News & Commentary

On November 5, we received the exciting news that Proposition 47 passed in California with a solid 59 percent of the vote. Not only will this measure reclassify six low-level offenses from felonies to misdemeanors, it is retroactive - meaning that thousands of individuals sentenced under these laws may now go before a judge to be resentenced or released, and hundreds of thousands of people with felony convictions for these offenses may have them removed from their record. Prop 47 enjoyed widespread support, from advocacy organizations, faith leaders, law enforcement, crime victims, judges, labor unions and republican and democratic leaders. 

As early as this week, the U.S. Senate may vote on the USA Freedom Act, a bi-partisan bill that would significantly scale back the federal government’s ability to illegally spy.

Been hearing a lot about net neutrality lately? Wondering what, exactly, that means? 

Tuesday night, I had the chance to spend a couple of hours in the presence of SisterSong’s execute director, Monica Simpson. The SisterSong collective, one of the first reproductive justice organizations, was formed in 1997 to address the reproductive and sexual health and rights for women of color. You can read more about Monica Simpson here. 

On Wednesday night at Bowdoin College (my alma mater), I'm going to give a talk on the first nine years of the Roberts Court. The focus will be on four areas of law - free speech, racial justice, privacy and criminal law - that are connected to my work as an ACLU lawyer who litigates questions of civil rights and civil liberties. But, I think these areas are worth focusing on not just because they are my job, but also because of their importance in the national conversation about what kind of country we want to have. These areas of law, each in their own way, tell a story about our relation to our government and our relation to one another that transcends the courtroom.

The following is adapted from a blog post at aclu.org:

Does this biology textbook’s page on contraceptives seem inappropriate? According to a school district in Arizona, some of the content on the page is so inappropriate, it needs to be removed. Last week, officials on the Gilbert Public Schools Governing Board voted 3-2 to redact content from a textbook used in the district’s honors biology classes. Alliance Defending Freedom, a Scottsdale-based conservative Christian legal and advocacy group, brought the offending content to the board’s attention. After listening to a presentation from Natalie Decker, a lawyer for Alliance Defending Freedom, the board came to the decision that the content should be removed from the textbook. 

Finally, Election Day is here! Download our handy voter guide, and, if you think you know all your rights already but want to be sure, take our Maine voting rights quiz.

Tuesday is Election Day and with it comes the opportunity to exercise one of our most cherished constitutional rights. Whether you're a first-time voter, looking to brush up, or hoping to provide information to friends and family members who are getting ready to vote tomorrow, you'll want to check out the ACLU of Maine's handy guide to your rights at the polls.