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Home » E-newsletter » Archives » July 1, 2005
July 1, 2005 ACLU of Illinois E-News 7.1.05 ACLU of Illinois Helps Businessman Sue Department of Homeland Security over Unnecessary Detentions Earlier this week, the ACLU of Illinois announced the filing of a lawsuit on behalf of Akif Rahman, suburban Chicago owner of a software consulting company, against the Department of Homeland Security. Beginning in March 2004, Mr. Rahman began to experience difficulty when he attempted to reenter the United States after traveling abroad. He has been stopped and detained on six occasions - based on what the DHS has described in writing as an "unfortunate misidentification scenario." The last stop took place in May 2005 when Mr. Rahman and his family were detained for approximately six hours at the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel while traveling back from visiting relatives in Toronto. For nearly three hours of the detention - during which Mr. Rahman was isolated from his wife and children - Mr. Rahman was handcuffed to a chair. You can read more about the case, statements of Mr. Rahman and his wife and the complaint in the lawsuit by going to http://www.aclu-il.org/news/press/000283.shtml. House of Representatives Votes to Curb Patriot Act In mid June, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to place important curbs on the power of the FBI to use the Patriot Act to get library and bookstore records. A bi-partisan group of House members voted to adopt the Freedom to Read Amendment, a measure that bar the Justice Department from using any funding to conduct searches of libraries and bookstores under Section 215 of the Patriot Act. The vote was another development in the on-going debate over renewing parts of the Patriot Act. You can read more about the House vote at http://www.aclu.org/SafeandFree/SafeandFree.cfm?ID=18485&c=206. You also can learn more about what you can do to fight making the Patriot Act permanent by going to http://action.aclu.org/reformthepatriotact/. Resolution of ACLU of Illinois Case Opens Doors to Leafleters at McCormick Place l people and organizations will have the opportunity to hand out leaflets at all public entry and exit points at Chicago's McCormick Place Convention Center, under the terms of a negotiated settlement agreement presented in federal district court in Chicago today. The settlement with the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority (MPEA), the government body that oversees McCormick Place, successfully concludes First Amendment litigation brought by the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois (ACLU) on behalf of two activists -- Katherine Albrecht and Quentin Young -- who sought to broaden their opportunity to effectively communicate with people attending conventions at McCormick Place. McCormick Place is considered the nation's premier convention facility, hosting more than four million visitors each year. It is regularly the site for business, professional, educational and governmental events. You can learn more about the case by going to http://www.aclu-il.org/news/press/000281.shtml. Flag Amendment Approved by House - Moves onto Senate On June 22nd, the U.S. House of Representatives again adopted the Flag Desecration Amendment, a measure that would use the U. S. Constitution to limit personal freedom and expression for the first time in American history. This year, the flag desecration amendment received the fewest votes in the past several years. The measure now moves onto the U.S. Senate. You can read more about the vote in the House by going to http://www.aclu.org/FreeSpeech/FreeSpeech.cfm?ID=18564&c=50. Supreme Court Term Ends with Stirring Words on Religious Liberty Monday marked the end of the term for the Supreme Court of the United States. The Court ended the term with major pronouncements on religious liberty in two cases about public displays of the Ten Commandments. Of course, during the term the Supreme Court took up a number of cases that impact civil liberties. You can read ACLU National Legal Director Steve Shapiro's analysis of the court term at http://www.aclu.org/court/court.cfm?ID=18594&c=286. |
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