ACLU of Mississippi
Because Freedom Can't Protect Itself
ACLU OF MISSISSIPPI RAISES CONCERNS ABOUT SUPPRESSION OF POLITICAL SPEECH IN DIAMONDHEAD
DIAMONDHEAD, MISS. -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi sent an open letter to the Diamondhead Property Owners Association (POA) on Monday on behalf of several residents of the City of Diamondhead who have complained that the POA's rules, regulations, and covenants do not permit them to display political yard signs or engage in door-to-door campaigning. The City of Diamondhead is in the midst of its first municipal elections since incorporation in 2012.
In the open letter, the ACLU called on the POA to assure residents that it would refrain from enforcing its covenants, rules, and regulations that impermissibly violate its members' First Amendment rights. Read More
BREAKING NEWS: The Mississippi Supreme Court issued a stay of execution today in the Willie Manning case.
Tomorrow, Willie Manning Is Scheduled To Die. Shouldn't Mississippi Find Out If He's Innocent First?
Mississippi Governor Phil Bryant alone has the power to save Willie Manning, who is scheduled to die tomorrow, May 7, 2013. Mississippi is steamrolling toward execution even though there is compelling evidence that Willie Manning may be an innocent man.
Manning's case has many of the hallmarks of those of other innocent death row exonerees: false snitch testimony, junk science, and racial bias. The prosecutors in Manning's case, like in all too many cases, stacked the deck by systematically removing African-American jurors from Manning's trial. Manning, an African-American man, was convicted of the murders of two white college students. Read More
“On May 7th, 2013, Mississippi is scheduled to execute Willie Manning despite questions about his innocence. Much of the key evidence that led to Manning’s sentence of death has turned out to be a sham. One witness has admitted that he lied in his testimony and there was never any physical evidence Manning was involved in the deaths of two college students. The FBI has conceded that it wrongly testified about a “match” between a hair found in a victim’s car and Manning, admitting science supported no such thing. Since 1994, Manning has been requesting DNA testing that would prove his innocence. The FBI is willing to do the testing. Ask Governor Bryant to grant a stay and allow DNA testing.”
ACLU-MS GIVES "BIG UPS" TO JASON COLLINS BRAVERY.
His bravery makes it ok for youth to say I can be an athlete and Gay and it is okay!
Read the ACLU Blog of Rights
BREAKING NEWS: JUSTICES REFUSE ALABAMA'S IMMIGRATION LAW APPEAL
(Reuters) - The Supreme Court on Monday rebuffed the state of Alabama, and gave a win to the Obama administration, by declining to review a lower court ruling that had blocked a controversial part of the state's tough immigration law. Read the full story on Rueters.
THE ACLU OF MISSISSIPPI SUPPORTS VOLUNTARY STUDENT-LED PRAYER IN SCHOOL
Jackson, MS - The ACLU of Mississippi supports constitutionally protected, voluntary student-led prayer in school for students who want to pray. What ACLU-MS does not support is any policy or practice that violates the Constitution. This includes the practice of schools promoting one religious belief over another, therefore making a child of a different belief feel like an outsider or ostracized. It is the position of ACLU that religious education is best left to parents and their children, not public school officials. When school officials promote religion, they infringe on parents’ rights to decide what religious beliefs, if any, their children are taught. Read More
"Gang of 8" Immigration Bill Important First Step, Needs Improvement
JACKSON, MS – "The immigration reform bill proposed by the so-called 'Gang of 8' has the potential to be a historic advance for the civil rights and liberties of immigrants and all Americans," said Amelia McGowan, Staff Attorney of the ACLU of Mississippi. "The bill would allow millions of immigrants who contribute immeasurably to the vitality of this country to step forward on the road to citizenship." Mississippi is home to over 61,000 immigrants, according to U.S. Census Bureau data from 2010. Read More
ACLU-MS Applauds Federal Court Decision Defending Reproductive Justice For Mississippi's Women
Jackson, MS – April 16, The ACLU-MS, a non-profit organization that defends the Constitution and extends liberty to all persons applauds the decision by United States District Judge Daniel Jordan III to uphold reproductive justice for Mississippi women.
U.S. District Judge Jordan today blocked enforcement of a law that could have closed the doors of the only abortion clinic in Mississippi. The law imposes medically unjustified regulations that require all doctors performing abortions to have admitting privileges at local hospitals. The Admitting Privileges portion of the law was politically motivated and designed to make it impossible for women to obtain the care they need in Mississippi. If not for District Judge Jordan's decision, women of Mississippi would have most certainly been deprived their Constitutional Rights.
“Today’s court decision should serve as a reminder to extremist politicians that the Constitution and the rights and protections therein are available to all, including women and their right to private decision-making,” said Jennifer Riley-Collins, Executive Director of ACLU-MS. “Unfortunately, we are seeing politicians across the country attempting to push through similarly drastic measures. ACLU-MS will remain vigilant in its support of reproductive justice in Mississippi." Download the decision
ACLU-MS Announces New Executive Director
Jackson, MS – April 8, 2013: The ACLU-MS, a non-profit organization that defends the Constitutinal rights and extends liberty to all persons announced the appointment of its new Executive Director, Jennifer A. Riley-Collins. Ms. Riley-Collins, a native Mississippian, is an attorney with a demonstrated commitment to social justice and equality. She brings 14 years of legal experience, along with more than 25 years of leadership and organizational management both as an attorney and a military officer. Read more
ACLU Launches Nationwide Investigation into Police Use of Military Technology & Tactics
Militarization of Local Law Enforcement Erodes Civil Liberties, Encourages Overly Aggressive Policing
1 p.m. Eastern, Wednesday, March 6, 2013
CONTACT: Bear Atwood, (601) 354-3408; bearatwood@aclu-ms.org
Tom Rosenthal, (212) 549-2582; media@aclu.org
JACKSON, MS– American Civil Liberties Union of Mississippi and affiliates in 23 other states today simultaneously filed public records requests to determine the extent to which local police departments are using federally subsidized military technology and tactics that are traditionally used overseas.
“Equipping state and local law enforcement with military weapons and vehicles, military tactical training, and actual military assistance to conduct traditional law enforcement erodes civil liberties and encourages increasingly aggressive policing, particularly in poor neighborhoods and communities of color,” said Kara Dansky, senior counsel for ACLU’s Center for Justice. “We’ve seen examples of this in several localities, but we don’t know the dimensions of the problem.”
MISSISSIPPI ROUTINELY PUSHES YOUTH OUT OF SCHOOL AND INTO THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM, SAYS NEW REPORT ON STUDENT DISCIPLINE
Civil Rights Groups Unveil Findings on the Dangers of Extreme School Policies, and Recommend Alternative Solutions
The extreme student discipline practices that led the Department of Justice to sue one Mississippi county are far more widespread than previously thought, cites a new report from a coalition of civil rights organizations.
Titled Handcuffs on Success: The Extreme School Discipline Crisis in Mississippi Public Schools, the report details how extreme school disciplinary practices harm tens of thousands of Mississippi students who are removed from school every year for minor misbehaviors, such as violating dress codes and mouthing off to teachers. Many are also criminalized in the process. It also shows how this approach likewise harms teachers, law enforcement officials, community members at large, and the state’s economy.
Read more Download the report.
Mississippi Student Civic Engagement Day, From the CLASSROOM to the CAPITOL
Over 80 Mississippi students, parents, teachers, and youth advocates will attended the 1stAnnual ACLU of MS’s From the CLASSROOM to the CAPITOL! Students from around the state participated in morning workshops prior to going to the Capitol to meet state leaders. Student leaders delivered the MISSISSIPPI STUDENT BILL OF RIGHTS which was created by students to address issues that concern them most and that prevent their success in their schools and communities, and for their future. Download the Mississippi Student Bill of Rights
Event Announcments
From Our Blog
- Reality Check 11/11/11
Latest Tweets
Following
-
Written about 3 weeks agoRT @rcooley123: The Heritage Foundation immigration study is terrible. http://t.co/VJ8Xl7MzUK via @ACLU_MS -
Written about 3 weeks agoDid you vote in municipal #elections May 7th? Any problems at the polls in Mississippi? via @ACLU_MS
-
Written about 3 weeks agoRT @HipHopSummitMS: @aclu_ms @adv_project #School2Prison Pipeline in Action #Felony4ScienceExperiment #Extreme&HarshDiscipline http://… via @ACLU_MS
Volunteer Interest Meeting THIS THURS. @ 5:30pm
The 1st Volunteer Interest Meeting for the 2013 MS Youth Hip Hop Summit and 4th Annual Parent/Advocate Conference is THURS., May 9th.
When: Thurs., May 9th @ 5:30pm
Where: Eudora Welty Public Library, 300 N. State St., Jackson, MS
(Downtown Jackson - near 1st Baptist Church)
What: 1st Volunteer Interest Meeting for the amazing and inspiring Summit and PA Conference!
*Please RSVP here today and spread the good word:
Thank you and we look forward to seeing everyone May 9, 2013!
Support the Mississippi Student Bill of Rights
October 01, 2012
ACLU-MS Youth Advocates had an excellent Quarterly Youth Leadership Meeting September 22nd and 23d in Jackson! One of the many great things to come out of the meeting is this petition calling on the Jackson Public School Board to adopt the MS Student Bill of Rights. Students are working hard to get tons of signatures and can use your help tomaximize their campaign's impact! Please sign and forward widely, including your social media accounts -- you do not have to be a JPS student to sign the petition -- anyone (youth and adults) who supports dignity, respect, and equality for students is encouraged to sign!
These students are fired up and ready to make change! Let's support their courageous efforts!
Sign the Petition!
Read the Mississippi Student Bill of Rights
The ACLU has more than 100 national and affiliate staff attorneys, who collaborate with more than 2,000 volunteer attorneys to handle more than 6,000 cases annually - making the ACLU, in effect, the largest public interest firm in the nation. The ACLU appears before the U.S. Supreme Court more than any other organization except the U.S. Department of Justice. Download your copy of the ACLU's Hundred Greatest Hits (611k PDF) and read about the landmark Supreme Court decisions in which the ACLU played a major role, either as direct counsel or as friend-of-the-court.
Win for the ACLU of Mississippi After Free Speech Victory in the State Court of Appeals!!
David Archie is a local activist from the Jackson area who has been around for quite awhile. After hearing complaints from the Canton area about incidents of racial profiling by the Madison County Sheriff’s Department, Archie and other local community groups planned a “Rally and March for Justice” in Canton, Mississippi, for March 27, 2008. Read More.
