American Civil Liberties Union in the United States
American Civil Liberties Union
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), organization devoted to defending the individual rights and freedoms of all people in the United States. The ACLU works to protect the civil liberties granted by the Constitution of the United States and Bill of Rights through litigation, legislation, and public education. The nonpartisan organization provides lawyers and legal advice for individuals and groups involved in local, state, and federal court cases. It also spearheads numerous campaigns to extend more rights to people who have traditionally been denied them, including the rights of children, prisoners, homosexuals, and people with mental illness. The ACLU has been involved in some of the most celebrated U.S. legal cases and lobbying campaigns of the 20th century.
The ACLU is the nation’s largest nonprofit law organization. Its 100 full-time attorneys work with 2,000 volunteer attorneys on approximately 6,000 cases each year. The ACLU has 400,000 members and more than 300 chapters and affiliated offices throughout the United States. The organization is based in New York City.
Since its founding in 1920, the ACLU has initiated a variety of court cases to test whether particular laws are constitutional. These cases are often referred to as test cases. It has also participated in numerous court cases pertaining to individual rights by filing amicus curiae briefs (Latin for “friend-of-the-court” briefs). In such a brief, the ACLU advises the court on issues concerning civil liberties but does not provide legal counsel for either the defendant or plaintiff. ACLU briefs have influenced the outcome of many trials. (1)
In this Section: American Civil Liberties Union, American Civil Liberties Union Early Years, American Civil Liberties Union in the 1930S and 1940S, American Civil Liberties Union in the 1950s and 1960s, American Civil Liberties Union in the 1970s and 1980s and American Civil Liberties Union Developments.
Resources
Notes and References
See Also
American Civil Liberties Union
United States Constitution
According to theEncyclopedia of the American Constitution, about its article titled AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNIONThe American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is the most important national organization dedicated to the protection of individual liberty. It was founded in 1920 by a distinguished group that included roger baldwin, Jane Addams, felix frankfurter, Helen Keller, Scott
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