vol. 74, no. 3

AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

Gang Injunctions:

A False Solution

Organizers Head

to the Ceniral Valley

BECAUSE

Se aa eer ac

eee

DLA. Races

news

Chapters Highlight

CAN T PROTECT VISE LE

VOLUME LXXIV ISSUE 3

Arizona's New Law: Unfair.

Unwise, Unconstitutional

THE FUTURE OF THE ACLU: BROADER HORIZONS, STRONGER IMPACT

By Elaine Elinson

new ACLU office in San Francisco serving as a hub for coalition meetings,

election phone banks and educational forums. A federal court case opposing

Arizona's notorious anti-immigrant law. Statewide mobilization against the

Texas school board's decision to skew the social studies curriculum. National

publicity for a Mississippi high school senior barred from her prom because she

wanted to wear a tux and bring her girlfriend.

All of these were made possible because of ACLU-NC members' outpouring

of support for The ACLU Campaign for the Future. This national effort, the

largest fundraising effort for civil liberties to our knowledge, came to a successful

conclusion on June 30.

"Our members can look at the strengthened capacity of af-

filiates that had limited resources and know that their gifts to

The ACLU Campaign for the Future really made a difference,"

said ACLU-NC Executive Director Abdi Soltani.

STRATEGIC AFFILIATE INITIATIVE

Through the Strategic Affiliate Initiative (SAI), the Campaign

-has created stronger, more proactive ACLU affiliates in key

regions of the country. These are places where civil liberties

problems are significant - and opportunities for change

abound. With this investment, affiliates have been able to

PAID

Non-Profit

Organization

U.S. Postage

Permit No. 4424

San Francisco, CA

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tackle difficult issues through an integrated strategy of litiga-

tion, public education and advocacy.

Here are three examples:

ARIZONA'S DEMAND FOR PAPERS

The ACLU of Arizona became a recipient of SAI funding just

months before SB 1070, the most egregious anti-immigrant

law in the country, was signed by the governor. With SAI

support, the Arizona affiliate was able to increase its staff 100

percent, from 9 to 18. Within days of SB 1070's passage, the

affiliate, along with the national ACLU Immigrants' Rights

Project and MALDEF (Mexican American Legal Defense and

Education Fund), filed a federal civil rights lawsuit to halt its

implementation.

WHAT WE ACCOMPLISHED

IN FIVE YEARS -

Raised over $25 million W '

Purchased permanent home in

Northern California Vv

Invested in California programs W

Strengthened coast to coast impact 4

Unified 389 ACLU donors and 68

volunteers in a historic effort Y

Transformed the ACLUIW

__ The new law, which requires all people to show their papers

to police on demand to establish their citizenship or immigra-

tion status, "turns Arizona into a police state," according to

Arizona ACLU Executive Director Alessandra Soler Meetze.

"You need to carry papers just to establish your innocence

and legal status. There is a tremendous amount of fear, many

Latinos are afraid to send children to school, afraid to contact

police."

"The lawsuit and the ACLU's ability to rapidly mobilize po-

litical opposition - from the grassroots to the editorial board

of the New York Times - shows that a strong local base in

Arizona makes a difference for the country," explained Soltani.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 5

on the Board.

+ BOARD ELECTION NOTICE

~The ACLU-NC Board of Directors, in accordance with changes adopted in the bylaws in 2003 (Article VI, Section 3

and Article VI, Section 4), have an election schedule as follows:

Nominations for the Board of Directors will now be submitted by the September Board meeting; candidates and ballots

will appear in the Fall issue of the ACLU News; elected board members will begin their three-year term in January.

As provided by the revised ACLU-NC bylaws, the ACLU-NC membership is entitled to elect its 2010-2011 Board of

Directors directly. The nominating committee is now seeking suggestions from the membership to fill at-large positions

ACLU members may participate in the nominating process in two ways:

1. They may send suggestions for the nominating committee's consideration prior to the September Board meeting (Sep-

tember 16, 2010). Address suggestions to: Nominating Committee, ACLU-NC, 39 Drumm Street, San Francisco,

CA 94111. Include your nominee's qualifications and how the nominee may be reached.

2. They may submit a petition of nomination with the signatures of 15 current ACLU-NC members. Petitions of

nomination, which should also include the nominee's qualifications, must be submitted to the Board of Directors

by October 6, 2010 (twenty days after the September board meeting). Current ACLU members are those who have

renewed their membership during the last 12 months. Only current members are eligible to submit nominations, sign

petitions of nomination, and vote. No member may sign more than one such petition.

ACLU members will select Board members from the slate of candidates nominated by petition and by the nominating

committee. The ballot will appear in the fall issue of the ACLU News.

WELCOME TO THE ACLU NEWS.

THE 2010 FRONTLINE RECEPTION

he ACLU-NC Foundation celebrated its civil rights advocacy on behalf of Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender

communities at the annual FrontLine Attorney Reception on June 29.

This year's event honored Matt Coles for his 15 years at the helm of the ACLU LGBT and AIDS Project and was

generously underwritten and hosted by Orrick Herrington and Sutcliffe. ACLU-NC Executive Director Abdi Soltani

and LGBT Project Director James Esseks addressed the lawyers and summer associates, describing the ACLU's

work to protect the constitutional rights of LGBT people and those living with HIV. Coles also acknowledged the

support of the firm sponsors and host committee members whose contributions provide a portion of the financial

support needed to lead this effort.

Vivove taree Mire Goles, Janes

Esseks, Kelli Evans, Abdi Soltani.

Directly above: L to R: Bonnie

Akimoto, Daniel Galindo,

Susanna Chase, Nishan Bhaumik.

At left: Robert Nakatani, David

Helbraun, R. Boone Callaway.

MICHAEL B. WOOLSEY

e

ACLUnews -

ACLU-NC AUTHORS' CIVIL LIBERTIES BOOK | THE PUBLICATION OF THE

WINS CALIFORNIA BOOK AWARD AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

Membership ($20 and up) includes a subscription to the

ACLU News. For membership information call

(415) 621-2493 or visit www.aclunc.org

erever There' a Fight, How Runaway Slaves, Suffragists, Immigrants,

Strikers, and Poets Shaped Civil Liberties in California, written by

former ACLU-NC Communications Director. Elaine Elinson and ACLU-

NC Planned Giving Director Stan Yogi, was awarded the Gold Medal in the

category of Californiana at the 79th California Book Awards. Since 1931,

the California Book Awards have honored the exceptional literary merit of

California writers and publishers.

Nancy Pemberton CHAIR

Abdi Soltani EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Laura Saponara EDITOR

Gigi Pandian ASSOCIATE EDITOR,

DESIGNER

Elinson and Yogi are pictured at the June 3 awards reception at the

Commonwealth Club in San Francisco.

39 Drumm Street, San Francisco, CA 94111

(415) 621-2493

2 | ACLU BECAUSE FREEDOM CAN'T PROTECT ITSELF

OAKLAND GANG INJUNCTION

A FALSE SOLUTION

By Diana Tate Vermeire

uring a recent visit to a youth center in Oakland, U.S.

Attorney General Eric Holder said, "We don't want

to get tough on crime, we want to get smart on crime."

Being smart on crime requires winning strategies to

enforce existing laws today and invest in community pro-

grams that change the climate of violence over the long

term. Oakland faces a serious problem with violent crime,

but it is also a wonderful city that deserves meaningful,

long-term solutions to its problems.

My husband and J are raising our young son just three

blocks from the huge area of North Oakland covered by a

proposed injunction. I understand the safety concerns, but

this community does not need a false solution that fails to

address the root problems of violence and gang activity.

Gang injunctions are court orders that criminalize ev-

eryday activities of people labeled gang members by relying

on a lower burden of proof in the civil court sys-

tem. In cities where gang injunctions have been is-

_ sued, they have resulted in young black and Latino

men - whether they are 16, 25 or 35 - facing

harassment by police simply because of what they

look like and where they live.

Our communities are less safe when police spend

their time profiling and penalizing otherwise legal

day-to-day activities, instead of truly addressing

serious crime and violence. If someone has

committed a violent crime, police can arrest

them. The criminal justice system - along with

its procedural protections and tougher sentencing

- is the appropriate place for addressing these

offenses against the community.

Some may look to San Francisco, which has

enacted gang injunctions in several neighborhoods,

oe racial and calraral tensions

tention. ihe ACLU- `NC oF the sha ol to

but it is impossible to compare San Francisco side-by-side

with Oakland. The gang injunction in San Francisco's Mis-

sion District, for example, covers just a few square blocks,

compared with 100 square blocks in North Oakland. The

Oakland Police Department's relationship with the com-

munity is also far worse than the relationship between the

community and the police in San Francisco.

LEGAL BRIEFS

A quarter-century after the first injunction was is-

sued in Los Angeles, injunctions still aren't working,

and cities like Oakland are following a bad example.

Thorough reports from the Justice Policy Institute and

the Advancement Project conclude that, to prevent vio-

lent crime and gang activity, cities need to create job

and education opportunities and fund social services

for at-risk youth.

The City of Oakland has the opportunity to chart a dif-

ferent path and craft a winning public safety strategy that

works. My family and neighbors deserve to feel safe, and

truly be safe, in the city that we love.

Oakland should have the best public safety strategies in

place. The measure of these strategies should be whether

they work. Gang injunctions do not. @

This Op-Ed by Diana Tate Vermeire, ACLU-

MOG Racal Jusuton leropaae

adapted from one that originally appeared

in the San Francisco Chronicle on May 26,

AQILD,

Director, is

The ACLU-NC actively opposed the North

Oakland injunction by filing an amicus brief

The

first version of the injunction proposed by the

and speaking publicly about concerns.

Oakland City Attorney was very broad and

problematic. The version that a judge granted

on a preliminary basis is far more narrow

and tailored due to the ACLU-NC's advocacy

efforts, as well as community outcry.

Demonstrators opposed to gang injunctions at a San Francisco

press conference in 2007.

ACLU BECAUSE FREEDOM CAN'T PROTECT ITSELF | 3

SACRAMENTO REPORT

By Tiffany Mok

FISCALLY SOUND CRIMINAL

JUSTICE REFORM

As the state grapples with the budget deficit, the ACLU

continues to herald fiscally sound criminal justice reforms.

The ACLU is co-sponsoring Assembly Bill 2372 (Ammia-

no-D), which would raise the monetary value of property

theft crimes eligible for grand theft convictions to $950,

an adjustment that accounts for inflation since the current

level of $400 was established in 1982. The Department of

Corrections estimates the bill would lead to prison savings

of $68 million by reducing the numbers of low-level prop-

erty offenders who would otherwise be sent to state prison.

The bill has passed through the Assembly and faces the Sen-

ate Public Safety Committee.

GOOD SAMARITANS BILL

MOVES TO SENATE

The ACLU has also been busy continuing to push Assembly.

Bill 2460 (Ammiano-D), which would provide limited im-

munity for certain crimes to "good samaritans" who contact

emergency services about drug overdoses (including alco-

hol) and the victims they are seeking to save. Research has

shown that fear of arrest or police involvement is the most

significant barrier to people calling 911 for help in overdose

situations. The Assembly voted to pass the bill, which now

goes to the Senate.

SHACKLING PREGNANT WOMEN?

BAD IDEA

This past spring, ACLU members lobbied on Assembly

Bill 1900 (Skinner-D), a remedy for the tragic fact that

ach year, lawmakers introduce thousands of bills to the Legislature.

Your ACLU lobbying staff reviews every one. Following are updates

on a few of the ACLU's top legislative priorities in California.

nearly two-thirds of county jails shackle pregnant women

in ways that could cause miscarriage or other injuries. As-

sembly members agreed to support less barbaric practices, (c)

and voted to pass the bill 64-0. The Senate has already

signaled that the journey through its house will be far

more difficult.

RACIAL JUSTICE ACT STALLED

IN SENATE

`The California Racial Justice Act unfortunately will have to

wait another year to pass through its first house, the Senate.

Senate Bill 1331 (Cedillo-D), would create a procedure for

the court to determine whether race is a significant factor in

the decision to seek or impose the death penalty. Most Cali-

fornians assume that death sentences are imposed based on

the gravity of the crime. Unfortunately, there is significant

evidence that race discrimination has long been a consistent

feature of the state's broken and costly death penalty sys-

tem. The bill passed the Senate Public Safety Committee,

but the Appropriations Committee decided that the bill

costs too much and would have to wait another year to be

considered further.

EMERGENCY REPAIR FUNDS

FOR SCHOOLS AT RISK IN

BUDGET CUTS

The ACLU continues to fight for funding for emergency

repairs to school facilities where conditions pose an urgent

threat to the health and safety of students and teachers.

`These emergency repair funds were part of the settlement

agreement from the lawsuit Williams v. State of California.

In Williams, the ACLU and other organizations claimed the

state was denying thousands of California students their fun-

damental right to an education under the California Consti-

tution because it failed to give them the basic tools necessary

for that education.

The settlement legislation included an agreement to pro-

vide sufficient instructional materials, qualified teachers and

safe school facilities for the lowest performing schools in the

state. In light of recent budget cuts the emergency repair

funding has been eliminated or stalled despite the state's

settlement agreement. This year, the Governor has proposed,

and the Legislature might agree, to give at least $51 million

to this program. @

Tiffany Mok is a Legislative Advocate at the ACLU's

California Legislative Office.

LGBTQ STUDENTS ACROSS CALIFORNIA:

YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE YOURSELF

California has strong laws that require public schools to protect LGBTQ students from harass-

ment and discrimination, but many educators, parents, and young people are not fully aware

of these rights. Organizers from the ACLU-NC conducted trainings throughout California's

Central Valley on what the law says about LGBTQ students, how young people can advocate

for themselves, and how schools can ensure they are protecting all their students.

Participants learned that schools

must take complaints of anti-

LGBTQ harassment

and can't prevent students from

seriously,

discussing LGBTQ issues in class.

`The trainings in Modesto, Fresno,

Stockton, Chico, Salinas and Red-

ding followed the release of the

ACLU-NC's Know Your Rights

guide for LGBTQ students.

`The guide is online at www.aclunc.

org/Igbtq.

`This outreach reflects stepped

up efforts by the ACLU to be a

resource to Central Valley com-

munities on a range of issues.

Pictured at left: Darron

Lewis from the Stanislaus

Pride Center.

Guardians of Liberty:

Sustaining Freedom's Defense

w YOU MAKE THE DIFFERENCE +

Guardians of Liberty are a special group of members

who make monthly donations that support our work

defending the freedoms guaranteed in the Constitution

and the Bill of Rights.

Your monthly gift of $25, $20, or even $15 can provide

the vital support that helps us to fight for all our rights

whenever and wherever they are under attack. :

The program is easy for you and efficient for us - with

more of your contributions going right to work on our

|

most urgent campaigns.

Help us fight

efforts to undermine our

against

basic freedom. Become a

Guardian of Liberty today!

bo fe

www.aclu.org/

sustain to sign up online.

Its fast, easy, and secure.

4 | ACLU: BECAUSE FREEDOM CAN'T PROTECT ITSELF

INSPIRATION BECOMES EDIFICATION:

HONORING FRAN STRAUSS

By Elaine Elinson

ran Strauss has walked through many doors at the ACLU, and

worked in many rooms - sometimes until the late hours of the

night. As a board member, volunteer and fundraiser, Fran has done

everything from addressing envelopes to designing new campaigns to

debating civil liberties policy.

But this fall, Strauss - the first board member emerita of the

ACLU-NC - will have the unique experience of walking into a

wing of the ACLU-NC's new offices named in her honor.

As part of The ACLU Campaign for the Future, five of her

longtime ACLU colleagues and admirers - Andy Grimstad,

Mary Wikstrom, Tom Lockard, Alix Marduel, and Al Baum

- organized a group of 29 donors to pool their gifts to name

the Development Department wing in honor of Strauss.

Grimstad, a former board member and an algebra teacher

whose activism dates back to the civil rights movement, want-

ed to provide an opportunity for donors to pool their gifts

in honor of someone who truly deserved public recognition.

"Fran is one of those rare people," said Grimstad, "who is not

only committed to the ACLU, but is willing to go out and do

everything it takes to sustain it."

Lockard, an investment banker and former board treasurer,

had been inspired by Fran's love of life and commitment to the

ACLU. Wikstrom and Marduel enthusiastically agreed.

Together with Al Baum, another former ACLU-NC trea-

surer and a "98% retired psychotherapist," they contacted

donors with the idea. The response was overwhelming.

A Bronx native, Strauss became active in the ACLU in

1953, when she and her husband, the renowned medical soci-

ologist Anselm Strauss, moved to Chicago. There, she worked

in the Illinois ACLU affiliate office - doing whatever had to

be done - and served on the affiliate's board.

When Strauss moved to San Francisco in 1960, she brought

her ACLU commitment with her. In 1970, she established the

Complaint Desk. Then, as now, the desk is completely staffed

by volunteers who field calls every day from people with civil

liberties problems. She helped to reorganize the San Francisco

Chapter and soon became the chapter representative to the

ACLU-NC affiliate board.

In 1975, Strauss was elected as an at-large member and

treasurer of the board. Her sharp mind, wit and joie de vivre

made her a valued ambassador for the organization. When she

launched the very first Bill of Rights Day Celebration in 1975,

she filled the Geary Theater and created an instant tradition.

In the 1980s, Strauss was a founding member of the De-

velopment Committee. She has served on the committee con-

tinuously for a record 28 years - and counting. A visionary

leader, she helped create the affiliate's highly successful major

gifts program, which is based on the philosophy of personal

outreach and contact with supporters.

"Her passion and. dedication," says Lockard, "have helped se-

cure a sound financial base for the ACLU-NC for years to come."

"The ACLU to me is the heart of my life," says Strauss. "The

people I've come to know, the work we do together, what I've

learned about civil liberties - it's all so bloody important.

"IT was absolutely flabbergasted when Tom and Andy told

me about this honor - and it brought back years and years of

memories. I guess it's a wonderful cap to a long-term commit-

ment - and I'll be continuing to support the ACLU as long

as I'm around."

This is not the first time Strauss is being honored by the

ACLU. In 1989, she was given the Lola Hanzel Advocacy

Award for her extraordinary contributions as a volunteer and

in 1997 she was named the first member emerita of the board.

Her former board colleagues Baum, Lockard and Grimstad

were able to pull off a rare feat: create something important

at the ACLU-NC that she was not in the middle of planning.

Because of their efforts, Fran Strauss's myriad contributions

to the organization that she helped build will serve as an in-

spiration to future generations of activists as they follow her

footsteps through the doors of the ACLU. @

THE ACLU CAMPAIGN FOR THE FUTURE continueo crom pace 1

TEXAS TEXTBOOK

TRAVESTY

With its extensive report, Learning in Texas

Classrooms, the ACLU of Texas shed a na-

tional spotlight on the State Board of Educa-

tion's attempts to infuse the curriculum for 4.7

million school children with an ideologically

right-wing bias. SAI funding bolstered the af-

filiate during this strenuous debate, adding 12

positions and doubling its litigation staff.

But the state board shocked educators

around the state and the nation with the

new curriculum they adopted this spring. It

removed teaching about farm worker leader

Cesar Chavez because he "lacks the stature"

and should not "be held up to our children

as someone worthy of emulation." It decided

that Jefferson Davis's inaugural address, as

MICHAEL B. WOOLSEY

the leader of the Confederacy during the

Civil War, should be taught along with Abra-

ham Lincoln's speeches. It removed Thomas

Jefferson's statements on separation of church

and state, and struck the word "democratic"

from the description of the U.S. Government,

instead terming it a "constitutional republic." _

Now the ACLU of Texas is trying to stop the spread of this

unbalanced curriculum, which was widely condemned by his-

torians, educators and even President Bush's secretary of edu-

cation. Because Texas is the second largest textbook market in

the country, its decisions can impact curricula in other states.

And the Texas ACLU is providing a homegrown voice.

MISSISSIPPI'S PROM PREJUDICE

When Mississippi high school officials canceled the prom

rather than let a lesbian high school student attend with her

girlfriend and wear a tuxedo, they probably did not expect that

their prejudices would be exposed on national TV.

Some of The ACLU Campaign for the Future volunteers and staff. Bottom: David

Blazevich, Ron Tyler, Abdi Soltani, Marshall Krause, Wendy Baker. Middle: Dick

Grosboll, Quinn Delaney, Howard Lewis, Cheri Bryant, Cori Stell, Al Baum. Top:

Susan Freiwald, Nancy Pemberton, Peter Yessne, Kathleen Bennett, Linda Lye,

Marina Hsieh, Suzanne Irwin-Wells, Lee Lawrence, Dennis McNally.

But with the support of the ACLU, 18-year-old senior Con-

stance McMillen was able to tell her story to Ellen DeGeneres and

People magazine. "All I wanted was the same chance to enjoy my

prom night like any other student. But my school would rather

hurt all the students than treat everyone fairly," said McMillen.

The Mississippi ACLU, backed by the national legal and com-

munications departments, moved quickly to support McMillen.

Mississippi executive director Nsombi Lambright, once the

only ACLU staff member in the state, explained that because

of SAI support, she was able to add an attorney, a paralegal and

media, community outreach and development staff. "] can't

say enough about the victories we've been able to achieve with

our expanded capacity," said Lambright.

NEW HEADQUARTERS,

STRONGER ADVOCACY

The ACLU Campaign for the Future has

also created important advances here in

Northern California. The most concrete

is the affiliate's ownership of its new head-

quarters in San Francisco - a centrally

located office that is already serving as a

hub for the civil liberties community.

The Campaign has also allowed the

ACLU-NC to strengthen and expand its

programs.

`The legal department hired two full-

time legal fellows, who have tackled work

in the arenas of educational equity, police

abuse and race discrimination. The leg-

islative office expanded for the first time

in 20 years, adding a second legislative

advocate to focus on immigration, voting

rights and education.

Campaign funds also support the di-

rectors of the highly-acclaimed Technol-

ogy and Civil Liberties Policy Project and

Death Penalty Project. With the support

of an additional communications strate-

gist, an expansive media campaign is working to shift public

opinion against capital punishment through effective use of

op-eds, letters to the editor, and new media.

"Even in this time of recession, the outpouring of sup-

port from committed ACLU-NC donors has enabled the

affiliate to protect its core programs and priorities," said

Nancy Pemberton, Chair of the Board. "Ihe ACLU Cam-

paign for the Future will enable our organization to better

protect the civil rights of those who reside in California and

every state." Mf

Elaine Elinson is a former Public Information

Director at the ACLU of Northern California.

ACLU BECAUSE FREEDOM CAN'T PROTECT ITSELF | 5

SHAYNA GELENDER

The ACLU of Northern California's contingent at the 2010 San Francisco Pride Parade.

THE PRESIDENT AND HOSPITAL VISITING

An opinion piece by Matt Coles, Director of the National ACLU Center for Equality, who previously served

as a Staff Attorney at the ACLU-NC in the 1980s.

arly in 1978, I hung out a shingle and began practicing

law with three friends on Castro Street in San Francisco.

It was before HIV turned all our lives upside down, but we

soon realized that hospital ICU visitation policies were a big

problem for the LGBT community. So many Iesbians and gay

men in those days had come to San Francisco because life else-

where was impossible. They'd built families because they were

rejected by their "natural" families. But most medical facilities

didn't recognize those families.

My law partners and I sat down and created a very official

sounding document called a "Hospital Visit Authorization." It

purported to direct the hospital to let a person named by the

patient visit if visiting were restricted. We also tried to create a

medical power of attorney so partners. could make medical de-

cisions. We didn't have any legal authority for any of this. We

just made the stuff up. And more times than I care to remem-

ber, I bluffed my way through confrontational phone calls

with hospital administrators and lawyers. I'm pretty proud of

the fact that most of the time I got them to back down.

But in the ensuing 30 years (ok, 30 plus years), the problem

didn't go away. In the first Domestic Partnership laws, hospital

visiting was something we always included. Just three years

ago, a story we used in a video about a man whose partner

died alone because of a hospital visitation policy broke my

heart.

Maybe that history is why I got a genuine all-American

MICHAEL B. WOOLSEY

Matt Coles

6 | ACLU BECAUSE FREEDOM CAN'T PROTECT ITSELF

lump in my throat when I read President Obama's April 15

Memo to Kathleen Sebelius on Hospital Patients. I'm still a

geeky lawyer at heart, so I loved the substance of the memo.

The President told Sebelius to use her power to make rules

for hospitals that get Medicaid and Medicare-virtually all

hospitals. So it isn't a classic regulation; if you don't want to

comply, you don't have to. You just can't get paid by Medicare

if you don't. Cute. Moreover, by doing that, the President was

using the federal power to spend-the broadest of the federal

government's powers.

But it was the President's explanation of why we needed the

new policy that got me misty:

"There are few moments in our lives that call for greater

compassion and companionship than when a loved one is

admitted to the hospital. In these hours of need and mo-

ments of pain and anxiety, all of us would hope to have a

hand to hold, a shoulder on which to lean - a loved one

to be there for us, as we would be there for them."

Yes. Exactly. He went on:

"Yet every day, all across America, patients are denied

the kindnesses and caring of a loved one at their sides -

whether in a sudden medical emergency or a prolonged

hospital stay. ...Also uniquely affected are gay and les-

bian Americans who are often barred from the bedsides

of the partners with whom they may have spent decades

of their lives - unable to be there for the person they

love, and unable to act as a legal surrogate if their part-

ner is incapacitated."

I felt like the man had been there with me in the early 80s

when we were trying to get partners into ICUs with people

who had GRIDS (the first name for what we now call AIDS).

Did I mind that the memo talked about straight widows or

nuns? Not at all. I want him not just to issue orders but to

make Americans understand. And this memo works hard to

do that.

As I walked home after reading the memo, I realized that af-

ter this order, those "Hospital Visit Authorizations" and local

domestic partnership laws will soon not just be unnecessary.

They'll soon be forgotten, not even a historical footnote. So

I went home and poured myself a small glass of old whiskey

(ok, not that small) to celebrate the irrelevance of something I

worked hard on when I was a young lawyer. How sweet it is to

become beside the point. m

UPDATING ELECTRONIC

PRIVACY LAWS

Electronic privacy law hasn't been updated since

1986. That's right, the federal law that is supposed

to be protecting our digital privacy was written 24

years ago - when Ronald Reagan was President,

mobile phones were bigger than your head, and

the World Wide Web didn't even exist!

The longer our privacy law remains out of date,

the more your privacy is at risk. Every time you

log on, you leave digital footprints behind. Once

information about who you are, where you go, and

who you know is collected by private companies,

outdated privacy law makes your personal informa-

tion easily accessible to a spying government.

With your help, the ACLU has been pushing

Congress to update privacy law and we're gain-

ing momentum - Congress has already held two

hearings.

But privacy laws don't auto-update. We need your

help to demand a privacy upgrade. Please visit www.

dotrights.org/take-action to learn more and email

your Congressional representative.

PRIVACY 2.0

WHAT A DIFFERENCE A CHAPTER MAKES

By Ashley Morris

his spring, ACLU of Northern California chapters played a key role in raising awareness of the

positions of candidates for district attorney, arguably the most powerful and least-known elected

office. Through the ACLU-NC's "What a Difference a D.A. Makes" campaign, chapter members

highlighted the local importance of D.A.s in the June 8 elections and created opportunities for candidates

to speak directly with voters.

Despite the fact that many District Attorney candidates

run unopposed, Humboldt County found itself with a high-

ly contested race between three candidates. The Redwood

Chapter of the ACLU of Northern California used the op-

portunity to engage with the persen who would soon be the

top law enforcement officer in the county. ;

On tax day, the Chapter brought together all three candi-

dates, along with activists and media makers, to produce the

chapter's first televised candidate debate. The debate, which

aired live and re-aired several times on local public televi-

sion station Access Humboldt, included prepared questions

on police accountability, juvenile justice reform, the Three

Strikes Law, corrections spending, and drug laws.

Days after the debate, one candidate withdrew from the

race. In a surprising turn, neither of the two remaining can-

didates garnered even 40% of the vote, sending the two of

them to a November run-off election.

The Redwood Chapter plans to host a follow-up debate

prior to the November election. According to Board Member

Charles Douglas, "Thanks to chapter activists and the cam-

paign, thousands of local voters heard more civil liberties-

oriented questions, along with answers from the next District

Attorney of Humboldt County."

One of the hottest races in Northern California was the

Sonoma County race between incumbent Stephan Passa-

lacqua and challenger Jill Ravitch. Rather than coordinate

a live debate, the Sonoma County Chapter opted to provide

both candidates with a questionnaire including questions on

a broad range of civil liberties topics, from drug laws to local

immigration enforcement.

Both responded, and the chapter made their responses

available on its website. To reach a broader audience, the

chapter also released a statement to local press inviting mem-

bers of the press and the public to visit the chapter website to

review the candidates' survey responses.

Getting engaged in the D.A. race is important not only

in counties with contested races, but also those where the

candidate is running unopposed. In Marin County, Chap-

ter Chair George Pegelow was able to secure a meeting with

D.A. Ed Berberian, in which they were able to have a frank

conversation about restorative justice for youthful offenders,

the youth courts, and the death penalty-a sentence which

D.A.s determine whether and when to pursue.

In Alameda County, Paul Robeson Chapter lead-

ers attended several events at which interim D.A. Nancy

O'Malley made appearances, using them as opportunities

to ask questions of the unopposed candidate and to provide

her with educational materials.

These chapters' efforts are a crucial part of our criminal

justice reform work. 0x2122

Ashley Morris is an Organizer at the ACLU of

Northern California.

BERKELEY/NORTH EAST BAY CHAPTER

BRINGS IMMIGRATION ISSUES TO LIGHT

By Jim Hausken, Chair of the ACLU-NC Berkeley/North East Bay Chapter

he idea of an immigration forum was already on Joel

Marsh's mind five years ago when he joined the board

of the Berkeley/North East Bay Chapter. For three years, Joel

helped bring together immigration law specialists, ACLU ac-

tivists, and sizeable portions of West Contra Costa County's

Latino populations.

In April, the fourth annual immigration forum filled

a packed room at the Richmond Public Library, which co-

sponsored the event.

The annual forum is a response to real and ongoing prob-

lems in Richmond and San Pablo. Forty-eight hours earlier,

across the street from the library, the gymnasium at St. Cor-

nelius church was packed with people who gathered to vent

their anger and frustration over a police "DUI Checkpoint"

set up outside the heavily Latino church at 6 p.m. during Holy

Week. Residents say the police are using the checkpoints pri-

marily to target and harass Latinos.

Speakers at the Immigration Forum included ACLU-

NC Staff Attorney Julia Harumi Mass, Ramon Cardona of

Centro Latino Cuzcatlan, Isaac Menashe of the California

Immigrant Policy Center, and West County School Board

Trustee Antonio Medrano. Dr. Amahra Hicks from Black

Alliance for Just Immigration spoke of ways to get together

people from different backgrounds with similar immigration

problems. Immigration attorney Michael Epstein answered

questions about individuals' particular problems.

Richmond Mayor Gayle McLaughlin addressed the group,

stressing her commitment to working to make Richmond a

more welcoming place for immigrants. The question and an-

swer part of the evening reflected community concerns with

both the bigger picture - comprehensive immigration reform

- and local issues such as police interactions with immigrants.

The Berkeley/North East Bay Chapter plans to maintain

the forum tradition. The relationships built in the process

help those of us who share the same concerns to work to-

gether to defend the rights of immigrants. These alliances

were always important in Joel Marsh's planning. He died

April 4. I wish that he could have lived a little longer to have

seen the successful fruition of his efforts.

NAR

Rally for immigrants' rights in Oakland on

May 1, 2010.

Questions? Call Jim at (510) 558-0377.

Members of the Berkeley/North East Bay Chapter interested in being on the ballot for election to open chapter board

seats should get their forty-word maximum statements for voters' ballots submitted by September 3, 2010. Please send to

Berkeley/ North East Bay Chapter ACLU, PO Box 11141 Berkeley, California 94712-2141 or acluberkeley@gmail.com.

GET INVOLVED!

CHAPTERS AND CLUBS

IN YOUR COMMUNITY

Northern Calfornia Chapters

Berkeley/North East Bay

Chico

Greater Fresno

Mt. Diablo

Marin County

Mid-Peninsula

Monterey County

North Peninsula [Daly City to San Carlos)

Paul Robeson (Oakland)

Redwood {Humboldt County)

Sacramento County

San Joaquin

Santa Clara Valley

Santa Cruz County

Shasta-Tehama-Trinity Counties

Sonoma County

Stanislaus County

Yolo County

Campus Clubs

Golden Gate University

Santa Clara University Law

Stanford University

UC Berkeley

UC Davis King Hall Law

Get contact information at

WWW.ACLUNC.ORG/ACTION/CHAPTERS

or by calling (415) 621-2493 x369

ACLU BECAUSE FREEDOM CAN'T PROTECT ITSELF | 7

BOB HSIANG PHOTOGRAPHY

Julia Harumi Mass

ACLU FORUM

ASK THE EXPERTS!

IMMIGRANTS' RIGHTS

rizonas new law is a watershed moment for its bla-

tant disregard of America's most fundamental values

of fairness and equality. Staff attorney Julia Harumi

Mass explains what the ACLU - and all of us - can do

to reject the criminalization of immigrants.

THE ACLU HAS LAUNCHED AN ALL OUT ATTACK ON THE

NEW ARIZONA LAW, SB 1070, REQUIRING POLICE TO

DEMAND "PAPERS" FROM PEOPLE THEY STOP WHO THEY

SUSPECT ARE NOT AUTHORIZED TO BE IN THE U.S. WHY?

We believe that the law is unfair, unwise and unconstitu-

tional. This law makes all of Arizona's Latino residents, and

others who appear foreign, potential criminal suspects. Ra-

cial profiling is already rampant in Arizona, and if allowed

to stand, this law will make it worse. The ACLU's opposi-

tion is rooted in another core concern: this law undermines

public safety by diverting scarce security resources toward

false threats and eroding trust between law enforcement

and immigrant community members-including U.S. citi-

zens and others who are lawfully present.

IN WHAT WAYS DOES SB 1070 VIOLATE THE U.S.

CONSTITUTION?

Our Constitution assigns responsibility for immigration

to the federal government, not the states. Arizona's attempt

to create its own immigration laws and its own immigra-

tion enforcement system violates this allocation of author-

ity. The law also chills the free speech of people in Arizona

who may be perceived as foreign based on their language or

accent, including people like day laborers who are looking

for work.

WHAT IS THE ACLU DOING TO OPPOSE THE ARIZONA LAW?

`The ACLU and a coalition of civil rights groups have filed

a class action lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the

District of Arizona. We intend to stop the law from being

enforced.

WHAT SHOULD LOCAL POLICE AND SHERIFFS DO ABOUT

ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION?

Without a doubt, the fact that many people living in our

cities and towns lack immigration authorization creates

challenges for local officials, including law enforcement.

The ACLU is in the midst of an ongoing project to talk

with community members and law enforcement leaders to

develop model practices. The goal is to allow local police to

focus on crime- fighting priorities and avoid the unneces-

sary burden of immigration enforcement, which is costly in

terms of strained law enforcement budgets and community

policing efforts. Some of these suggestions include:

@ accepting reliable forms of non-U.S. issued identifica-

tion, a simple step that will help eliminate arrests for of-

fenses that merit only citations, like jaywalking or driving

with expired registration tags;

@ refraining from asking questions about citizenship and

immigration status in the booking process; and

@ limiting the use of checkpoints to areas and times where

they are most likely to identify drunk drivers, rather than

using them to generate profits for towing companies by

impounding the cars of poor immigrant families.

DO UNDOCUMENTED PEOPLE HAVE CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS?

All of us - including undocumented immigrants -

are protected by our Bill of Rights. The Constitution

established the "right of the people to be secure in their

persons, houses, papers and effects against unreasonable

searches and seizures," and the rule that "no person

shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due

process of law." It also decrees, "no state shall ... deny

to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection

of the laws." There are many other laws, including labor

laws, that apply to people regardless of citizenship or

immigration status.

THERE'S BEEN SOME SCATTERED REPORTING IN THE

MEDIA ABOUT A NEW FEDERAL PROGRAM CALLED SCOMM.

IS SCOMM GOOD NEWS OR BAD NEWS?

Bad news. SCOMM is.a new program, devised by the fed-

eral Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE),

to use the criminal justice system to channel immigrants

into the deportation system, regardless of whether they

have been convicted of a crime. It works by checking the

fingerprints of anyone arrested by the local police against

Department of Homeland Security databases - even

people arrested for minor infractions, and even if they are

or turn out to be innocent.

ICE says that the intent of SCOMM is to apprehend

serious criminals. But because it happens at the booking

stage, we know that SCOMM is specifically designed to

identify people who have not been convicted of any crime.

Like other forms of police/ICE collaboration, SCOMM

drives a wedge between immigrant crime victims and the

police, burdens local law enforcement agencies with the

costs of civil immigration enforcement, and creates an in-

centive for police to engage in racial profiling.

DO COMMUNITIES HAVE TO PARTICIPATE IN SCOMM?

No law or rule mandates that communities participate.

ICE has not made clear the process for opting out, and

we are pressing them to do so. The ACLU and many

other civil rights organizations are urging the California

Attorney General and local law enforcement agencies to

reject SCOMM. We are also working hard to ensure that

everyone, and particularly Spanish speakers, understand

their rights should they be questioned by the police, the

EBL or ier:

MOST PEOPLE AGREE THAT OUR IMMIGRATION SYSTEM

1S BROKEN. WHAT TYPES OF REFORMS WILL CREATE A

FAIRER, MORE WORKABLE SYSTEM?

The current immigration system has proven to be insufh-

cient to respond to domestic demands for immigrant labor

and global forces that contribute to migration. That's why

the ACLU of Northern California has adopted policies to

support federal immigration reform, including reforms

that will give people living here the opportunity to register

with the government, become legal, pay taxes, and experi-

ence the benefits and responsibilities of citizenship.

Immigration reform ideas that the ACLU opposes are

calls for a national ID card or biometric employment au-

thorization card and mandating local and state policing of

immigrants.

On a regional level, ACLU-NC is undertaking an ex-

tensive effort to reach out to community members and

law enforcement agencies to identify the practices that

result in civil rights violations, and propose solutions.

We bring the concerns of the community to our meet-

ings with police departments across the region, and use

our legal knowledge and practical experience to help the

police to better manage the challenges they face. If we get

creative, we can identify solutions that aid law enforce-

ment and simultaneously bolster the safety of immigrants

in our communities. @

ACLU-NC Staff Attorney Julia Harumi Mass is

an expert on immigration issues.

HOWARD A. FRIEDMAN FIRST

AMENDMENT EDUCATION

PROJECT TACKLES

IMMIGRATION FOR THEIR

ANNUAL SUMMER TRIP

This August, the Friedman Education Project will

embark on its annual summer field investigation

for young people, entitled Crossing Borders,

Borders Crossing: A Youth Investigation into Im-

migration and Migration Rights and Histories.

Over twenty participants, from around Northern

California, age 14 to 18, will travel around the

state meeting with various organizations and

communities about immigration and migration

histories, policies, perspectives, experiences, vi-

sions, and solutions. In the fall, the Youth Activ-

ist Committee will develop activism and com-

munications projects to share what they learned,

to pass on stories and visions for change, and to

continue the fight for justice. Stay tuned for more

information about the trip in the fall issue of the

ACLU News.

8 | ACLU BECAUSE FREEDOM CAN'T PROTECT ITSELF