More than a month ago, a federal court ordered the Trump administration to reunite immigrant children and parents it had separated at the U.S. border. Yet hundreds of children remain on their own in government custody, and many of their parents have already been deported. Lee Gelernt, deputy director of the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project and attorney for the separated families, just returned from a trip to Guatemala to find some of the parents whose children are still being held in the U.S.
Sep 13, 2018•25 min
The Supreme Court is meant to protect the rights and liberties guaranteed by the Constitution. Historically, however, it has repeatedly failed to live up to that promise. Can one justice change the course of the Supreme Court? Erwin Chemerinsky, a Supreme Court litigator and dean of Berkeley Law School, discusses the court’s history and the threats a Justice Brett Kavanaugh could pose to our constitutional rights.
Sep 06, 2018•32 min
Many of the children who are presently gearing up for a new school year are also preparing to face police on a daily basis. The numbers of cops in schools is growing, which often means that instead of a detention or a time out, routine misbehavior can result in arrest and criminal charges — with children of color disproportionately impacted. The U.S. Department of Education recently released data collected from America’s 96,000 public schools. That data shows that students of color make up the m...
Aug 30, 2018•27 min
President Trump often demonizes entire immigrant groups, referring to Mexican people as “rapists” and undocumented immigrants as “animals.” Yet statistics show that immigrants, both undocumented and otherwise, are actually less likely to commit crimes than the average U.S. citizen. How did our American political conversation start to conflate immigrants with criminality? And how has immigration policy changed along with this rhetoric? Cecilia Wang, the deputy legal director of the ACLU, discusse...
Aug 23, 2018•32 min
The United States sends more people to prison or jail than any other nation in the world. Donald Trump pledged to be tough on crime, and Attorney General Jeff Sessions has pushed to reinvigorate the war on drugs. They're contributing to the mass incarceration crisis, but they didn't create it. It's the result of decades of criminal policies enacted in every state in this country. Local prosecutors are big drivers of mass incarceration. Can they be part of the solution? Udi Ofer, the deputy natio...
Aug 16, 2018•29 min
On August 12, 2017, a group of white supremacists gathered in Charlottesville, Virginia. The day was a disaster, with violence in the streets and Heather Heyer murdered by a man who drove his car into a crowd of anti-racist protesters. The ACLU of Virginia had represented Jason Kessler, the march organizer, in a First Amendment lawsuit when city officials attempted to move the location of the event. The ACLU’s representation of Kessler has renewed debate, both inside and outside the organization...
Aug 09, 2018•35 min
It seems like artificial intelligence is everywhere these days — in our homes, in our cars, in our offices, and of course online. Government decisions, too, are being outsourced to computer code. In one Pennsylvania county, for example, welfare services use digital tools to assess the likelihood that a child is at risk of abuse. Los Angeles contracts with the data giant Palantir to engage in predictive policing, in which algorithms identify residents who might commit future crimes. Local police ...
Aug 02, 2018•21 min
In recent months, Black Americans have had the cops called on them for things like waiting in Starbucks, entering their own dorm rooms, moving into their own apartments, and barbecuing in a public park. Why are these stories making waves now, and what do they say about being Black in America? Jeff Robinson, director of the ACLU Trone Center for Justice and Equality, discusses America’s history of criminalizing race, and how we can meaningfully confront it.
Jul 26, 2018•32 min
The 14th Amendment, ratified exactly 150 years ago, promises equal protection to everyone. But it’s also used to strip the right to vote from millions of Americans who have been convicted of felonies. How did this happen, and who’s affected? Desmond Meade talks to At Liberty about his campaign that could restore voting rights to a huge number of Floridians. We also hear from the ACLU’s Dale Ho, about why the Florida initiative could tip the scales — in a good way — for the rest of the country.
Jul 19, 2018•26 min
On the eve of the five-year anniversary of the creation of Black Lives Matter, Patrisse Cullors discusses the life that led her to co-found one of the most consequential racial justice movements of our time. She talks about the evolution of the organization since its inception, what it’s like to live under surveillance, the books that inspired her, and more.
Jul 12, 2018•28 min
An eventful Supreme Court session just came to a close. This year, the court handed down major decisions on partisan gerrymandering, warrantless searches and seizures, union dues, the religious rights of business owners, and the Trump administration's notorious travel ban — to name a few. But the most consequential news from the court came once the session ended, with Justice Anthony Kennedy announcing his retirement. ACLU David Cole looks back on the most important cases of the session, and con...
Jul 05, 2018•27 min
Lee Gelernt has been fighting Trump’s family separation policy since early this year, months before it became the subject of national outrage. Thousands of children remain separated from their parents, despite the president’s executive order purporting to end the practice. Just hours before taping this interview, a federal judge issued a decision calling for the government to take immediate action to unify these families. Lee discusses the future of this policy and the consequences of the Suprem...
Jun 28, 2018•31 min
After 12 years at the center of a heated national debate about abortion rights and women’s healthcare, Cecile Richards recently stepped down as the president of the Planned Parenthood Federation of America. She joins At Liberty to discuss recent gains and losses of the reproductive freedom movement, why the 2018 midterm elections are giving her hope, and more.
Jun 28, 2018•37 min
