News & Commentary

“Debate on public issues should be robust, uninhibited and wide-open,” Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. wrote. This is even true in schools, where free speech must be balanced against the goal of creating a safe environment for all kids. Officials at Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville chose between those two goals, a choice we believe is a false one. Maintaining free speech is, i

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House Bill 2093 imposes on private and government employers burdensome training and compliance obligations regarding abuse and neglect reporting, even for staff that have no contact with patients seeking birth control, birth control counseling, sex education, gynecological care and services, abortions, abortion referrals or abortion counseling. Current law already contains rigorous reporting requirements for licensed health care providers, including doctors, nurses and social workers. Imposing these obligations on office staff and secretaries is nothing but an effort to burden these service providers. Download the fact sheet. House Bill 315

From ACLU national's Blog of Rights:

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Neuqua Valley High School students would be allowed to wear “Be Happy, Not Gay” T-shirts under a ruling Tuesday by the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The court had rejected Indian Prairie School District 204’s argument that school officials could prohibit students from wearing the shirts to prevent some students from having their feelings hurt. In its opinion, the court said a “school that permits

2011 has been a precarious year for women’s health care. Across the nation, political leaders seem determined to undermine the ability of women to access even the most basic health care – especially reproductive health care. The U.S. House recently voted to slash federal funding that provided more than 2 million breast cancer screenings and more than 2 million pap smears in the United States. In the same week, the House also slashed all funding for Planned Parenthood across America.