Subject: Threat to Roe, Meet Habeas, Real ID and more

From: ACLU Online <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 27 Apr 2007 13:40:11 -0500 (CDT)

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ACLU Online
The e-newsletter of the American Civil Liberties Union
Friday, April 27, 2007

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In This Issue: 
- Standing Firm for Women's Health and Equality

- Have You Seen Habeas?

- Momentum Against Real ID Continues to Build

- Veterans Win Right to Post Religious Symbol on Headstones

- StandUp! Winners of The 2007 Youth Activist Scholarship Announced

- The Third Annual Stand Up for Freedom Contest

In the States: 
	* Oregon Students Challenge Unconstitutional Curfew

	* ACLU Praises Cancellation of MA "Lunch Bytes" Program

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STANDING FIRM FOR WOMEN'S HEALTH AND EQUALITY
By Louise Melling
Director, ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project 

Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court dealt a devastating blow to
women's health, reproductive rights, and the ability of all
Americans to make private medical decisions. In a 5-4 ruling that
placed politics above women's health, the Court upheld the first
federal law banning certain abortion methods. The ACLU and other
groups had challenged this extreme measure because it endangered
women's health.

The decision is significant -- and dangerous -- in several respects.
For the first time, there is now a federal law banning abortion
methods. For the first time, the Court upheld an abortion restriction
that lacks a health exception. The ruling thus undermines a core
principle of Roe v. Wade that women's health must remain
paramount. And, for the first time, the Court declared that other
interests -- including "the State's interest in promoting
respect for human life at all stages in the pregnancy" -- could
trump a woman's right to protect her own health.

The Court's willingness to turn its back on women's health
and its own longstanding precedent is ominous. As Justice Ruth Bader
Ginsburg rightly explained in her stinging dissent, "[T]he Court
deprives women of the right to make an autonomous choice, even at the
expense of their safety." At stake in this decision, Ginsburg
adds, is a woman's ability to determine her life's course
and participate equally in society. Notably, this is the first
decision of the Court to address abortion since Justice
O'Connor's resignation.

Alarmingly, the decision invites politicians to pass additional
abortion restrictions, regardless of their impact on women's
autonomy and health. Indeed, anti-choice extremists have already
signaled their intentions. As Leslee Unruh, one of the architects of
last year's failed attempt to ban nearly all abortions in South
Dakota, told the Los Angles Times, "I'm ecstatic.
It's like someone gave me $1 million and told me, Leslee, go
shopping. We're brainstorming, and we're having
fun."

Clearly, the reproductive rights movement must be prepared to meet
re-energized anti-choice forces on the ground and to fight back with
every tool at our disposal -- from grassroots and legislative
organizing to lawsuits and other legal remedies. With affiliates in
every state and a team of nationally recognized reproductive rights
lawyers and advocates, the ACLU is uniquely positioned to protect
women's health and equality. Immediately after last week's
decision, we began working with physicians around the country to
ensure that women continue to have access to safe and legal abortion
care. We have joined forces with other reproductive rights groups to
call upon Congress to pass the Freedom of Choice Act, a measure aimed
at restoring a woman's ability to make personal medical
decisions free from government interference.

This blow to reproductive freedom has served to strengthen our resolve
and commitment as advocates for women's health and equality. We
cannot and will not lose sight of what we know matters: women's
health and autonomy must remain paramount.

All of us at the ACLU promise to stand firm in defense of reproductive
rights -- in the courts, in Congress and in every state across the
nation. Please stand with us.

>> On Wednesday, April 18, 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court unraveled more
than 30 years of legal precedent protecting women's health and
reproductive rights.

Contact your U.S. Senators and Representatives and ask them to show
their commitment to women's health by supporting and
co-sponsoring the Freedom of Choice Act:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=L3Eo6v3Gh_5lrv2RYcL1YA..

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HAVE YOU SEEN HABEAS?
ACLU Launches New Online Effort to Restore Habeas Corpus

On April 18, 2007, the ACLU launched an aggressive Campaign to Restore
Our Constitutional Rights -- a far-reaching effort to reclaim our
lost liberties, reverse bad laws and undo reckless assertions of
executive power.

Our first priority is to reverse the damage done by the Military
Commissions Act (MCA), which eliminates protections against unlawful
imprisonment, convictions based on coerced evidence and numerous other
violations of due process. It also gives the president absolute power
to designate enemy combatants and to set his own definitions of
torture.

To preserve American values of freedom and fairness, Congress must act
now to reverse the damage done by this dangerous legislation and
restore respect for the Constitution and the rule of law.

We've started a unique online campaign to educate and engage
people, and it's already gaining quite a bit of attention online
and around the country. At the heart of the campaign is "Mr.
Habeas Corpus," a fictional character who's meant to
embody the very real issue that gives him his name: the fundamental
freedom from unlawful imprisonment, which the Military Commissions Act
has begun to strip away.

"Habeas" is an unflagging champion of justice and due
process of law. He's been looking out for us all for centuries
and now he needs us to look out for him.

The campaign to "Find Habeas" already has dozens of blogs
taking note, hundreds of people signing up to be Habeas's friend
on MySpace.com and thousands of people signing our petition to Restore
Our Constitutional Rights. Stay tuned for other ways to be involved in
this exciting effort by visiting FindHabeas.com for updates:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=vn4g7pFRN85Drv-iuvSoiQ..

>> Help restore habeas corpus today:

1. Sign the petition. Help us collect 100,000 signatures and send a
resounding message that we want Congress and the President to respect
the Constitution:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=3HIgNQUlolstoJmed0DRHw..

2. Ask your friends to sign the petition by sending them an eCard:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=QKvmgMS9Qgbqta9nO1KC5Q..

3. Read the blog: Stay up-to-date on recent developments in our effort
to reverse the damage done by the Military Commissions Act:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=-MJoyIzNgNYRtDEGplm3kw..

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MOMENTUM AGAINSY REAL ID CONTINUES TO BUILD

Last week, Montana, Washington and North Dakota joined the tide of
states rejecting the Real ID Act. Three other state legislatures -- in
Maine, Idaho and Arkansas -- have adopted similar measures and more
than 20 other states are also considering action.

The Real ID Act requires every American to have a standardized
driver's license to fly on commercial airlines, enter government
buildings, and for an expanding list of other purposes -- creating a
de facto national ID card system.

It also requires driver's licenses to have a standardized
"machine readable component," that will be read
everywhere, from retailers to airports. This component -- combined
with state databases of drivers' information -- will create
one-stop shopping for identity thieves and invade people's
privacy by allowing easy tracking and monitoring of ordinary,
law-abiding Americans.

Real ID also imposes enormous financial and administrative burdens on
state governments. The program would force state governments to remake
their driver's licenses, restructure their computer databases,
create an extensive new document storage system and will cost
Americans over $23 billion through higher taxes and licensing fees.

The Department of Homeland Security is now accepting public comments
on its proposed regulations to implement the Real ID Act, as required
by law. This is your chance to take action! Many influential members
of Congress will be paying close attention to the number of comments
submitted by the public. By submitting your comments today, you can
make it clear to the Department of Homeland Security and Congress that
Americans oppose this costly, intrusive and unworkable program.

>>Take Action: Send your comments to DHS:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=7nOpSYkSHF0yGUg6l9Ghmw..

>>Video: Watch the Freedom Files video short that explains
what's wrong with REAL ID:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=i3W0sJ97mKv6p9pIriPBUA..

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VETERANS WIN RIGHT TO POST RELIGIOUS SYMBOL ON HEADSTONES

In response to separate lawsuits filed by the ACLU and Americans
United for Separation of Church and State, the Department of Veterans
Affairs agreed to allow family members to include a Wiccan symbol on
the headstones of deceased veterans.

The ACLU has long argued that veterans and their families should be
free to choose religious symbols on military headstones -- whether
Crosses, Stars of David, Pentacles, or other symbols -- and that the
government should not be permitted to restrict such religious
expression in federal cemeteries.

The ACLU lawsuit was filed on behalf of two churches and three
individuals, including the mother of a soldier who was killed in
action in Iraq in 2004. The National Cemetery Administration had
previously approved 38 emblems of belief for veterans, encompassing a
wide variety of religions, as well as symbols for atheists and secular
humanists. Yet the agency had refused since the mid-1990s to act on
requests by Wiccan families and clergy to approve use of the Pentacle.

Under the terms of the settlement, the Department of Veterans Affairs
will add the Pentacle to its list of approved emblems of belief, and
will provide Pentacle-engraved headstones and markers to the
individual families who brought the ACLU and Americans United
lawsuits.

"It is deeply unfortunate that grieving families of deceased
veterans were forced to undertake a bureaucratic struggle to have
their loved ones' wishes honored," said ACLU of Washington
staff attorney Aaron Caplan, who is co-counsel in this case.

View the ACLU complaint:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=E_zHqQkhbOqQf7K_Fri2_Q..

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ACLU ANNOUNCES WINNERS OF 2007 YOUTH ACTIVIST SCHOLARSHIP

The ACLU is proud to announce the winners of its Youth Activist
Scholarship for 2007. Eleven high school seniors from across the
country will each receive a $4,000 college scholarship in recognition
of their outstanding work to protect civil liberties, especially for
young people.

Our 2007 Youth Scholarship winners are: Jacquieta Beverly, Ryan Brown,
Elizabeth Esser-Stuart, Dinorah Flores-Pérez, Khalil Johnson, Kristen
Liu, Ursula Mlynarek, Jessica Warner, Alexia Welch, Abby Wheeler, and
Lexy Whitman.

The award was first given in 2000 to honor the efforts of graduating
seniors who have demonstrated a strong commitment to civil liberties
and civil rights through some form of student activism.

Read more about the winners and excerpts from their essays:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=IGvoK0n3OseaLcPjWug9AQ..

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THE THIRD ANNUAL STAND UP FOR FREEDOM CONTEST

The Third Annual Stand Up for Freedom Contest
If you're between the ages of 17 and 29, we want you to produce
a video PSA or a podcast about how the government is abusing its
power. Make it funny, slam it, turn it into a documentary--this
is your chance to make some noise about the news that bugs you.
StandUp. Get creative. 
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=zkTcOoXDDB_5ZVbmsxxKNQ..

StandUp Comics: A Legal Guide to the War on Terror:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=RbQl1k8YwwqlEbl8uoUXrA..

In the latest installment of StandUp comics, Matt Bors illustrates the
new rules on policing terror and Geneva-free destinations. Read it.
E-mail it to friends. Print it out. Post it everywhere:
http://action.aclu.org/site/R?i=Uj0eDpjZLWmBKetn4p1-4Q..

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IN THE STATES:
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OREGON STUDENTS CHALLENGE UNCONSTITUTIONAL CURFEW

The ACLU of Oregon has filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of Lake
Oswego High School students challenging the city's curfew, which
bars children under 14 from the city streets after 9:15 p.m. and
criminalizes any teens between 14 and 18 out after 10:15 p.m. Sunday
through Thursday.

The Lake Oswego curfew violates constitutional rights of due process,
freedom of expression and equal protection under the law of both
students and parents by usurping parents' rights to direct and
control their children and by giving the police unlimited discretion
to arrest young people engaged in legitimate and constitutionally
protected activities or speech.

The ACLU of Oregon said police have every tool they need, without
curfew, to protect and enforce laws involving youth.

"At any time of the day or night, police may stop young people
based on reasonable suspicion that they are violating a law or posing
a danger to themselves or others," said David Fidanque,
Executive Director of the ACLU of Oregon. "Curfew, on the other
hand, criminalizes all youth, regardless of whether they are breaking
any laws or posing any threat."

The lawsuit stems from a class project -- which has grown well beyond
the classroom -- initiated this school year by four Lake Oswego High
School students. Taylor Goldsmith, Kyle Hayes, Hanna Piazza and Paul
Trompke are members of the Political Action Seminar class, which asked
students to take action on political issues at the local, state or
national level. The students first took their challenge to the Lake
Oswego City Council, making a presentation in December that outlined
the unconstitutionality of the ordinance, which is modeled after a
similar state curfew.

Although the council was receptive, the city has not taken action to
abolish the curfew. "We get the feeling the council thinks we
will just go away. We hope this lawsuit finally convinces them that we
are serious," said Trompke.

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ACLU PRAISES CANCELLATION OF MA "LUNCH BYTES" PROGRAM

A school program, known as "Lunch Bytes," which would have
used fingerprint scans to identify students in the lunch line, and was
proposed by the Taunton, Massachusetts School Committee was cancelled
last week due to the pressure from the ACLU and local parents.

In February, ACLU Staff Attorney Sarah Wunsch wrote Taunton's
Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Arthur Stellar, urging the school
district to reconsider its plans. A vigorous local "Ban the Scan"
effort by parents also lobbied against the $40,000 program.

While the Lunch Bytes system would not have stored students' actual
fingerprints, it translates distinguishing points on the prints into a
digital code. Security experts have expressed concern that stolen
codes could be misused in new forms of biometric identity theft.

"Used properly, biometric data might help to improve security - -- but
the last thing we should do is teach parents and their children,
starting from a young age, to be casual about turning over biometric
data for the sake of convenience," said Wunsch.

Other school districts, in cities including Boulder, Colorado and
Irvine, California, rejected the fingerprint-scanning program after
initial consideration as well.

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American Civil Liberties Union
125 Broad Street, 18th Floor
New York, NY 10004-2400
Geraldine Engel and Jed Miller, Editors

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