News & Commentary

I currently attend Harold Washington College. I am interested in majoring in Latin American studies or an area that involves public policy. I didn’t know about my history or where I came from until I took a class on Latin American studies. This class woke up something inside of me that has pushed me

My name is Julio Cesar Reyes. Back home in Zacatecas, Estancia de Animas, Villa Gonzalez, Mexico; I lived in a small masonry home with very limited exposure to architecture and very few construction opportunities. In 2001, when I was 6 years old, my life changed completely. My mother, my three sibli

I can’t imagine getting into college without DACA. I can’t imagine doing half the things I did in high school without DACA. With it, I was able to travel with my mock trial team.

My roots are in Chicago. My whole life is here, my family and husband are here. We just bought a house and we depend on my income to support my family. Just to know that my job, our house, our life here could all so easily be taken away from us is terrifying.

To honor DACA’s fifth anniversary, the ACLU of Illinois is launching a storytelling project featuring DACA recipients. We hope that by telling these stories, we give agency to more people to tell their own story and challenge the harmful rhetoric coming from the Trump Administration.

We are disappointed by a recent decision of the U.S. District Court that blocks some of the critical patient protections the General Assembly recently incorporated into the Illinois Health Care Right of Conscience Act. The amendment at issue ensures that when patients in Illinois go to their health

In late July, President Donald Trump gave a speech to a group of police officers and officials in New York, during which he suggested that police should feel free to “rough up” arrestees and those detained for questioning.  The ACLU of Illinois’ Karen Sheley responded to that comment and how police misconduct has contributed to the broken system of policing in Chicago. Read Sheley's statement.  

The ACLU on Tuesday filed a motion on behalf of the staff at the Illinois Youth Center in Harrisburg citing criminal charges against the Department of Juvenile Justice/IYC Harrisburg Youth Center.

After more than a year on the campaign trail spent sneering at the rise in violent crime in the City of Chicago, Donald Trump promised real, bold action to address the problem. After nearly six months of waiting and more tweets, the Administration ignored the crying need for investment in social services and meaningful police reform in Chicago and, instead, sent some added Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) agents to assist police in the City.