Open forum, vol. 76, no. 3 (Summer, 2002)

open + forum:

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ACLU Joins Market

Workers Justice Campaign

- Workers' Rights: Koreatown -

Market Workers Organize For

- Better Pay and Conditions _

They support themselves si often

their entire families on the minimum

wage, and their wages, even after years

of work, often don't rise above $6.25

an hour. They have no health or other

benefits. They're required to fit a day's

worth of work into fewer and fewer hours,

and they report conditions of harassment,

discrimination, threats, and retaliation on

the job. They're the immigrant workers

whose work has built the prosperity of

Koreatown's supermarkets. And now

they're organizing.

"From the time when Upton Sin-

clair supported the rights of striking

longshoremen to now, the ACLU of

Southern California's historical focus on

free expression and freedom of assembly

fits uniquely into the struggles of working

people," said Ramona Ripston, Executive

Director of the ACLU/SC. "We knew

we had to support the Market Workers'

Justice Campaign, a campaign for justice

in the heart of our city."

The Market Workers' Justice

Campaign, coordinated by Korean

Immigrant Workers Advocates (KIWA),

has been active in applying pressure on

business owners to bargain collectively

with workers and to improve overall

compensation and working conditions.

The ACLU/SC joined the campaign this

spring.

A cutback in paid hours but not in

workload at Assi supermarket, which

employees 160 workers, was the straw

that broke the camel's back. In August

see Supermarket on page 6

The ACLU's foster care lawsuit brought LA County into the glare of public scrutiny.

ACLU Suit Spotlights Government-Sponsored Child Neglect

Foster Care: Los Angeles County Challenged

Mary B. [not her

has been subjected to 28 foster care

placements, including 16 hospital stays

at seven different hospitals during her

three years in Department of Children

and Family Services custody. After Mary

was removed from her home at age 13

real name],

because of abuse and neglect, she was

diagnosed with a sexually transmitted

disease, and she disclosed that she had

been sexually abused by her maternal

uncle and stepfather. Mary did not

receive an evaluation until her second

stay at a foster home, at which point the

DCES case worker characterized Mary's

emotional problems as "hormones acting

up." Despite all of this, Mary did not

receive therapy until her fourth foster care

placement, a full two years after she had

been initially removed from her home.

ACLU Sues Four Major Airlines for Discrimination Against Passengers

Racial Justice: Airlines Give Rein to Prejudice and Racial Profiling in Wake of 9/11

On June 4, five sweeping civil rights

lawsuits were filed across the country

accusing American, Continental, North-

west, and United Airlines of blatantly

discriminating against five men by

ejecting them from flights solely to suit

the prejudices of airline employees and

passengers and for reasons unrelated to

security.

The lawsuits were filed

Angeles, Maryland, New Jersey, and San

Francisco by the American Civil Liberties

Union and the American-Arab Anti-

Discrimination Committee on behalf of

the five men. Of the five men, four are

American citizens, one is a permanent

and two are of Arab

in. Los

legal resident,

descent.

Assem Bayaa was ejected from a

United Airlines flight from LAX to JFK in

December. After having passed through

all security checkpoints, including an

additional selective screening at the gate,

Mr. Bayaa was asked to leave the plane

because the crew "felt uncomfortable"

having him on board. This was clearly

not an issue of security, as Mr. Bayaa's

baggage was not removed from the plane

before it took off, and he was immediately

issued a ticket for the next departing flight

without being questioned or searched by

security personnel.

"I am grateful to be an American.

This country has provided me immense

freedoms and opportunities," Mr. Bayaa

see Airlines on page 2

Inglewood Police Beating Sparks Discussion of Statewide

Open Forum Focus: Ramona Ripston i interviews Speaker of the Assembly Herb Wesson On New Police Conduct Commission

Ramona Ripston, ACLU/SC_ Exec-

utive Director, discussed police abuses

with Speaker of the California Assembly

Herb Wesson, who recently formed a

special commission on police conduct as

a result of the Donovan Jackson beating

in Inglewood.

Ramona Ripston: You recently

announced the formation of a special

commission focusing on __ police

conduct. Can you elaborate on your

vision of how we can move forward

ae

IGT ETU UN Oa

as a state on police reform,

especially in the face of

cultural resistance in some

law enforcement

organizations to systems of

public oversight and account-

ability?

Speaker Herb Wesson:

As long as there are parents

who see the children they love

slammed against the hood of

a police car when their hands

advocacy

are tied, then we've still got a

problem and we've still got work

to do. So this is my attempt to

make things right.

I formed this commission

as a partnership with law

enforcement agencies and the

communities they serve. We

will work together to find out

what we know about police

misconduct, what we need to

change and what direction we

TCT AUG ae

No.3 _

Mary is one of the 50,000 foster

children in the Los Angeles County

a system so inadequate and

neglectful,

system,

especially in its treatment

of youth with mental health problems,

that the ACLU and other public interest

groups filed suit in July to challenge its

failures.

Mary's case exemplifies the problems

see Foster Care on page 2

Connerly Crosses Signature

Finish Line Limping

Racial Justice: TET Sr for March 2004

Ward Connerly's campaign to

eliminate the use of basic demographic

information about race and ethnicity

by the state and local governments

in California narrowly qualified for

the March 2004 ballot, but it's been

a rocky road for Connerly from the

start. Connerly attempted to land

the initiative on the November 2002

ballot, but a longer individual signature

verification process forced a delay to the

next statewide election cycle.

In his first: effort to qualify,

Connerly abandoned the effort due

see Connerly on page. S

Reform

should be headed in.

As far as my vision is concerned,

I won't be satisfied until there are zero

incidents of police abuse and zero tolerance

when incidents occur. One incident is too

many. This cannot happen again.

RR: That's ambitious, especially

when you think about all of the

police abuse over the years. Eula

Love. Rodney King. Amadou Diallo.

Rampart. Cincinnati. Now Donovan

Jackson. Despite widespread media

see Inglewood on page 8

Banned Books

NT aaa Oe Oe

government's liability for damages for kidnaping and torturing the plaintiff in Mexico and -

incarcerating him in we . S. on Eyal ges later dismissed 8 a i iedatal ee for lack or ev

Our Open Docket i is available for viewing on our

Legal Update :

Alvarez-Machain v. US. Oral | argument was hed before panel of th .

Circuit Court of Appeals on a case filed by the ACLU nine years ago. A issue is the U.

dence.

Bellum v. Grants Pass: | a interim eo was le ina jaweuit Golences

unequal facilities for girls' softball teams in Grants Pass, Oregon. The ACLU/SC was asked -

to assist in the case by the ACLU of Oregon after our successful efforts on behalf of girls

/ vey spots in oe parks pe in Los Angeles. - : |.

Buono v. Nowcn: The U. S District Con rul led that the National Parks Service may xy not

retain a ee Latin Cross in the oe National Preserve. _

Butler v. `Hants: We ted an amicus bret in a case before the Colonie Sugeme Cour -

with important imp! cations for lesbian and gay couples, urging the Court to uphold the

lower court decision that recognizes the constitutional limits on non-parents' ability to

- interfere with the decision of a fit parent regarding visitation. We successfully advocated _

_ in the lower court that a narrow definition of "parent" should not be adopted, and that _

peed! e one! than the biol ogical ee could be considered ' Pa in future cases.

Common Cause v. Jones: The U. . Dietict Coun again ee in our faUer by denying the .

Secretary of State's motion to reconsider the court's earlier decision requiring the state _

to replace outdated punch-card voting machines before the 2004 Presidential election. _

_ We are now trying to make sure that the state funds are oe available to Ly A. ae other

a to pay for new young systems. _. -. .

_ Eatinc Vv. Nevada: With Sseuance from the ACLUISC, he eae equival lent of Calor,

nia`s criminal defamation statute targeting false citizen complaints against police officers

was struck down. In People v. Stanistreet the Court of Appeal found California's version _

oo the law unconstitutional; the state appealed, and we filed a brief with the California _

- Supreme Court. We filed a brief in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals i ina parall lel case chal-

__lenging the civil statute that allows officers to i oe

lodge complaints gan them (Haddad V. Vee

Equilon Enterprises v. Consumer Cause: Oral a cument was bee coor the Colfoine

Supreme Court on whether a defendant who seeks to invoke the anti SLAPP statute must

show that the pl laintiff brought the action with the intent to chill defendant's exercise of

free speech or oe tights. The three California ACLUs filed an amicus brief with the

Court. ere

People v. Mower: a California Supreme bean unanimously decided to give defendants

limited immunity from prosecution for using and cultivating marijuana pursuant to the

Compassionate Use Initiative. The three California ACLU afliates submitted an amicus

brief in the case.

People v. Willis: The California Supreme Court agreed with our argument that the exclu-

sionary rule applies to evidence discovered by parole and police officers during warrantless

secicres of exparolees based on false information.

Porter v. Jones: Argument was held before the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on our case

challenging the Secretary of State's threat to criminally prosecute operators of a website

devoted to a general dialogue about the pes of me parties and why people should

_vote for Pariedia' candidates.

Smith v. University of Washington Law School: A trial court upheld the constitutional-

ity of the law school's race-conscious affirmative action program. ACLU National ae the

ACLU of wesc on joined us as counsel (OF amici in the case.

Taylor v.L. A. Recreation and Parks Commission: Final cetera. was reacied in "our

suit against the Commission for violating the First Amendment rights of a muralist. The -

settlement agreement included a ene in oy pay guatemesing gos First oe

_ ment protection for public art.

Volunteer counsel Richard Solomon conacee: fe oe `Unified Schoo! District advis-

ing against showing an 8th -Grade sex education video en`itled, "The Spiritual Conse- |

quences," which explored "Where does God fit in all Pe ye i wele ps by the _

Superintendent two hours after receiving the le

website. Visit www. aclu-se. org ang follow the li kt Liti

Annes continued from page 1

`its. - Bee e who _

said. "It has given me the idea that

there is no limit to what I can do. Most

importantly it has given me the freedom

to stand up for my rights."

While the details of the five ejections

vary, one aspect is constant: the men were

removed from the airplane after passing

all security checkpoints because of

discrimination based on the color of their

skin. Each of the men was subsequently

issued a ticket for the next departing

flight without undergoing further security

measures.

"We're all in favor of reasonable

and sensible security measures that will

make us safer," said ACLU of Southern

California staff attorney Ben Wizner.

"But what happened here had nothing to

do with safety and everything to do with

racial bias."

Collectively, the lawsuits ask the

federal courts to declare that the airlines'

actions violated the men's civil rights and

order that airlines implement measures to

prevent future discrimination.

Editor: Heather Carrigan

Art Editor: Aran Johnson

Ht Lois Bader and Liz Schroeder

i 4)

open FOFUM est.1924

Associate Editor: Christopher Calhoun

Contributors: Tenoch Flores, Malek

Moazzam-Doulat, Elvia Meza, Eric Greene,

open forum (ISSN 0030 - 3429) is published quarterly by The American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California

and the ACLU Foundation, at 1616 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90026. Telephone (213) 977-9500. E-mail: ACLUinfo@aclu-sc.org.

Membership is $20 and up, of which $2 is the subscription fee for OPEN FORUM. Periodicals postage is paid at Los Angeles, CA.

Ce Send address changes to OPEN FORUM, 1616 Beverly Bivd., Los Angeles, CA 90026. www.aclu-sc.org

ACLU President: Gary Williams

ACLU Foundation Chair: Lee Masters

Executive Director: Ramona Ripston

Survey Confirms Students

Descriptions 0 of Woeful School Conditions

and Parents'

Education: Landmark Survey! Measures Depths of California System : : / / : :

Renowned pollster Louis Harris

released the results of an exhaustive survey

on April 30 revealing that conditions

in California classrooms and_ schools

are even worse than have been publicly

acknowledged. Harris surveyed a random

sample of California classroom teachers

about the conditions in their schools and

their ability to educate California's six

million public school students.

The poll, "A Survey of the Status

of Equality in Public Education in

California," found that 32.1% of teachers

- who teach approximately 1.9 million

children - say they do not have enough

books for children to do homework.

27.3% of teachers reported school

facilities infested with cockroaches, rats,

or mice.

"The results of this survey are as

clear-cut and unequivocal as I have ever

seen. Without doubt, the California

education system is failing to provide a

seni uno " a the basic

environment in which they can learn,"

said Harris.

The survey results are at the heart

of Williams v. California, a class action

lawsuit filed by the ACLU/SC on behalf

of California public school students who

lack the essentials necessary to learn.

Among other findings, the survey

reveals that poorer students are twelve

times more likely to attend a school with a

high concentration of untrained teachers,

twice as likely to lack adequate textbooks

and learning materials, and twice as likely

to lack functioning bathrooms.

"Conditions throughout the state's

public schools are worse than we had

anticipated," said Catherine Lhamon,

Okrand/Wirin . Attorney with the

ACLU/SC. "Close to 2 million students

throughout California do not have

textbooks to take home with them.

These results underscore the need for the

education reforms our lawsuit seeks."

Update: Latina Rights Project

The ACLU/SC s eine Rights Project organized a bilingual community forum to discuss reproductive rights and

raise awareness about access to emergency contraception. Over 80 people attended the forum, which targeted

Latina women. The Pacific Institute for Women's Health and the ues at and {Reproductive Rights Action

League co-sponsored the event.

Foster Care continued from page 1

that plague the Los Angeles foster care

system: children are removed from their

homes, subjected to numerous foster

care placements, often do not receive the

mental health services they need, and

are eventually thrown into institutional

settings or psychiatric hospitals because

they are finally classified as "unplaceable."

Multiple foster placements are

especially harmful to children because

they can lead to longstanding attachment

and trust problems. Constant moving

often disrupts therapy, schooling, and

other services.

"For decades now, the Los Angeles

County foster care system, our nation's

largest - responsible for some 50,000

children - has been widely regarded as

this country's worst: a tragic model of

child neglect on the part of government,"

said Mark Rosenbaum, Legal Director

of the ACLU/SC. "Tt is the systems

failure to identify and address the mental

health problems of these children that is

perhaps the principal obstacle to family

reunification or adoption."

"Los Angeles County has an

obligation to provide these children with

the medical services they need," said

Ramona Ripston, ACLU/SC Executive

Director. "Relying on __ institutional

settings is not only more expensive than

providing in-home services, but the cost

to society and the children themselves is

immeasurable."

Currently, youth under DCFS

care are not being screened, much less

treated, for mental health conditions,

an Seo or LUC |

despite estimates that anywhere between

60-85 percent of children in foster care

nationwide have severe mental health

problems. In addition to problems with

screening and treatment, the suit cites the

following areas of concern:

0x00B0 unavailability of medically necessary

health services such as behavioral support,

psychiatric or other clinical services, and

comprehensive case management services

in a home-like setting.

e excessive reliance on the removal

of children from their families and their

placement into foster care, as opposed

to providing medically necessary mental

health services at home, including family

preservation services where appropriate.

e an over-reliance on_ restrictive,

institutional placements, including locked

psychiatric hospitals and "emergency"

shelters such as MacLaren Children's

Center.

cent multiple foster care placements that

are harmful to children and disruptive of

family contact, educational continuity

and mental health treatment.

The ACLU Foundation of Southern

California joined a coalition of public

interest groups including the Center for

Law In the Public Interest, the Western

Center on Law and Poverty, the Youth Law

Center, Protection and Advocacy, Inc., the

Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law

and the firm of Heller Ehrman White and

McAuliffe in filing the class action suit on

behalf of foster children throughout Los

Angeles County.

Stars i)t

California Capitol Watch: California Heads for Another Mixed Year in Civil Rights

Three Strikes Bill Falters, But

Groups Develop Alternate Strategy

Despite early hopes that

Assemblymember Jackie

Goldberg could put together

the votes necessary to pass AB

) 1790, a bill that would place an

f initiative on the ballot to restrict

) California's Three Strikes Law to

serious and violent felonies, the

7 bill stumbled in the Assembly

: and sits in the Appropriations

1 Committee's suspense file. It can

; be reintroduced in early 2003.

S In the meantime, Families

y to Amend California's Three

Strikes (FACTS), the ACLU of Southern

California, and other groups plan to

a

proceed with a public education campaign

that will intensify as the U.S. Supreme

Court takes up the issue this fall and

is aimed at preparing the ground for a

possible initiative in November 2004.

COS a Cine a

Free Speech Agenda: Reducing Protest

Penalties, Fighting Anti-Rave Bill

ACLU of Southern California Take

Action Network activists have deluged

the Assembly and the Governor with

letters supporting SB 1680, a bill by

3 Strikes Reform Events

Ee

October 5:

Car caravan protest against Three Strikes

October 19:

_ Prison Reform Unity Project Rally:

Three Strikes is Cruel and Unusual

October 26:

Ge TTL MCHEOTOTO ACL Ae

Three Strikes Reform

October:

Freedom Saturdays and Sundays at local

churches and synagogues

October:

College campus Three Strikes Days

For more information,

call Elvia Meza at (213) 977-5205

.

id ate

the ACLU of Southern -

. California endorses Prop- @@

al osition 52, Election Day cent

: Voter Registration |

% (EDVR), which would

al create a simple, one-

` step process whereby

eligible, unregistered

: voters could register to vote

od

"

Ls Conner, ly continued from page 1

to fundraising shortfalls. In his second

at outing, despite massive of infusions of

of cash from undisclosed sources, Connerly

ty collected too few signatures to qualify

automatically, triggering an expensive

rm individual count.

lic "Connerly's information ban is in

`or trouble before Californians have even

rm had a chance to look at it," said Ramona

1W Ripston, Executive Director of the ACLU

he of Southern California. "When they have

2W that chance, the public will see that it's

damaging, irresponsible, and deceptive.

on More time hurts Connerly, because the

0S more people learn about this initiative,

the more they see its flaws and its hidden

agenda: to cover up inequality and

Summer 2002

A California bill would unconstitutionally restrict raves.

Senator Richard Polanco to reduce

the penalties on peaceful, nonviolent

protest, as long as the protest activities

do not damage property, block medical

facilities or religious services, or trespass

on private residential property. California

currently penalizes various misdemeanors

associated with protest speech with fines

of up to $1,000 and jail terms of up to

6 months; SB 1680 limits penalties to

two days in jail and $100 fines. The bill

sailed smoothly through the Senate and

currently awaits a more difficult battle in

the Assembly.

AB 1941 by Assemblymember Sally

Havice unconstitutionally singles out

one form of speech for a higher level

of state scrutiny: raves. The bill creates

a vague and easily abused new permit

standard for anyone seeking to hold an

electronic music event drawing more

than 500 people.

youth culture and sensational headlines,

the bill is finding an easy path so far

through the legislature, but working

with electronic music and rave groups,

the ACLU of Southern California has

generated hundreds of letters urging

Driven by fear of

lawmakers to vote against this punitive

and unconstitutional measure.

immigrants' Rights: Driver's License

Bill Loses Focus ; Workers' Rights

Bill Makes Progress

Two bills answering the needs of

" Yes on Proposition 52: Same-Day Voter

in a quick and uniform way at the

M, polling place on election day.

PM Research indicates that these

provisions will increase voter

| participation by 3%-6% in

7 California. To learn more

about the initiative, go to

y www.ElectionDayReg.com

or call (916) 443-7011.

injustice."

The Coalition for an Informed

California, meanwhile, a consortium

that includes the three ACLU affiliates

of California, has focused on educating

the public about the harmful impacts

of the initiative on California's ability

to assess and address disparities in

healthcare, education, and hate crime and

discrimination. The ACLU of Southern

California chairs the media and public

information committee, and Ramona

Ripston, ACLU/SC Executive Director

is on the statewide campaign Executive

Committee. To find out more, go to the

eroup's web site at http://www.informed

california.org.

ACLU of Southern California

Photo: Tom Frisch

Californias immigrant families have

shifted shape en route to the Governor's

desk. AB 60, authored by Assembly-

member Gil Cedillo,

immigrants who are in the process of

obtaining their immigration documents

to receive driver's licenses. But the bill has

been mated with a companion bill loaded

down with numerous additional provis-

ions that mandate criminal background

checks on immigrants, make immigrants

identifiable through special coding on the

driver's licenses, and give the state the

power to maintain - and possibly to abuse

- digital fingerprint databases.

SB 1818, by Senator Gloria Romero,

provides a partial California fix for

the recent Hoffman decision by the

U.S. Supreme Court, which stripped

undocumented workers of the right to

receive back pay as a penalty when a

would allow

company fires them illegally. Employers

have already begun to cite the case as a

defense against employees' claims in

sexual harassment, discrimination, and

The bill is proceed-

ing smoothly, though its scope has

been curtailed, with a separate state-

other conflicts.

level back pay system removed from

The bill

now clarifies that all of California's

labor, employment, civil rights, and

employment housing laws apply to all

California workers, regardless of immi-

the bill's initial language.

gration status.

yu i ata -

n- immigrants' ata ars ae

ch racial de ~ and n Le

a ac erty Vey

cra a: cree ett oe a e-mails |

"go to --

hit the big red Take Action button,

and take action on any of our campaigns.

LGBT Civil Rights: Leading

Edge and Pragmatic Mea-

sures Still in Play

The lesbian, gay, bisexual,

and transgender civil rights

movement has a lot to cheer

about in the State Capitol. As

of press time, the ACLU/SC

continues to push for progress

on all of the following bills:

e AB 2216 (Keeley),

a pragmatic addition to

domestic rights

in the

partner

form of automatic

inheritance.

cent AB 2651 (Chu), explicit

nondiscrimination language for

children in foster care.

cent AB 1080 (Kehoe), an ambitious law,

modeled after a San Francisco ordinance,

that would require the state's contractors

to offer equal benefits to spouses and

domestic partners.

In San Francisco, the number of city

contractors offering domestic partner

benefits has increased from 100 to 3200

during the five years its Equal Benefits

Ordinance has been in effect.

Economic Justice: Paid Family

Care Leave

SB 1661, introduced by Senator Sheila

Kuehl, creates a comprehensive paid family

care leave program for California workers.

The bill expands the disability insurance

system to put California in the forefront of

recognizing workers' family obligations. It

closes the gap that currently forces people

to take unpaid leave in order to care for

a loved one. The ACLU/SC supports

the bill as part of its commitment to

economic justice and because the current

system disproportionately affects women,

who most frequently act as caregivers.

Domestic partners are included in those

covered by the paid leave system. The

bill passed in the Senate, but faces stiff

opposition from some sectors of the

business community as it moves through

the Assembly.

Score: 65 Time: 460 }

Supreme Court Review: Overall, A Bad Year for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties

by Erwin Chemerinsky

Although there were a few notable

victories, overall the Supreme Court's

recently completed term was filled with

important losses for civil rights and civil

The reality is that this is a

conservative Court and when it splits 5-

liberties.

4, the majority is likely to be comprised

of Chief Justice Rehnquist and Justices

O'Connor, Scalia, Kennedy, and Thomas.

During the October 2001 term, which

ended on June 27, there were 81 decisions;

17 were resolved by a 5-4 margin and in

10 the majority was made up of these five

Justices. Some of the most important areas

for decisions concerned the separation of

church and state, criminal procedure, the

death penalty, and freedom of speech.

Separation of Church and State

One of the most significant decisions,

and one of the worst from a civil liberties

perspective, was the Court's upholding

the constitutionality of vouchers used

in parochial schools. In Zelman v.

Simmons-Harris, decided on the last day

of the term, the Supreme Court upheld

an Ohio law that created a voucher

program in Cleveland. Over 96% of

parents receiving vouchers used them

in parochial schools; over 83% of the

schools receiving vouchers were religious

institutions. Nonetheless, the Supreme

Court, in a 5-4 decision, with the

majority opinion written by Chief Justice

Rehnquist, upheld the constitutionality of

the program. The Court stressed that it

was the parents' choice of where to spend

the money.

The decision approved an

unprecedented transfer of government

funds to religious schools. The Court's

willingness to approve this voucher

program, which was structured in a way

to encourage use in religious schools,

makes constitutional challenges to other

voucher programs difficult. Long ago,

Thomas Jefferson spoke of the need for a

wall separating church and state and the

immorality of taxing a person to support

another's religion. The Court's decision

is one of the worst in history in assaulting

that wall and allowing the government

to tax people to support religious

indoctrination in parochial schools.

Criminal Procedure

It was a particularly bad year for the

Fourth and Fifth Amendments. The

government won every major criminal

procedure case decided by the Court.

Perhaps this reflects greater judicial

deference to the government since

September 11, or maybe it is just about a

conservative Court ruling in favor of the

police.

In United States v. Arvizu, the

Supreme Court held that the police were

justified in stopping a motorist based on

completely innocuous factors, including:

the car was on a public road often used

by smugglers; the driver did not wave at

the police officer; the children looked

uncomfortable in the back seat and did

wave at the officer; the car was a mini-van

of a type often used by smugglers. The

Court's unanimous ruling in favor of the

police would seem to allow police to stop

almost any motorist by pointing to factors

such as these.

In Board of Education of Independent

School Dist. No. 92 of Pottowotomie

County v. Earls, the Court upheld a school

district's policy requiring random drug

testing as a condition for participation

The 5-4

decision - Justice Thomas's opinion was

joined by Rehnquist, Scalia, Kennedy,

and Breyer - opens the door for

schools across the country to institute

Under Justice

Thomas's reasoning, that schools have

in extracurricular activities.

drug testing programs.

an important interest in preventing drug

use and that drug tests are a minimal

invasion of privacy, there seems little

obstacle to schools requiring drug testing

of all students. Over thirty years ago,

the Supreme Court spoke eloquently of

students not leaving their constitutional

rights at the schoolhouse gate. No longer

does that seem so.

In McKune v. Lile, the Court said that

the Fifth Amendment is not violated when

the government requires that a prisoner

admit to prior sex crimes or face transfer

to a maximum security prison and loss of

privileges such as family visitation and

a prison job. The decision is a major

erosion of the Fifth Amendment privilege

against self-incrimination, as now prisons

can coerce prisoners into admitting other

crimes.

The Death Penalty

The two most important victories for

civil liberties were in death penalty cases.

In Atkins v. Virginia, the Court held that

the execution of the mentally retarded

is cruel and unusual punishment in

violation of the Eighth Amendment. Ina

6-3 decision, with Justice Stevens writing

for the majority, the Court held that there

is a national consensus that such use of

the death penalty is cruel and unusual

punishment. Justice Stevens also stressed

the risk of executing an innocent person

because of the greater likelihood that a

person with mental disabilities would not

be able to work with counsel or would

make a false confession.

In Ring v. Arizona, the Court held

that a jury, not a judge, must make the

decision as to whether to impose a death

sentence. In most states, the choice is left

to the jury; but in several states, including

Arizona, the judge determines whether

In a 7-

2 decision, with the majority opinion

written by Justice Ginsburg, the Court

said that the Sixth Amendment right to

to impose capital punishment.

trial by jury requires that jurors determine

whether there are sufficient aggravating

factors to warrant a death sentence.

Two cases do not make a trend,

but it is notable that these are the

first major decisions in many years

limiting imposition of the death penalty.

Hopefully, they reflect a greater sensitivity

by the Court as to the enormous problems

in the administration of the death penalty

and the real risks that innocent people are

being sentenced to death.

Freedom of Speech

Of all the areas of constitutional

law, the least ideologically predictable is

freedom of speech. Today, conservatives

on the Court are as likely to rule in

favor of free speech claims as are the

more moderate Justices. For example, in

Republican Party of Minnesota v. White,

the five most conservative Justices voted

to declare unconstitutional a state law

that prohibited candidates for political

office

disputed legal or political issues. Justice

Scalia, joined by Rehnquist, O'Connor,

Kennedy, and Thomas, wrote for the

majority in a 5-4 decision. Justice Scalia

emphasized that the government had

impermissibly restricted political speech

in election campaigns. If a state chooses

to have elected judges, then it cannot keep

candidates from informing voters of their

views.

In Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition,

Justice Kennedy wrote for the Court in

striking down a provision of the federal

Child Pornography Prevention Act that

from making statements on

banned child pornography generated by

computers or that used adults who were

childlike in appearance. In a 6-3 decision,

the Court ruled that the government's

interest in stopping child pornography

is in protecting children. If children are

not used, then the law does not violate the

First Amendment.

Conclusion

These, of course, are just some of

the key rulings in the recently completed

term. Other decisions included the Court

holding that a "zero tolerance" drug

policy for public housing is constitutional,

even when applied to evict families who

had no knowledge of illegal drug activity

and there was no drug activity in the

public housing. (Department of Housing

and Urban Development v. Rucker). The

Court also ruled that an employer is not

liable for back pay for actions in violation

of the National Labor Relations Act if the

employee was illegally in the United States

and used false documents in securing

employment. (Hoffman Plastic Compound

v. NLRB). In one of a series of decisions

limiting the scope of the Americans with

Disabilities Act, the Court held that

punitive damages cannot be recovered

under that law. (Barnes v. Gorman).

Overall, this is a conservative

Supreme Court and more often than

not, civil liberties and civil rights are the

losers.

Erwin Chemerinsky is the Sydney M.

Irmas Professor of Public Interest Law,

Legal Ethics, and Political Science at the

University of Southern California.

National Unmarried and Single Americans Week

September 15 - 21, 2002

The ACLU salutes 82 million Unmarried and Single Americans

and thanks the American Association For Single People for

sponsoring National USA Week. Give yourself or someone you

know a membership in AASP to celebrate this occasion.

For more information visit www.nationalUSAweek.org or call

AASP for a free brochure at (888) 296-1679.

California

Summer 2002

The Educational, Political, and

Moral Case Against Vouchers

by Bob Chase

The United States

Supreme Court has issued

its ruling in the Cleveland

private school

voucher case - settling for

some the issue of whether,

certain

tuition

circumstances,

under

private

school tuition vouchers are legal. It is

significant, however, that the ruling does

not - and cannot - make a determination

about whether vouchers are a good idea.

While attention is focused on the

constitutional issues, public education

advocates have other strong reasons to

oppose private school tuition vouchers.

These proven

far more compelling in the decision-

making process of state legislators, voters,

and parents. The illogic of vouchers -

the idea that we can "save" the public

same arguments have

schools by undermining them - is likely

to be rejected, regardless of the Supreme

Court's action.

California voters understand this and

have overwhelmingly rejected statewide

voucher schemes twice in the last 10

years. Voters killed one plan by 71 percent

in 2000, and another one by 70 percent

in 1993. Nationwide, voters have rejected

every voucher plan they have faced in the

last 30 years.

There is simply no compelling

evidence vouchers accomplish what their

advocates claim. For years, voucher

advocates have advanced a number of

theories about what impact vouchers

would have. But the research doesn't

add up. Vouchers don't give all parents

access to the schools of their choice. A

recent U.S. Department of Education

study notes that choice is a double-

edged sword, stating, "Choice is another

defining characteristic of private schools:

families choose private education, and

private schools may choose which parents

to accept."

Student

be the issue, especially if vouchers are

achievement ought to

going to attempt to maintain the mantle

of a "reform" idea. But the General

Accounting Office summed up _ its

review of existing studies by saying,

"The contract researcher teams for

Cleveland and Milwaukee found little or

no statistically significant differences in

voucher students' achievement test scores

compared to public school students, but

other investigators found that vouchers

students did better in some subject areas

tested." In other words, as has been

widely reported, some voucher students

did better and some did worse.

No matter how you ask the question,

the vast majority of parents do not prefer

vouchers to real, meaningful efforts to

improve the public schools their children

attend. Election after election, poll after

poll, and conversation by conversation,

parents of all racial, ethnic, income,

and political backgrounds have rejected

vouchers - and they will continue to do

SO.

If policymakers truly care about what

parents want, then they will provide the

resources to reduce class size, make sure

students have qualified teachers, and to

make sure all students are held to high

standards.

In the end, it is morally wrong to give

up on the American public school system.

Yes, there are schools that have serious

deficiencies - classes that are overcrowded,

facilities that are substandard, and too

many teachers who have not met state or

local minimum qualifications. Vouchers

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Hal Gunn, ACLU Foundation of Southern California, 1616

Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90026.

Birthdate(s)

Address

Telephone

City

address none of those issues. Instead, they

write off the 90 percent of students in

public schools for the 10 percent in private

schools.

Even Terry Moe, a leading voucher

advocate for more than a decade, has

to concede with some frustration, that

"Many Americans simply like the idea

of-a public school system. They see it as

an expression of local democracy, and a

pillar of the local community, [and] they

admire the egalitarian principles on which

it is based."

It will continue to be a hard sell to

trade that in for what Wall Street whiz

Ted Forstmann refers to as utopia when

he says "Remember, K-12 tuition in

America alone is a $370 billion potential

industry - virtually twice the size of the

telecommunications market today."

Supply-siders and laissez faire

economists will have to forgive us teachers

and parents if we lack enthusiasm for

the money to be made in the "education

industry." We are much more concerned

about making sure there's a place for

our children that is safe, where they can

learn, and where they can be a part of a

democratic society, not just a consumer.

Bob Chase is the president of the

National Education Association.

On July 17, Professor Erwin

Chemerinsky of USC and Jeff Brain

of Valley VOTE (Voters Organized

Toward Empowerment) offered

competing visions of Valley secession

as a civil rights issue to the board of the

ACLU of Southern California. After

over an hour of debate and questions,

the board voted to oppose secession.

Brain outlined the Valley secession

movement as a way to make municipal

government on both sides of the hill

more accountable and bring it closer to

the people it serves. With 14 proposed

districts, each representing 95,000

residents, as opposed the 250,000

constituents represented by each

council member in Los Angeles today,

the proposed Valley city, according to

Brain, would have a "more efficient,

more accountable, and less costly

government."

Brain compared the cost of services

in Los Angeles to the costs in cities the

size of San Diego and asserted that

new efficiencies would help both cities

serve their lower-income residents bet-

ter, citing a Local Agency Formation

Commission (LAFCO) report that look-

ed at academic research and a database

comparing municipal service costs in

1500 cities nationwide.

Professor Chemerinsky outlined

a

ACLU/SC Board Takes A Stand On Secession

SUMNER Ce ae CODE A Sten Cn GRC

three areas in which secession presented

serious civil rights problems: social

justice, economic justice, and racial

justice. Chemerinsky said Los Angeles,

unlike other cities divided by

less wealthy.

"The money has to be taken from

somewhere,' said Chemerinsky, and he

warned that it would primarily affect the

poorest parts of the city. Chemerinsky

called the savings to both the Valley city

and the remainder city "conjecture,"

and the LAFCO-mandated payments

"a sweetheart deal" for the

"white flight," has managed to

keep the city core and Valley

suburbs together.

Chemerinsky cited Los

Angeles' living wage ordinance,

its domestic partner benefits

program for employees, and

rent control as progressive

policies that might not survive

in the proposed new city. He

also warned that the new city

scheme for decentralized local

land use decision-making

could result in a NIMBY-

ism that would threaten the

provision of services to battered

women, the mentally ill, home-

less people, and others.

Chemerinsky insisted that

the fundamental argument

of Valley VOTE - that it

is unfair for Valley residents

to pay more in taxes than

they receive in services - is

unsound, and that wealthier

areas should pay more. Any

other arrangement, he argued,

threatens communities that are

Proposed

Secession

Areas

San Fernando

Vall ey voting block in the city,

Secession Hollywood 0x00A7 `diluting Latino -_voting

Secession 0x00A7 POWeuroT.

proposed Valley city.

Chemerinsky also

emphasized that the division

of the city threatened to cut

into two parts the Latino

"Los Angeles' remarkable

diversity has made it one

of the most economically,

politically, and culturally

vibrant cities in the nation,"

said ACLU/SC_ Executive

Director Ramona _ Ripston

when she publicly announced

the organization's position.

"Separating us from each

other will surely diminish

that vitality... Our message to

the nation must be that a city

formed of different racial,

economic, and

groups can work."

cultural

papa 15

| ; "KOREA

-CLATINOS

Since his arrival to the United

States from Korea in 1986, Chin

Yol Yi has worked in various Korean

supermarkets throughout Southern

California. When Assi Market first

opened its doors in Koreatown, Yi was

asked to set up the fish department

because of his 10 plus years experience

and expertise as a sashimi cutter.

Throughout his years as a market

worker, Yi witnessed and encountered

harassment and discrimination by

market management, especially

toward Latino workers. After working

more than ten hours a day, Yi was

harassed for leaving work "too early."

Abel Ramos has worked in the

Korean market industry for over ten

years. As the sole provider for his

family, Ramos sees the need to better

his and his co-workers' compensation.

Ramos also says he is tired of

witnessing and being subjected to

unjust treatment by Assi management.

Asaworker in the produce department,

Abel has trained new Korean hires and

seen them promoted to management

According to Yi, the market's owner

once threatened to have his arm

_ charge the owner's sister for a sashimi

chopped off. The offense: failing to

order. Yi reports that workers were

routinely threatened with termination

if they complained about the unfair

working conditions.

"Throughout my experience as

a worker at various Korean markets,

I always knew we needed some kind

of organizing to report the continuous

abuses of management - I was not sure

how to go about it exactly, but there

was a strong necessity for a union,"

said Yi.

After management found out

about a pro-union letter Yi wrote to

colleagues, he was fired. According

to the Assi management, Yi was

terminated for giving extra sushi to a

regular customer, a standard courtesy

at Assi and other markets serving

sushi. The IWU has filed an unjust

termination charge with the National

Labor Relations Board (NLRB),

along with other unfair labor practices

charges. Yi continues to support [WU

and serves as its co-chair.

positions and given salary raises in less

than 15 days.

"Workers are constantly yelled

at, insulted and threatened with cuts

in their hours when they complain

of unjust treatment,' said Ramos.

"Cutting their hours hurts the workers

immensely, since we barely survive on

a minimum wage salary to support our

families."

Ramos and other Latino produce

department workers walked out after

management cut their hours.

"How is it possible that the

owner gets richer and the workers get

poorer?" said Ramos. "Assi has been

in business for four years and just

recently opened a new store in Garden

Grove, and workers that have been

working at Assi for four years continue

to earn the minimum wage."

Super market continued from page 1

2001, 20 Latino workers in the produce

department at Assi supermarket in

Koreatown walked out after learning

of the rollback in hours. Assi's owners

promised the workers to increase their

hours, a promise that remains unfulfilled.

The workers decided to form the

Immigrant Workers Union (IWU) and

filed for an election with the National

Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Assi workers had other complaints in

addition to the rollback in hours. Many

Assi supermarket workers currently

receive the minimum wage, regardless

of how long they have been employed by

Assi. They have no health benefits, and

they work under poor conditions. Assi

workers also describe racial discrimination

and harassment by the Assi supermarket

management.

According to a 2000 study by the

Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy,

more than 60% of Los Angeles' working

poor (those eligible for government anti-

poverty programs) are immigrants - the

More than 218,000

retail employees in Los Angeles County are

majority, Latino.

members of the working poor. Although

Korean supermarkets such as Assi have

thrived economically and expanded their

businesses to other cities, organizers say

that immigrant workers who fuel that

prosperity are denied their fair share of

it, continue to have no union protection,

and are often subjected to harassment and

verbal abuse. According to activists, when

workers start to organize, management

threatens them with termination and

deportation.

After filing with the NLRB, the

workers presented Daniel Lee, the owner

of Assi supermarket, with their demands:

fair wages, health insurance and vacation

benefits, protection against wrongful

termination, recognition of job seniority

and experience, fair treatment, and union

recognition. Lee responded by hiring a

union-busting law firm.

"Instead of using his energy to

negotiate with the workers and investing

funds to better pay the workers, Lee has

hired a costly law firm to intimidate the

workers," said Maximiliano Mariscal, Assi

worker and IWU Organizer.

Next, Lee filed an unfair labor

practice (ULP) claim against KIWA for

"employer domination." The NLRB threw

out the claim.

Prior to the NLRB union election

in March 2002, Lee and his lawyers

conducted an intensive anti-union cam-

paign. After counting the votes, the

NLRB announced that the election was

too close to call. The [WU and KIWA

have demanded a new election.

"Our fight for union recognition

continues at Assi supermarket," said

Mariscal.

in support of the Market Workers' Justice Campaign by signing the letter below and sending it to:

ACLU/SC, Attn: Public Policy, 1616 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90026

| Dear Mr. Daniel Seung Chul Lee:

| It has come to my attention that Assi market employees have been subjected to

an extremely hostile working environment by you and your management for their

desire to unionize.

As a member of the community, I ask that you acknowledge the hard work

and to union representation with the Immigrant Workers Union (IWU). Workers

should be treated with dignity and respect, and workers have the right to organize |

and contributions of the Assi market workers by supporting their right to organize

for better pay and conditions.

I urge you to acknowledge the right of Assi market workers to unionize and to |

support their demands for fair wages, health insurance, vacation benefits, protection

| against wrongful termination, recognition of job seniority and experience, and fair |

treatment.

Sincerely,

signature

name (print)

address

city, state, and zip

RAR SIS see WIENS TIS

During Banned Books Week, September 21-27, explore freedom of expression issues with

the ACLU of Southern California and distinguished guests.

Expresion Sin Fronteras

Theme: freedom of expression and Latino culture in the United State

Friday, September 27, at 7:00 p.m.

Espresso Mi Cultura, 5625 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90028

To Shan aleh RSVP by calling 213/977-5205

"War" and Words

Theme: censorship, academic freedom, and dissent before and after 9/11

September 26, at 7:00 p.m.

ACLU of Southern California, 1616 Beverly Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90026

To attend, RSVP by calling 213/977-5251

ACLU of Southern California

Summer 2002

ACLU Calls on Lockyer

to Check Potential FBI

Spying Abuses

Post 9/11: Return of McCarthy-Era

Domestic Spying Rules and New Task

`Forces Create Civil Liberties Danger -

On July 2, 2002, the ACLU affiliates

of California sent an open letter to

California Attorney General Bill Lockyer

urging him to protect Californians'

constitutional right to privacy against

the FBI's newly revived domestic spying

powers.

The letter was a response to US

Atty. Gen. John Ashcroft's sudden and

unilateral dismantling of the rules

guiding FBI investigations. The rules

were put in place as a corrective to the

FBI's McCarthy era abuses. The letter

explains that by gutting the guidelines,

Ashcroft has made it legal for FBI agents

to revive its old practices and to conduct

"fishing expeditions" - spying on citizens

and citizen associations without any prior

suspicion of wrongdoing. What makes

Ashcroft's decree particularly troubling

at the state level is that it coincides with

the recent creation of Joint Terrorism Task

Force units in which local law enforcement

agencies are to work "seamlessly" with the

FBI. The ACLU fears that this integration

will require California law enforcement

agencies to violate the state's constitution,

which outlaws precisely the practices now

being advocated by Ashcroft.

Orr ite. Gels

abuses,

of revelations of

similar Californians

a constitutional amendment in 1972

creating a strong right to privacy and

barring unfettered and inappropriate

"government snooping." The ACLU called

on Attorney General Bill Lockyer to

uphold state law and notify local agents

that they are governed by state law.

passed

`Book Review: It's a Free Country

Concerned about post-9/ Ul threats.

liberty, ACLU-SC (c) Foundation

detailing ACLU oe across the |

country to protect our freedoms from -

ee Danny Geld |

berg has brought together -

some of America's top.

historians, civil liberties

"activists and leaders in

_ the upcoming book, 7s

A Free Country: Personal -

_ Freedom in America After

September ae

both conservatives and -

progressives offer a vivid

- and sometimes chilling -

- account of the impact

F REE COUNTRY

Ph aa bone Spek

Bi Laie i I

Pisa :

Over 500x00B0 essays by |. ~~

attack. ACLU National

Executive Director Anth-

ony Romero,

President Nadine Stros-

sen and the Executive

`Director of the ACLU -

OM IN AMERICA

Ramona Ripston are am-

ong the ACLU voices

featured.

In her Ssaibution.

Ripston focuses on

_that the September 11

_ terrorist attacks have had

on our countrys civil

liberties. | Contributors

Congressman Bob Barr,

Ani Di Franco, Tom Hayden, lesee

Jackson, Michael Moore, Congress-

woman Maxine Waters, Howard Zinn,

_ and others cover a range of issues from

domestic spying, to racial profiling, to

secret detentions, to media censorship.

The book features an entire chapter

The $19.95 book is published

by RDV books and may be diligent service,

_ purchased through Amazon.com

or WWW. akashicbooks. com.

immigrant ACLU-SC

clients who, despite

`face

losing their jobs as

airline screeners because

they arent Citizens, even though

pilots, flight attendants, and others

don't face a similar requirement. "The

democratic values that make us proud

to be Americans are under attack from

the very people who are supposed to

protect those values," she notes.

ACLU Challenges Feinstein's New Stance on Racial Profiling

Racial Justice: In Reversal, Senator Endorses Discredited Practice

The ACLU affiliates of California

wrote a letter to Senator Dianne Feinstein

challenging her new position in support

of racial profiling, a position she recently

expressed on CNN, opining that the FBI

should begin to use racial profiling and

that they are "not going to be looking for

blond Norwegians."

Her new stance runs counter to her prev-

ious position. Last year, Senator Feinstein

said the stereotyping of Asian Americans

exhibited in the Wen Ho Lee case "strike(s)

at the heart of American values."

"How can we question the loyalty of

any American because of his or her race or

ethnic background? To put it simply, this

is un-American and must be stopped,"

Feinstein said last year.

The Current Threat to Academic Freedom Echoes McCarthy Era

Civil Liberties Now: Lynn Cheney Compiles a List of "Anti-Americanisms" by John McCumber

Seth Rosenfeld's revelations in

the San Francisco Chronicle that the

FBI waged a decades-long campaign

against the University of California,

used

student radicals, influenced the hiring

and firing of professors, and furthered

the gubernatorial campaign of Ronald

Reagan surprised few of us in universities

sympathetic regents to harass

today. Neither were we surprised to learn

that what triggered this gigantic effort

was not a supposed subversive conspiracy,

but merely a question on the California

aptitude test that invited test takers to

think critically about the FBI.

The FBI created a public atmosphere

of fear and suspicion, and that atmosphere

has had lasting effects on universities.

My own academic field, philosophy,

remains today what it became during

the McCarthy Era: a safely technical

discipline, essentially purged of the

kind of critical but

questioning associated with philosophers

uncomfortable

Desert Pass Takes Action on Campaign to io -ecUUOSE

Chapters: Building a Local Movement

The Californians for a Moratorium

(CME) Campaign

continues to gain momentum - in part,

because of strong local activism efforts

such as the one led by the Desert Pass

chapter of the ACLU.

This spring, the Desert Pass chapter

conducted a large-scale signature drive

on Executions

for CME, actively pursuing endorsements

of a moratorium resolution by the Palm

Springs City Council, the

Relations Commission, and two local

candidates for Putting

Human

Congress.

increasing pressure on local officials and

raising the profile of the campaign, the

chapter was invited to participate in a

televised debate with the City Attorney

about the death penalty.

According _to

George Frandsen,

Summer 2002

Deer oe aie

"road member

participation" in all phases of their efforts

has been the key. Members distributed

CME fact sheets and petitions, while

simultaneously creating more detailed

packets that they hand delivered to local

officials they hoped to meet and persuade.

Their efforts are part of the growing

movement to reassess the state's death

penalty system.

On May 1, 2002, CME proponents

conducted a peaceful march through

downtown Sacramento to deliver 89,000

signatures calling on Governor Davis

to immediately halt all executions in

the state. In other death penalty news,

the governor of Maryland enacted a

moratorium on May 9.

Somerset tea ete

In October 2001, a group of senior

US _ intelligence working to

combat terrorism rejected racial profiling,

experts

saying that "it adds no security, and in fact

can compromise it." Counter-terrorism is

better served, they argued, by focusing on

behavior, not race.

ibe `results. of the EB] dragnee

focusing on men of Middle Eastern descent

underline the inefficacy of racial profiling,"

said Ramona Ripston, Executive Director

of the ACLU of Southern California.

"After September 11, the FBI questioned or

detained over 5000 Middle Eastern men,

and on April 3 called for the questioning

of another 3000. This fishing expedition

has so far uncovered only a handful of visa

violations."

for millennia.

That ongoing success may explain

why, in spite of their protests to the

contrary, organizations such as Lynne V.

Cheney's American Council of Trustees

and Alumni are using McCarthyite

tactics for McCarthyite The

Council existed before September 11, and

its report, "Defending Civilization: How

Our Universities Are Failing America and

What Can Be Done About It,"

sad day to push a conservative agenda.

The report even includes - of all things -

goals.

uses that

a list of "anti-Americanisms" perpetrated

at universities.

This list, like those from the

McCarthy Era, is both indiscriminate

and padded. Things shouted at protests

are listed alongside things said in the

and the deeds of flaky

department chairs are treated like official

statements of university policy. Included

classroom,

are such unexceptionable statements as,

"We have to learn to use courage for peace

instead of war," "Twe should] build

bridges and relationships, not simply

bombs and walls."

and

When anodynes such as these are

unacceptable, it's time those of us in

academia remember our history and insist

that we do not repeat it.

John McCumber is a UCLA professor and

the author of Time in the Ditch: American

Philosophy and the McCarthy Era.

ACLU

of Southern California -

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Toni Braxton presented the Torch of Liberty

Award to Antonio "LA" Reid.

i

ACLU/SC Executive Director

Ramona Ripston and 2002 Torch

of Liberty honoree "West Wing"

creator Aaron Sorkin.

Muhammad Ali and Tom Sizemore (not pictured) presented the

Torch of Liberty Award to Michael Mann.

Comedian Margaret Cho, whose movie "The

Notorious C.H.0." opened this summer,

emceed the Torch of Liberty dinner.

Wl

Ramona Ripston with 2002 Pro Bono Advocacy Award recipient Nancy Mintie of the Inner City Law Center/Uncommon

Good, the Honorable Cruz Reynoso, 2002 Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, and David Bohnett, Citizen Advocate

Award honoree.

Inglewood continued from page 1

attention, public outcry, and the

perennial advocacy of organizations

such as the ACLU, police abuse remains

an intractable civil rights problem.

What can we do to have more of an

impact, and why have reforms up until

now failed to lead to a broader reform

consensus in police departments

throughout the country, especially in

urban areas?

HW: We don't need to reinvent

the wheel here. This Commission will

draw on the work that others have done.

Regardless of how long this problem has

been around, we still have a sacred duty

to protect the civil rights of all Americans,

and as an elected official, I do not take

that charge lightly.

Police officers are human_ beings

and there have been mistakes made.

We will not tolerate those abuses. So,

to that end, I expect this Commission

to formulate legislation and make

recommendations that will lead us to

our goal: zero incidents of police abuse

and zero tolerance when incidents occur.

And I hope this Commission will better

educate the public about their rights and

responsibilities when they come in contact

with an officer of the law.

I expect this effort to yield fruit. We

are engaged in a monumental struggle -

to protect the civil rights of all Americans

- and I expect our commitment to this

important task will provide answers to

why police abuse happens and how we

can prevent it from happening again.

RR: We in the civil rights

community have been fighting for

police reforms for years, but since

the battle often proceeds jurisdiction

by jurisdiction, our progress can

sometimes feel incoherent.

HW: Exactly. My mission for this

Commission is to go beyond jurisdictions

and look at this issue with a statewide,

even global, perspective. We will

engage the experts. Three years ago,

the Congressional Black Caucus held

nationwide hearings on this very question

-and I expect we can pick up where they

left off. We will hear from academic

experts, psychologists, rank and file police

officers, trainers, police chiefs and sheriffs

~ we need to know how our men and

women in law enforcement are responding

to training.

But let me make one thing clear: after

all the experts have testified, and after all

the words have been spoken, and after all

the reports have been written - we will

take action to benefit all Californians.

RR: Let's talk about whistle-

blowers. With all of those officers

ACLU of Southern California

aryereya ett ks

Contact: Malek Moazzam Doulat, (213) 977-9500 ext. 251, e-mail mdoulat@aclu-sc.org.

Chapter Council Meetings are scheduled for Wednesday August 21, October 16 and December 18

at 7 p.m. All chapter activists are invited to attend. Meetings are held at the ACLU of Southern Califor-

nia, 1616 Beverly Boulevard, Los Angeles 90026. For information and confirmation, call (213) 977-9500

ext. 251 or e-mail mdoulat@aclu-sc.org.

Beverly Hills/(Westwood All meetings are held at the Westside Pavilion, 3rd Floor Community

Room A, Pico and Overland, West Los Angeles. E-mail nevilleray@webtv.net for more information.

Desert Pass Call (760) 327-2623 or e-mail gfrandsen@aol.com for information.

Hollywood All meetings are at The Original Farmer's Market Food Court Community Room (upstairs

North East corner), 6333 West Third Street, at Fairfax, the 2nd Thursday of each month at 7:00 p.m. Free

validated parking in the Grove parking lot. Everybody welcome (including kids). Wheelchair access. Call

(323) 464-5330 for information.

Inland Empire 3rd Saturday of each month, 3 p.m. General meetings at Back-to-the-Grind Coffee-

house (downstairs), 3575 University Avenue in Riverside. For information, e-mail iecACLU@aol.com or

call (909) 787-8218.

Lesbian and Gay Rights Call (310) 289-1299 or e-mail rahennig@ix.netcom.com for information.

Long Beach 2nd Wednesday of each month, 7:30 p.m., general meeting at the Unitarian Universalist

Church, 5450 E. Atherton Street (west of Bellflower) in Long Beach. For more information, contact Mark

Bowen by e-mail mbowen1017@aol.com or call (562) 218-6105.

Orange County ACLU NEEDS YOU! Defend our Bill of Rights with the OC ACLU chapter. We're

revitalizing and re-energizing. Meetings held the fourth Monday of the month at 7 p.m. at Orange Coast

Unitarian Universalist Church, 1259 Victoria, in Costa Mesa. E-mail mdoulat@aclu-sc.org for more

information.

Pasadena-Foothill Meetings held at the Neighborhood Church, 301 North Orange Grove Boulevard,

Pasadena, California; 2 Blocks North of the 210 Freeway, Orange Grove Exit, next door to the Gamble

House; Go to the large 2-story building north of the church to the rear of the site. For more information

contact: Jim Lomako, 626-794-1234, or e-mail aclusasadena@email.com.

Pomona Valley Meets monthly; please call 909-626-4166 for information on the time, date, and

place of the next meeting.

San Fernando Valley For information, call (213) 977-9500 ext. 251 or e-mail mdoulat@aclu-

SC.Org.

San Luis Obispo Executive Board meets on the 3rd Thursday of each month, 6:30 p.m. Members

welcome. Complaint Review Committee meets later at 7:45 p.m. Both meetings are at Mid-State Bank,

2276 Broad Street in San Luis Obispo. For more information, call (805) 544-0142.

Santa Barbara The Santa Barbara Chapter plans to hold its annual Garden Party on Sunday October

6. For details about time and location contact the chapter. Chapter meetings, open to all members and

others interested in civil liberties, are held the third Thursday of each month, at 6:30 p.m., in the Franklin

Center, 1136 East Montecito St. in Santa Barbara. Anyone interested in attending should contact us in

advance at rsolomon2@home.com or by telephone: 805-879-7549.

Singles For information, e-mail dean.ruby@worldnet.att.net or call (310) 392-7149 or (310) 559-1493.

South Bay The Upton Sinclair Arts and Lectures Series is held on the fourth Sunday of each month at

2:30 p.m. General meetings held the 1st Friday of each month at 7:30 p.m. All meetings at Coalition

Hall, 1220 South Pacific Avenue in San Pedro. Please call (310) 548-5054 for information, or e-mail

SouthBayACLU@c-spam.net.

Ventura County For information, e-mail aronoffg@vcss.k12.ca.us. Or call (213) 977-9500 ext. 251

or e-mail mdoulat@aclu-sc.org for general information.

Whittier/San Gabriel Valley 1st Wednesday of each month, 7 p.m., board meetings. All wel-

come. Call (562) 696-3751 or (562) 698-1200 for location information.

CommitteeMeetings

ACLU/SC Board: Wed., Sep. 18 at 7 p.m. and Wed., Nov. 20 at 7 p.m., Annual Assembly, Dec.

11 at 6:30 p.m.

First Amendment Committee: Last Wednesday of the month at 7 p.m.

Medical Rights Committee: Third Monday of the month at 7:30 p.m.

Unless noted, all meetings are held at the ACLU: 1616 Beverly Blvd., L.A. CA 90026. Please

park in the fenced lot behind the building, and use the rear entrance when attending night

meetings.

officers to expose those who are not?

watching on July 6, one suspects that

the incident might nevertheless have

passed unnoticed without outside

evidence. What needs to happen to

encourage honest, decent, law-abiding

Speaker of the California Assembly Herb Wesson

HW: -One0x2122 or the' "coals of = the

Commission is to recommend policies

that protect police officers who bring to

light misconduct, abuse and _ injustice.

This Commission will discuss ways

in which "honest, decent, law-abiding

officers" can feel comfortable voicing

their concerns about misconduct without

fear of retaliation or reprisal from other

officers or their superiors. Those "safeties"

do not exist today. Police officers must

have an outlet in which they can voice

their concerns freely.

RR: What role did race play in

this incident? The discussion of racial

profiling has stalled out to some extent

in California.

HW: We intend to consult with

experts on the role race plays in cases

of police abuse generally, and I expect

we will have a fruitful discussion about

racial profiling. Again, the goal of this

Commission is to prevent what happened

in Inglewood from ever happening again.

Summer 2002