Happy New Year!



Welcome back to the ACLU of Illinois E-Newsletter for 2006. 2006 promises to be exciting and fast-paced - dominated by a range of issues for discussion on the local, state and federal levels. Congress will need to determine what to do finally with the effort to renew the USA PATRIOT Act, and the Senate Judiciary Committee has scheduled hearings on warrantless spying by the National Security Agency. Soon, Congress will be in the midst of a debate over reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act, and the ACLU of Illinois will sponsor our annual Statewide Summit on voting issues (the event is scheduled for April 22nd in Champaign with more details in the next edition of the E-newsletter). We are working in the Illinois General Assembly to expand data collected by police to guard against racial profiling and to protect privacy and fundamental rights on a number of issues. We continue to labor to protect religious liberty for all persons in Illinois, and we will continue to pursue litigation to protect the basic rights of young people detained at the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center, the nation's largest juvenile justice detention center. As always, we couldn't accomplish all this work and advance our goals without your assistance. Thanks for all you do!



Take Action on Proposal to Force DNA Testing on All Arrestees in Illinois



As the Illinois General Assembly gets down to business for the Spring 2006 session, we already are seeing legislation that gives us cause for concern. This week, the House is scheduled to hear House Bill 4607 that requires law enforcement agencies to collect a DNA sample from all persons arrested for felonies in the State of Illinois, greatly expanding the current mandate that DNA be gathered from all persons convicted. You can read more about the legislation and see how you can help at http://www.aclu-il.org/legislative/alerts/2006/01/call_before_house_vote_oppose.shtml.



See Guantanamo, the Play



The Young Advocates of the ACLU is hosting a special presentation of the play Guantanamo: Honor Bound to Defend Freedom on Sunday, February 26th. The show, which already has sold out some performances, takes place at the Timeline Theatre, 615 West Wellington Avenue in Chicago. A panel discussion will follow the play. For tickets, please contact aremtulla@stanfordalumni.org. You can read more about the play at http://www.timelinetheatre.com/tickets/index.htm and you can read more about the discussion following the play at http://www.timelinetheatre.com/guantanamo/sunday_scholars.htm. Originally produced to great acclaim in London in 2004 and a subsequent hit Off-Broadway, Guantanamo is based on interviews with detainees who were released from Guantanamo Bay in February 2004. This stirring docudrama weaves together personal stories, legal opinion and political debate, looking at questions surrounding the detentions of suspected "enemy combatants" while examining the potential damage being done to Western democratic values during the war on terror.



Key Lobby Day in Springfield on Comprehensive Sexual Education



Advocates are circling February 28th on their calendars. That is the day that advocates are gathering in Springfield to lobby for Responsible Sex Education. The Illinois Campaign is leading the event for Responsible Sex Education. If you require further information or to participate, please contact Adaku Utah at adaku@icah.org or call 312-427-4460 ext 236.



Are you interested in volunteering for the ACLU?



We're looking for a skilled and dedicated volunteer to lend a hand in our office during the business day. The ideal candidate should be comfortable using a computer and Microsoft Excel. Volunteering at ACLU is so much fun, our "newest" volunteer has been with us for 4 years! If you're interested, please e-mail ysotelo@aclu-il.org