Trinu's definitions
American Civil Liberties Union
Does just what its name says: supports civil liberties and constitutional rights
In more words it Supports:
-SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE- this stance tends to generate controversy b/c many people think they are trying to stop religious expression by the people when they are really trying to keep the government's nose out of religion and actually defend religious freedom (see below)
-*GASP* FREEDOM OF RELIGION- Yes, the ACLU defends people (including *GASP* Christians) who have been denied their rights to religious expression (two recent cases are an elementary school student who wanted to sing Awesome God at a school talent show, and a high school student whose senior quote was a verse from the Bible.
-FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND PRESS- (They even support the free speech rights of NAMBLA and the KKK, which some people mistakenly think this means they support the message; they do not, they just affirm that these groups have the right to speak out peacefully about their beliefs). The ACLU has also criticized the government for censoring "obscene" materials
-FREEDOM FROM CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT- they oppose police brutality, prison rape and other prison abuse, and (controversially) the death penalty
-FREEDOM FROM UNREASONABLE SEARCH AND SEIZURE AND RIGHT TO DUE PROCESS - Many people think this makes them favor terrorists; however if there was enough evidence to charge the "terrorists" with crimes, why doesn't the government do it? Also remember people said the same thing about Japanese Americans in WWII, and back then the ACLU was the ONLY major national organization to oppose the internment camps
-EQUAL PROTECTION UNDER THE LAW- gay rights (including marriage), rights of the poor, racial and gender equality, transgender rights and youth rights - they oppose curfews and rules that require u to be an "adult" to buy porn/see R-rated movies (see free speech too)
Does just what its name says: supports civil liberties and constitutional rights
In more words it Supports:
-SEPARATION OF CHURCH AND STATE- this stance tends to generate controversy b/c many people think they are trying to stop religious expression by the people when they are really trying to keep the government's nose out of religion and actually defend religious freedom (see below)
-*GASP* FREEDOM OF RELIGION- Yes, the ACLU defends people (including *GASP* Christians) who have been denied their rights to religious expression (two recent cases are an elementary school student who wanted to sing Awesome God at a school talent show, and a high school student whose senior quote was a verse from the Bible.
-FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND PRESS- (They even support the free speech rights of NAMBLA and the KKK, which some people mistakenly think this means they support the message; they do not, they just affirm that these groups have the right to speak out peacefully about their beliefs). The ACLU has also criticized the government for censoring "obscene" materials
-FREEDOM FROM CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT- they oppose police brutality, prison rape and other prison abuse, and (controversially) the death penalty
-FREEDOM FROM UNREASONABLE SEARCH AND SEIZURE AND RIGHT TO DUE PROCESS - Many people think this makes them favor terrorists; however if there was enough evidence to charge the "terrorists" with crimes, why doesn't the government do it? Also remember people said the same thing about Japanese Americans in WWII, and back then the ACLU was the ONLY major national organization to oppose the internment camps
-EQUAL PROTECTION UNDER THE LAW- gay rights (including marriage), rights of the poor, racial and gender equality, transgender rights and youth rights - they oppose curfews and rules that require u to be an "adult" to buy porn/see R-rated movies (see free speech too)
For more information on the ACLU u can go to one of its two websites:
www.aclu.org
www.aclu.tv
Or look it up on wikipedia
www.aclu.org
www.aclu.tv
Or look it up on wikipedia
by Trinu January 11, 2007
Get the aclu mug.1. An impossible class that results in sleepless nights, ruined GPAs, failing grades. Death. But it will teach you more about history, economics, culture, social hiearchy, politics and you guessed it ... history than any other class - if u make it out alive. Usually taken by sophomores who don't know how hard AP classes are, but honestly the first AP is always hell so it's usually better just to get it over with. Also the exam is much easier than the class.
by Trinu October 14, 2006
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