of speech on campus, even for obnoxious or offensive speech, and urging that the sanction be overturned. Anonymous speech has long been considered essential and protected in rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court.

On Monday, the Dean of Undergraduate Education issued his decision on the appeal and set aside the requirement that bylines be published on all articles in The Primary Source. He found that this requirement by the Committee on Student Life was a punishment for unpopular speech. Also on Monday, the President of the University, Lawrence Bacow, issued a strong statement in support of freedom of speech on campus.

"The ACLU of Massachusetts is heartened by the actions of the Tufts President and Dean," said Sarah Wunsch, Staff Attorney for the ACLU of Massachusetts. "While we do not in any way support the views expressed in the articles in The Primary Source, we do believe that the answer to offensive speech is not to punish it. As President Bacow stated, the 'appropriate response to offensive speech is more speech, not less.' We are especially appreciative of the recognition by President Bacow that although Tufts is a private university and not directly bound by the First Amendment, free speech rights are just as essential on a private campus as they are at a public university, where the Constitution applies without question."

President Bacow’s statement is available at:
http://go.tufts.edu/8-27statement

The ACLU of Massachusetts letter is available at:
http://www.aclum.org/pdf/ACLUM_Tufts_Letter_30May2007.pdf

News: City Hall in brouhaha over adversarial Web site

Yesterday the Brockton Enterprise quoted ACLUM staff attorney Sarah Wunsch in a story about the city of Brockton blocking access to a popular website that has criticized city officials. Wunsch says, "[I]f this is a case of the city blocking this Web site because it contains a critical view of the city, that would be troubling from a First Amendment point of view."

News: The 10th Annual Muzzle Awards

The Phoenix cites ACLU work in a number of the cases highlighted in its 10th Annual Muzzle Awards, which take on efforts to stifle free speech. In particular, this year's awards highlight ACLUM's work on behalf of a Boston substitute teacher who wound up in trouble for speaking out against the school system spending $1.2 million on a Junior ROTC program. The City just agreed to settle the case.

Press Release: Boston Agrees to Settle Lawsuit Alleging Retaliation Against Teacher for Testifying Against Funding of JROTC in Public Schools

BOSTON - Attorneys for the ACLU of Massachusetts and the Boston Teachers Union today announced the settlement of their lawsuit in federal court on behalf of long time substitute teacher Jeffrey Herman against Jose Duarte, the headmaster of Boston's English High School. Herman was put on a "Do Not Call" substitute teacher list for English High School after he testified at a Boston City Council hearing in opposition to the City spending over one million dollars for Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) programs in the Boston public schools. Duarte, a member of the U.S. military who has Reveille played over the school loudspeaker at the start of school each day, was angered by Herman's views and ordered him out of the school.

"I testified at City Hall that taxpayer dollars would be better spent on teaching kids how to stop the violence that is plaguing our city," said Herman. "After that, Duarte screamed at me to get out of his school. Since schools are supposed to teach respect for the Constitution, I believed Mr. Duarte needed a lesson himself," he said.

In settling the lawsuit, the City did not admit to any wrongdoing by the headmaster, but agreed to a monetary payment to Herman and his attorneys in exchange for Herman agreeing to the dismissal of his lawsuit. Herman, who has been outspoken about his criticisms of Duarte's leadership of the school in general, also agreed he would not return to substituting at English High School as long as Duarte is still headmaster there. The School Department has agreed that when Duarte is no longer the headmaster, Herman's name will be removed from the "Do Not Call" list for that high school. English High School is being restructured to become a Commonwealth Pilot School to avoid the label, "chronically underperforming."

"The Boston Teachers Union, which supported Jeff's right to speak out in this case, is pleased that the matter has been amicably resolved," said attorney Matthew Dwyer. "The union always takes seriously any infringement, actual or threatened, on the First Amendment rights of its members," he said.

Sarah Wunsch, ACLUM staff attorney, was also glad the case had been settled. "Teachers are entitled to political opinions just like everyone else. We need them to feel free to share those opinions with the public and elected officials, outside the school, without fear of losing their jobs for doing so," she said. "Especially with great public debate going on right now about the war in Iraq and the lack of alternatives for poor kids to pay for college, Jeff Herman had a right to speak out at City Hall about Boston spending over a million dollars on JROTC."

Letter to Editor: 'Day of Action' rally scheduled in city

Ron Madnick, Director of the Worcester County Chapter of the ACLU of Massachusetts, published this letter to the editor about the upcoming Day of Action to Restore Law and Justice.

Grudging credit

Well, what do you know? A local "pro-family action center" gave grudging credit last month to the ACLU of Massachusetts for defending the First Amendment:

"In a rare move, ACLU agrees... that you can't suspend the 1st Amendment!"

There's no direct link to the quote, but you can currently scroll down to it on the homepage of massresistance.org. It's about our oppostion to legislation that would expand protest buffer zones. As we told the Boston Globe, "We're strong supporters of reproductive freedom, but we're also strong supporters of freedom of expression."

A rare move? The ACLU has been defending free expression -- and the freedom of religion and belief -- for 87 years.

News: FBI warns universities to watch for spies

This AP story quotes ACLUM's Legal Director, John Reinstein, on the FBI program asking universities to keep a lookout for "suspicious" behavior. It made national news.