Impact Report: August 2024

Protecting Rights at the DNC

National political conventions provide a critical forum for speech and expression on issues of concern to people from the host cities and around the country. Yet, public officials regularly attempt to limit free expression in and around the conventions. Because the ACLU was founded on a firm commitment to the principle that our debates on public policy matters are strengthened when each of us is free to protest without government interference, we are working to ensure that the upcoming Democratic National Convention is an opportunity for people to make their voices heard. This year’s convention will be held August 19-22 in Chicago, with official events hosted at the United Center and McCormick Place.

Senior Supervising Attorney Rebecca Glenberg speaking at press conference

In May, we filed a lawsuit on behalf of Bodies Outside of Unjust Laws (Bodies Outside), a group which had requested a permit to march along Michigan Avenue the Sunday before the convention begins. Bodies Outside was one of many groups that sought a permit to march during the convention, only to have their permit requests denied by the City of Chicago. In fact, nearly every group that applied for a permit was denied. The City initially offered Bodies Outside only one alternative – a route that was far away from the group’s intended audience. After the ACLU’s intervention the City verbally agreed in court to a route that would allow the coalition to march along a different path, but still down Michigan Avenue the day before the convention.

We have not stopped there; our litigation continues, seeking to make certain that the rules and location around “security zones” enforced around the convention sites are clear so that protestors and demonstrators know where they are permitted to be present. Security zones are areas that will have enhanced security because of their proximity to the convention, as well as a list of prohibited items within those zones. Many of those items that people might carry with them every day, or if they were planning on attending a protest – like pens or first aid kits.

As approved by the City Council, these zones would be determined solely by the Chicago Police Department Superintendent. The location of these zones – as well as the precise nature of the items permitted inside the zones – are currently allowed to be altered at any time without giving protestors any notice – placing the protestors at risk of being arrested when they were adhering to the previous guidelines the City set. We are continuing to fight for more guidance around these security zones.

As part of the preparation for the convention, we are also concerned about the way in which Chicago police and any police departments that CPD contracts with interact with protestors. In the wake of the murder of George Floyd in 2020, CPD officers used excessive force and arrested large numbers of people solely engaged in protest. We are working through a variety of means to urge police not to engage in mass arrests, and appropriately respond to protests by not kettling large groups in a small space or suddenly calling for blanket curfews. Moreover, because we know the history of law enforcement using inappropriate and excessive force on communities of color, immigrant communities, and the LGBTQ+ community, the need for restraint in police response is imperative.

During the convention we will be vigilant to ensure the free expression rights of peaceful protestors and to gauge police response to demonstrators. We will be ready to respond through direct communication with City and police officials and are prepared to go to court if it becomes necessary. As we have planned for the event, we have coordinated closely with our colleagues at the ACLU of Wisconsin, who worked to defend free expression during the recent Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. We have learned from that experience in helping to prepare for protests and demonstrations in Chicago.

The ACLU remains committed to protecting the right to protest, especially in this crucial moment.

Letter from Our Executive Director

By Colleen Connell

The 2024 presidential election cannot be viewed solely in the context of the political machinations of the last two months of the campaign. A much broader and longer frame must be used to evaluate the risks to our democracy. Specifically, the Supreme Court’s recent decision conjuring up near-absolute immunity for all “official” acts of a president, even if those acts violate the law, and Project 2025, the repressive blueprint for a second Trump term, must be considered.

First, the immunity decision. In Trump v. United States, the Court created a shield against prosecution for crimes a president commits while in office, a result at odds with the text of the Constitution and its history. The framers of the Constitution specifically granted immunity for members of Congress in the speech and debate clause of Article 1; the Constitution contains no such grant of immunity for the President and deliberately so. The framers restrained presidential power to avoid replicating the monarchy they had rebelled against.

This SCOTUS decision eviscerates many of the constitutional checks on presidential power as Justice Sotomayor laments in her crisp dissent, noting that “the President is now a king above the law.” Joined in dissent by Justices Kagan and Brown Jackson, Justice Sotomayor skewers Chief Justice Roberts’ majority opinion, explaining that Trump’s efforts to overturn the 2020 election was precisely the kind of conduct that the framers sought to restrain. “It is not conceivable that a prosecution for alleged efforts to overturn a presidential election [would] . . . ‘pose any dangers of intrusion on the authority and functions of the Executive Branch.’” The dissent notes that our Constitution demands a transfer of power when a president loses reelection.”

Second, the risks to our republic posed by this decision are underscored by Project 2025, a 900-page plan for a second Trump Administration prepared by the Heritage Foundation, a think tank stuffed with former members of the Trump Administration and white Christian Nationalists. If executed, Project 2025 fundamentally restructures power in our federal government – tilting control over large swaths of federal policy to the President and politically-loyal appointees. When combined with the recent Supreme Court discovery of a broad presidential immunity from criminal prosecution, the likely outcome is a presidency free of traditional checks and balances, surrounded by loyalists, bent on advancing policy outcomes that undermine fundamental liberties and freedoms.

Project 2025 specifically calls for maintaining a “biblically based” definition of marriage and family. It contemplates a further attack on abortion, contraception, and comprehensive reproductive rights following the Supreme Court’s hideous Dobbs decision stripping away the federal constitutional right to decide whether and when to become a parent. Project 2025 specifically calls on the Food and Drug Administration to roll back the availability of medication abortion, curbing access to mifepristone the safest and most widely used medicine to manage abortion care. This policy aim takes on new concern given the GOP vice presidential candidate’s previously-stated support for using the 19^th Century – and long abandoned – Comstock Act to impose a nationwide ban on the sale and shipping of mifepristone as well as other medical devices used in abortion care and for birth control. Gender affirming care would also be restricted as would same sex marriage as contrary to the biblical basis of Project 2025. Religious liberty for those who practice any religion other than conservative Christianity – or no religion at all –is in doubt.

Project 2025 greenlights proposals for mass deportations that will separate thousands of families, calls for state and local law enforcement to be used for immigration enforcement and limits due process rights for those seeking asylum and other legal pathways to citizenship. Recalling that the Roberts Court approved then-President Trump’s Muslim ban, Project 2025 and a second Trump administration green-lights human rights violations of the worst kind.

The damage desired by Project 2025 is not limited. The document attacks free expression and educational freedom, pushing a skewed view of history that ignores our country’s painful history of racism and enslavement – substituting misinformation and jingoism for academic freedom and inquiry.

The risks to democracy posed by the immunity decision and Project 2025 will remain extant, regardless of the results of the 2024 election. They are a clarion call for continued advocacy by the ACLU to advance basic rights and liberties – from free expression and bodily autonomy to due process and LGBTQ+ rights – at the state level while we play the long game and advocate in Congress and before the Supreme Court to return to a constitutional vision that protects the rights of all Americans.

Supreme Court Term in Review

The U.S. Supreme Court term recently ended with several devastating losses. The impact of these decisions will reverberate for generations, and the ACLU will continue to fight to not only restore and protect these rights, but to cement and expand them. There were also several important victories this term. The critical civil liberties cases from this term included:

Trump v. United States: The Court issued a decision holding that presidents have broad immunity from criminal and civil prosecution for acts performed under their core constitutional powers. They also ruled that other official acts are granted presumptive immunity and can only be prosecuted if the prosecution does not undermine executive function. The decision sets a dangerous precedent by giving presidents legal cover to break the law when even arguably using their formal powers to do it.
Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. FDA: The Court unanimously dismissed a challenge to the availability of mifepristone, a safe and effective medication used in medication abortions and miscarriage car nationwide. The Court rejected the effort by anti-abortion extremists to impose medically unnecessary and inappropriate restrictions on the medication, finding that the group did not have standing to bring the case.
Idaho and Moyle, et al. v. United States: The Court dismissed the case from the docket without a ruling on the merits and sent it back down to continue in the lower courts. While the opinion temporarily restores the ability of doctors in Idaho to provide emergency abortions required under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA), by dismissing Idaho’s appeal without resolving the core issues in the case, the Supreme Court will only continue to put pregnant patients at unnecessary risk.
Alexander v. South Carolina State Conference of the NAACP: The Supreme Court upheld a racially gerrymandered congressional map that openly discriminates against Black voters in South Carolina. South Carolina's legislature carved Black voters out of Congressional District 1 for the sake of partisan advantage and weakening their voting power. This unjust map will harm Black people in the state.
City of Grants Pass v. Johnson: The Court ruled that the cruel and unusual punishment clause of the Eighth Amendment does not prohibit cities from punishing unhoused people for sleeping in public, even if they have nowhere else to go. This ruling reverses the Ninth Circuit of Appeal’s decision and has sparked significant concern. Criminalizing homelessness violates fundamental human rights and dignity and does nothing to address the root causes of homelessness.
National Rifle Association v. Vullo: The Court ruled that New York state officials violated the First Amendment by coercing private companies to blacklist the NRA due to its political views. The ACLU, despite opposing the NRA on many issues, represented the group to protect the First Amendment rights of all advocacy organizations. The decision emphasizes that government attempts to blacklist advocacy groups for their viewpoints are unconstitutional.
Net Choice, LLC v. Paxton: The Court sent two cases challenging laws regulating online platforms back to the lower courts after a unanimous ruling that the lower courts had not conducted a proper analysis of the First Amendment challenges. This decision is a win for free speech, emphasizing the importance of protecting free expression and editorial discretion on private platforms.

The Supreme Court also announced they will hear next term from transgender youth, their families, and their doctors in our challenge brought against Tennessee's ban prohibiting them from accessing gender-affirming medical care. This case has widespread implications for countless transgender youth and gender-affirming care nationwide.

Updates on the Fight for Rights and Liberties

Lawsuit Filed Against Knox County Juvenile Detention Facility

The ACLU of Illinois recently filed a federal class action lawsuit challenging the harmful solitary confinement practices at Knox County's Mary Davis Juvenile Detention Home (“MDH”). This juvenile detention center subjects detained youth to prolonged solitary confinement, often in cells for 22 to 23 hours daily. The facility also conducts invasive strip searches and fails to provide adequate mental health services for the youth in their custody. There is an overwhelming consensus amongst mental health experts that extended solitary confinement causes irreparable harm to kids, and it is made worse through the combination of the other abuses youth endured at MDH.

The ACLU of Illinois aims to reform their practice of detention and isolation. We argue that MDH is violating the constitutional rights of the youth and is also contrary to Illinois law. We are demanding improved treatment and conditions to ensure the well-being and safety of youth in custody. Our lawsuit highlights how solitary confinement policies exacerbate the trauma experienced by already vulnerable children. By isolating them for extended periods, the detention home not only disregards their mental health needs but also fosters an environment of neglect and abuse. The lawsuit also underscores the urgent need for systemic changes to protect the rights and health of detained youth.

Important Win for our Client Skyler Hyatt

In 2022, the ACLU of Illinois filed charges of discrimination against two Walmart stores on behalf of our client Skyler Hyatt who was denied service to cash a money order because he is transgender. Walmart’s denial of service to Mr. Hyatt violated the Illinois Human Rights Act which prohibits places of public accommodation from discriminating on the basis of gender identity and sex. Recently, a unanimous panel of the Illinois Human Rights Commission found that there was substantial evidence that both Walmart stores discriminated against Mr. Hyatt because of his gender identity and sex, allowing the lawsuit to move forward. This is a critical step in enforcing the Human Rights Act in every corner of Illinois.

2024 Spring Legislative Session and Look Ahead

Last session, the ACLU of Illinois worked on legislation on a range of issues. During the Spring Session, 3,180 bills were filed in the Illinois State Legislature. Of those, the ACLU of Illinois closely tracked 665 bills for their impact on civil liberties and we actively worked on 89 bills including proposing amendments, negotiating with stakeholders, and assisting in outreach.

We will continue our advocacy during the Veto Session in November and the Lame Duck Session in January, including our efforts to protect health data privacy, support kinship care in DCFS, support end of life options for terminally ill patients, and protect youth access to healthcare. We look forward to continuing to work with the General Assembly and fighting for the rights of Illinoisians. Read the full recap of the 2024 Spring Legislative Session here.

Engaging Together Around the State

Next Generation Society Updates

The Next Generation Society held its annual membership drive throughout the month of May. If you haven't joined yet, we encourage you to become a member today. This year’s drive was a chance to reflect on the Society's mission: addressing today's injustices while fighting for a more equal future. We celebrated the Membership Drive at the Next Generation Society Happy Hour on July 23rd. It was fantastic to connect with longtime and new members while enjoying food, drinks, and ping pong!

folks playing ping pong at Next Gen happy hour

And, please join the Next Generation Society for our two upcoming events! Chef and Next Generation Society Board Member Jason Vincent of Giant Restaurant will lead an all-star chef lineup for a special Celebrity Chef Benefit Dinner on Tuesday, October 1st at 5:00 PM at Chef’s Special Cocktail Bar (2165 N. Western Ave, Chicago, IL). The benefit dinner will include cocktails and appetizers, followed by a multi-course meal presented by local celebrity chefs all in support of the ACLU. Then, on Thursday, October 17th at 6:00 PM at the Ivy Room (12 E Ohio St, Chicago, IL) we will host our 10th annual Fall Fundraiser, celebrating a decade of community, advocacy, and impact. The event will feature food, drinks, inspiring speakers, a DJ, and more!

Finally, the Next Generation Society is celebrating its upcoming 10th anniversary with the Champions for Change campaign! We invite you to support this initiative — as a Champion for Change, you'll help propel our mission into the next decade. Over the past ten years, Next Gen has raised over $1.25M to support the ACLU’s work, engaged thousands of civil liberties advocates across Illinois, and funded a staff attorney position since 2021.

2024 Pride Celebrations

We are immensely grateful to ACLU supporters who joined us at the 2024 Chicago Pride Parade on Sunday, June 30th! In addition to the Chicago Pride Parade, the ACLU of Illinois’ Chapters in Springfield, Peoria, and Bloomington-Normal recently participated in Pride and Juneteenth celebrations in their communities. The annual Pride Fest celebration for our Champaign County Chapter will take place in September! Whether you marched with us, cheered from the sidelines, celebrated in your community, or supported from afar, your joy and enthusiasm made these events truly remarkable.

collage of photos from Pride events around the state

2024 Supreme Court Term in Review Event

The ACLU of Illinois, ACS Chicago Lawyer Chapter, and Mayer Brown held our annual Supreme Court Term in Review event on Tuesday, July 30th. The event featured Ameri Klafeta, Director of our Women’s and Reproductive Rights Project, ACLU-IL Board member Aziz Z. Huq, former ACLU-Il Board member Ami Gandhi, Steve Sanders, Steven D. Schwinn, and Michael A. Scodro who reviewed some of the major cases from the recent U.S. Supreme Court Term including cases on reproductive rights, voting, the First Amendment, and more. Click here to view the closed-captioned event recording.

audience watching the panel of experts at SCOTUS event

Our Fight, Our Future Engagement Campaign

Starting this summer, the ACLU of Illinois will be hosting a public engagement campaign titled Our Fight, Our Future to connect with supporters around the state. This campaign will be an opportunity to hear directly from supporters about what is happening in their communities, share about the work of the ACLU, inspire each of us to vote for our values in the election and motivate people to stay engaged in the fight for our rights beyond this election cycle. A combination of in-person and virtual events will take place around the state. Please keep an eye out for more details coming soon – we might be coming to a city near you! For more information, please click here.

What’s Happening Around the Country

2024 Election and Voting Rights Nationwide

This November, democracy is on the ballot. The ACLU will continue to fight for our most fundamental rights and liberties in court, in Congress and statehouses, in the streets, and at the ballot box. We will be ready with our partners to safeguard the election, ensure voters are informed as they head to the polls, and to respond to all outcomes as we have for the past 100+ years.

The ACLU’s recent wins against voter suppression efforts nationwide include: blocking a law barring non-citizens from helping people register to vote in Florida; blocking a ban on food and water provision to voters waiting in line in Georgia; striking down two laws that threatened same-day registration and ballot collection on reservations in Montana; and winning a motion for summary judgment to provision of broad voter suppression law in Texas.

Many of our most basic rights are on the ballot. The same extremist lawmakers who are rigging the rules are also restricting voters’ ability to cast a ballot, limiting what books we can read in public libraries or teach in public schools, banning trans people from accessing gender-affirming care, and criminalizing abortion care.

This November, it is critical that we show that “we the people” have the final say. We need to show up at the ballot box to protect our rights and freedoms and to stay engaged in our communities beyond the election cycle. Learn more about the important dates for this election, registering and voting in Illinois and how elected officials on your ballot impact civil liberties.

Ask the Expert

The following questions were answered by Rebecca Glenberg, ACLU of Illinois Senior Supervising Attorney:

Q: How do you respond to concerns about maintaining public safety during large events like the DNC?

A: There is nothing inherently dangerous about people gathered to express their views. It is all too easy for the government to use “public safety” as an excuse for suppressing speech and assembly. To protect public safety, the government may impose reasonable time, place, and manner restrictions on protesters. But the government may not impose restrictions just to make things more convenient for police and other government officials—it has to demonstrate that the restriction actually furthers public safety.

Also, any restrictions must be clear and must not give broad discretion to law enforcement that could be wielded in an arbitrary or discriminatory fashion. The City has not explained how public safety would be harmed by being clear about what items are prohibited in the security zones and making that information widely available.

Q: What advice would you give to folks planning on demonstrating this summer?

A: Here are a few tips from our Know Your Rights resource for protesters, which you can print and bring with you to protests:

Write important phone numbers on your body.
Identify an emergency contact and protest buddy.
Turn your phone on airplane mode when not in use.
Disable your phone’s Face or Touch ID and use a passcode.
Be mindful of posting photos and videos of other protesters.

You can also consider connecting with the National Lawyers Guild Chicago’s Legal Observer Program, which trains and sends law students, legal workers, and lawyers to document interactions between police and protesters. Legal observers provide an additional layer of protection for demonstrators by ensuring accountability and legal oversight.

If you are arrested while protesting, please call First Defense Legal Aid at 1-800-529-7374.

ACLU of Illinois Community Spotlight

Emmalee Scott (she/her)

Emmalee is the Director of Philanthropy and Engagement at the ACLU of Illinois. When Emmalee joined the ACLU in 2014, she identified and brought together a small core of people committed to supporting the ACLU – these individuals would later form the first board of the Next Generation Society. Ten years later, the ACLU Next Generation Society is an essential part of the ACLU of Illinois, and has grown into a vibrant and diverse community of hundreds of activists, artists, emerging leaders, and engaged people committed to supporting the essential work of the ACLU and advancing civil liberties for future generations.

What inspired the creation of the Next Generation Society ten years ago?
The Next Generation Society grew out of the realization that many people want to play a more active role in supporting organizations they care about, but often don’t really know where to begin (or even how they could help). We built the Next Generation Society to develop relationships with as wide and diverse a network of supporters as possible – and to then work in partnership with Next Gen members to create meaningful opportunities to contribute to our work. Today, Next Gen exemplifies a core component of the ACLU’s commitment to all people: that everyone who wants to help support the work of the ACLU has a role to play in moving the work forward.

Why is the continued support of the ACLU, including through Next Gen, so important in this moment?
For more than a hundred years, the ACLU has been at the forefront of advancing the rights of all people in this country and we are not backing down, no matter what challenges are ahead of us. Supporting the ACLU is a commitment to fighting for the rights of all people, and that becomes especially important when we see broadly intensifying efforts to curtail or eliminate those rights. The commitment of Next Generation Society members has strengthened our work over the last decade and it will continue to be an important part of the ACLU, both now and in the future.

What is giving you hope?
The growing awareness and action among all people. Movements for justice and freedom are gaining momentum, with more individuals uniting to challenge systemic injustices and fight for a country where “We the People” truly means all of us. People are increasingly rejecting the old narratives, refusing to accept that “This is just the way things are,” and are making their voices heard. The resilience and creativity of the people fighting for a better future, like so many Next Gen members, who refuse to accept oppression and demand a just world, inspire me daily. This collective energy drives my work and gives me optimism that a better future is not only possible but it is within reach — we must only reach for it together.

What are you currently reading, watching, or listening to?
I still can’t stop watching Ted Lasso, but I am also watching The Sympathizer based on the excellent book by Viet Thanh Nguyen. I recently finished reading The Assassination of Julius Caesar, by Michael Parenti, which I very much enjoyed and highly recommend!

Who Else You Should Know

National Lawyers Guild Chicago

The National Lawyers Guild is a non-profit federation of lawyers, legal workers, and law students. Since 1937, Guild members have been using the law to advance social justice and support progressive social movements. The National Lawyers Guild has chapters throughout the United States, and their National Office is in New York City.

The National Lawyers Guild Chicago’s membership includes people who practice and teach law, provide support services for major firms and solo practitioners, work in community-based organizations, and study to be the next generation of progressive lawyers in Chicago, the Midwest, and America. The National Lawyers Guild Chicago’s Legal Observer Program trains and sends law students, legal workers, and lawyers to document interactions between police and protesters. Legal observers provide an additional layer of protection for demonstrators by ensuring accountability and legal oversight. Learn more about the Legal Observer Program and how to get involved here.

Take Action & Join Us

Advocate

Message your U.S. Representative and Senators: America Elects Presidents, Not Kings
Message your U.S. Representative and Senators: Protect Our Voting Rights
Message your U.S. Senators: Protect Families Seeking Asylum
Tell the Secretary of Homeland Security: Justice for People Seeking Asylum: Stop Life-Threatening Tactics Now