FREE ESSAY ON AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION

AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION

American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union is an organization which takes on the issues of 
concern to the American public and any violations of their rights, or liberties,
including 
discrimination. I turned to their web site for information regarding their activity. The
following 
information is from the summary of their work in 1999. Although it's two years old, I
feel it 
paints an accurate picture of the ACLU, their work, and what they stand for.
Teen Mothers in National Honor Society
In the spring of 1998, two 18 year old teen mothers were barred from admission into the 
National Honor Society(NHS) based on the fact that they'd had premarital sex. The
selection 
committee blatantly disregarded the fact that these two girls were highly qualified for
induction 
into the NHS. At this point the ACLU's Women's Rights Project filed a discrimination
lawsuit, 
and the following May the girls were inducted into the society.
Abortion
The ACLU, which is a pro-choice organization, filed a legal challenge through it's 
Reproductive Freedom Project concerning New Jersey's Parental Notification Act. The act 
requires minors to obtain either parental consent or a court order before getting an
abortion. The 
ACLU feels that this law will do more harm than good. They believe that most teens
considering 
abortion have already involved their parents in their decision; and that the ones who
haven't have 
done so for a reason.
In a similar situation, the House of Representatives passed a bill making a criminal out
of 
anyone other than a parent taking a minor across state lines to obtain an abortion. The
ACLU 
feels that this bill will once again do more harm than good, by dissuading girls from
getting help 
from someone they trust.
Adoption By Gay/Lesbian Couples
The ACLU's Lesbian and Gay Rights Project is challenging Florida's ban on gay and 
lesbian adoptions, citing the 2,000 foster children without homes. In addition, the ACLU
is also 
challenging regulations in both Utah and Arkansas banning adoptions and foster care by
gay men 
and lesbians.
Similarly, the Supreme Court in Mississippi denied a gay father custody of his child due
to 
his sexual orientation, leaving the child in a violent home. The Supreme Courts in
Alabama and 
North Carolina upheld decisions denying gay and lesbian parents custody of their children
as well.
Michael Adams, Associate Director of the ACLU's Lesbian and Gay Rights Project: Good 
parenting has nothing to do with sexual orientation. Rather, it is influenced most
profoundly by a 
parent's ability to create a loving and nurturing home--an ability that does not depend
on whether 
a parent is gay or straight. 
Religion in Public Schools/Towns
A Wiccan in Republic, Missouri had to quit her job at the local newspaper due to an 
editorial she wrote denouncing the city's use of the ichthus, a Christian symbol, in the
city's logo. 
Due to a challenge filed by the ACLU, the courts found that the seal gives the impression
that 
non-Christians are outsiders, and the Constitution protects against such discrimination.
The 
ACLU feels that separation of church and state is critical due to situations such as
this.
The Governor of Kansas, along with a statewide committee of scientists, denounced the 
idea of 'creation-science' being implemented into public school science curriculum.
Kansas 
officials wanted to remove nearly all mention of evolution from the science curriculum
and allow 
schools to instead use religious-based theories. The ACLU saw this as a clearly
unconstitutional 
attempt to introduce religious standpoints in the classroom. 
The American Civil Liberties Union is an organization that is there to help the people
and 
give them a voice. They stand up for the minority as well as the majority when they feel
an 
injustice has taken place. Whether one agrees or not with the views of the ACLU, and the
causes 
they promote, it's main goal is to support those people and groups deemed in need. The
ACLU 
has had much success in achieving their goal and will continue to do so as long as there
is 
discrimination and injustice in our country.