News & Commentary

On Election Day in 2013, I took my four children with me to watch me register to vote and cast my ballot in a city election in my small town in Iowa. Earlier that day, my daughter's class learned about the meaning of democracy and the importance of elections.

We've seen a wave of voter suppression laws across the country in recent years, which many have rightly characterized as a cynical attempt by politicians to manipulate the rules of the game.

When students at Glendale Unified School District learned through news reports last year that their Facebook and other social media accounts were being monitored by the district through a third-party company known as Geo Listening, students and parents were shocked, and so were we.

On Jan. 16, Congress introduced the Voting Rights Amendment Act of 2014 — a modern-day bill to strengthen voter protections nationwide. The bill is in response to last year’s Supreme Court ruling in Shelby County v. Holder that invalidated a critical part of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (VRA): the coverage formula that determined which states and political subdivisions were subject to the law’s preclearance requirement.

Nelson Mandela's wife, Graça Machel, has called him one of the tallest trees in Africa. I would venture to say that Nelson Mandela was one of the tallest trees in all the world.

Remember when we filed a lawsuit to obtain the FBI's full records on Antiwar.com? New documents confirm that the FBI targeted and spied on Antiwar.com. Government surveillance of news organizations interferes with democracy and journalists’ ability to report the news.

In a disappointing 5-4 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court today struck down Section 4, a critical provision of the Voting Rights Act that had protected the right to vote for people of color and language minorities since 1965.

It's LGBT Pride Month across the country, and all eyes are on the U.S. Supreme Court as we wait for decisions in two cases involving marriage for same-sex couples. So why is the City of Fresno blocking local marriage equality supporters from holding a rally? The ACLU stepped in today to make sure the city isn't silencing free speech.