THANK GOD for the ACLU! Here's the latest update on their fight for us during the Covid 19 pandemic....
ACLU staff have kept busy with another week of filing lawsuits, pressuring Congress, and raising the alarm of disparate impact as we fight to protect civil liberties during the COVID-19 pandemic. We can tell that supporters like you have kept busy too: Every day we're heartened to see the outpouring of response to help protect our rights – and the most vulnerable – during this crisis. Thank you.
The news seems to be moving faster than it was before (as if that were possible), so we want to send you another update of what you might have missed. This is an especially long email, but we hope it gives you comfort and pride in the work that we're doing together.
We are making strides in decarceration.
To date, we've released at least 16,000 people from prisons and jails, or prevented them from entering the criminal legal system in the first place. We're leveraging the full force of the ACLU at confronting the danger that prisons and jails pose in this pandemic.
ACLU attorneys are working around the clock to file lawsuits demanding the release of vulnerable people. On Monday, we filed an emergency motion to release 700+ people from Oakdale Prison in Louisiana.
We're also continuing to work with key states to adopt model executive orders, pressuring sheriffs and prosecutors, running targeted public awareness campaigns, and leveraging the power of volunteers and supporters like you. To date, we've won 21 executive actions in 14 states.
After we launched TV ads demanding decarceration, Oklahoma's Governor – a Republican in a red state – commuted the sentences of 451 people. One of the people featured in the ads, Elaine, was also released from prison after the campaign launch. Watch her story here. (Please note: this link takes you to a third-party website, newsweek.com)
Pregnancies don't stop during a pandemic.
Politicians using this public health crisis to cut off access to reproductive care – including abortions – is no surprise by now. To that we say, still, "see you in court."
On Tuesday, a federal court ruled to keep abortions accessible in Arkansas in our case with the local ACLU affiliate. People can continue receiving essential, time-sensitive health care. Arkansas now joins Alabama, Ohio, Iowa, and Oklahoma in having those attempts blocked in response to lawsuits filed by the ACLU and our partners.
The fight is far from over. Also on Tuesday, we filed a lawsuit in Tennessee with Planned Parenthood and the Center for Reproductive Rights in response to the state's governor issuing an order effectively banning abortion procedures in the state.
Access to the ballot box means more now than ever. And the courts are listening.
On Wednesday, we won a preliminary ruling in our Texas lawsuit permitting all eligible voters in the state to cast a mail-in ballot for the July elections because of COVID-19.
And just now, we sued the state of Virginia for requiring a witness to vote by mail – a blatant and unnecessary obstacle to voting while practicing social distancing. These efforts join Georgia and Montana in our fight to expand voting access.
And we'll keep fighting, but it's going to take all of us to ensure that voters have access to the ballot box come November. Send a message to your member of Congress now.
Craig, thanks for all you do to make this work possible – especially now.
The ACLU Team
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