This has been quite a week for free speech in Maine. At the beginning of the week, the Portland Press Herald reported calls to the principal at King Middle School, where a political party's convention was held last week. Apparently some people expressed concern over the box of ACLU Constitutions in the classroom, calling them "anti-American."
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Water? Check. Sunglasses? Check. Sneakers on my feet? Check. A "What Happens in Arizona Stops in Arizona" sign? Check.

Looks like I'm ready to march today. Let me tell you what I'm going to do tomorrow. (Or, what I'm going to do June 5th, really...)
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Much to my disbelief, Governor Jan Brewer of Arizona signed SB 1070, the extreme anti-immigration bill that passed the Arizona state legislature.
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At this point, you may already know about the extreme anti-immigrant Arizona bill that passed their state legislature. Normally, I like to blog about issues in our own state, but bills like the one in Arizona cannot go without comment.
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Earlier this week, we sent out an action alert urging members to sign the petition to the Deparment of Justice urging them to adjust their guidelines regarding the use of race by law enforcement agencies.  Ideally, these guidelines would detail to law enforcement how to enforce the law without using race as probable cause or reasonable suspicion. With all the loopholes and omissions in the guidelines, they do exactly the opposite.
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Today, Justice John Paul Stevens announced his retirement from the US Supreme Court. At almost 90 years old, he's certainly due to take some time for himself.  I can't help myself from wishing just a little bit, though, that he would stay.  As ACLU Legal Director Steven Shapiro notes, Justice Stevens' support for civil liberties was "deep and broad". | continue reading

Sadly, I was not one of the thousands of Mainers who heard President Obama's speech on the recently passed health care reform bill at the Portland Expo today.  I can't share a thrilling story about how I tried to get him to answer a question about Guantánamo. However (in light of his visit to our beautiful state) I can and feel compelled to remind you of the questions he still needs to answer.
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