News & Commentary

NEW YORK — In response to Donald Trump’s election as president of the United States, Anthony D. Romero, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union, had the following statement:“For nearly 100 years, the American Civil Liberties Union has been the nation’s premier defender of freedom and justice for all, no matter who is president. Our role is no different today.“President-elect Trump, as you assume the nation’s highest office, we urge you to reconsider and change course on certain campaign promises you have made. These include your plan to amass a deportation force to remove 11 million undocumented immigrants; ban the entry of Muslims into our country and aggressively surveil them; punish women for accessing abortion; reauthorize waterboarding and other forms of torture; and change our nation’s libel laws and restrict freedom of expression.“These proposals are not simply un-American and wrong-headed, they are unlawful and unconstitutional. They violate the First, Fourth, Fifth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments. If you do not reverse course and instead endeavor to make these campaign promises a reality, you will have to contend with the full firepower of the ACLU at every step. Our staff of litigators and activists in every state, thousands of volunteers, and millions of card-carrying supporters are ready to fight against any encroachment on our cherished freedoms and rights.“One thing is certain: we will be eternally vigilant every single day of your presidency and when you leave the Oval Office, we will do the same with your successor.The ACLU released its analysis of candidate Trump’s policy proposals in July, which may be found here. 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            This morning, Donald J. Trump was elected the 45th president of the United States, and the ACLU has a message for him. President-elect Trump, as you assume the Nation’s highest office, we urge you to reconsider and change course on certain campaign promises you have made. These include your plan to amass a deportation force to remove 11 million undocumented immigrants; ban the entry of Muslims into our country and aggressively surveil them; punish women for accessing abortion; reauthorize waterboarding and other forms of torture; and change our nation’s libel laws and restrict freedom of expression.These pr

The U.S. Constitution and New Hampshire state law prohibit courts from jailing people for being too poor to pay their legal fines, but local courts throughout New Hampshire have been doing it anyway. On September 23, 2015, the ACLU-NH released Debtors’ Prisons in New Hampshire, a report that chronicles a year-long investigation into New Hampshire’s debtors’ prison practices.

A case before the New Hampshire Supreme Court concerning the fair distribution of property in a divorce between two women who were in a 20+ year committed relationship and joined in a civil union/married for four of those years.

On October 31, 2014, the ACLU-NH filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of three New Hampshire voters—including one member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives—challenging RSA 659:35(I) on the grounds that it violates the right to free speech under the First Amendment.

On March 10, 2015, the ACLU-NH wrote the Town of Alton explaining that the Town, in suppressing Mr. Clay's peaceful political speech, engaged in impermissible viewpoint discrimination in violation of the First Amendment.

The ACLU-NH filed a lawsuit challenging HB1542, a new state law passed that imposes onerous restrictions on third parties by compressing the time period to collect the number of signatures necessary to get on the ballot.

This case concerns the Farmington School District’s retaliation against a guidance counselor who sought independent legal counsel and successfully obtained a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) to protect her student’s right to privacy.

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