Jude Vereyken: An invitation: The ACLU vs. Trump

EDITOR'S NOTE: The views and opinions expressed are those of the writer and not of Ottawa News Network.

I recently had the privilege of attending a local informational fundraiser for the American Civil Liberties Union. The invitation itself intrigued me.

The hosts said they “believe in a constitutional system that’s designed to temper majority power, protect minority rights and provide a check on abuses. Further, we believe that one institution is currently doing more than any other to uphold those sacred constitutional principles: The American judiciary.”

“During his first 100 days in office, President Trump declared eight pretextual national 'emergencies' to justify defying the law and the Constitution. He equates criticism of him with 'treason' and has threatened journalists, political opponents and even judges with imprisonment. He promises to pull resources from roads, hospitals and schools to pressure cities to conform to his draconian deportation measures. And all these lawless attacks must be challenged in courtrooms."

I’ve known of the ACLU and supported its efforts for years. But I didn't realize exactly just how much they're actually doing and accomplishing to protect our fundamental rights and freedoms until I heard Michigan ACLU Executive Director Loren Khogali and Miriam Aukerman, senior staff attorney, speak. 

I had been feeling rather hopeless about the state of our country. After hearing their talk, I left with a sense of hope that evening. In fact, a year ago, I could not fathom this country would be in the state it currently is. All that changed in November and grew very dim in January and continues to grow darker.

What I learned that evening is that the ACLU has taken over 150 legal actions to block the Trump Administration's unconstitutional attacks on our civil rights. I thought I’d share a bit of what I’ve learned.

The ACLU filed its first lawsuit on the first day of Trump's second term. It challenged his executive order attempting to ban birthright citizenship just hours after he signed it. When the Supreme Court restricted nationwide injunctions, raising the possibility that the unconstitutional policy could partially go into effect, the ACLU immediately filed another lawsuit and successfully blocked implementation.

The ACLU Freedom Agenda includes:

1. To challenge government overreach in court: With over 149 legal actions against the Trump Administration, they are actively stopping and/or stalling the worst federal offenses, including protecting birthright citizenship and blocking gender-affirming care bans for transgender people. 
2. To build firewalls at the state and local level: The ACLU has several flexible funding streams that allow it to invest in people and places who need it most. The ACLU is creating safe havens wherever it can. They have a 501c4 that is used to support over 40 policy proposals to coordinate with state and local actors (i.e., governors, attorneys general and mayors). With a staff of 2,175 nationwide and over 1,450 who are in affiliates in every state, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, they have the people power to do this coordination.
3. To mobilize the ACLU’s people power: The ACLU believes that a civil society will fuel our fight forward. It has a community of 6.5 million supporters and activists who are showing up to take action, apply public pressure and safeguard civil liberties.  

The ACLU has developed a comprehensive response plan, consisting of 130 pages of legal and policy responses, to fight the Trump Administration’s civil liberties attacks swiftly and strategically. 

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The plan has the following priorities:

Speech, privacy and technology: As a defender of the First Amendment, the ACLU is prepared to challenge unlawful attempts to surveil Americans, suppress speech and undermine democracy. This includes litigation to stop or slow down the worst offenses, advocating to Congress to check executive overreach, and working alongside coalition partners to expose and halt the so-called Department of Government Efficiency’s privacy invasions. 

DEI: Even before Trump took office, the ACLU was tracking over 100 attacks on DEI programming and inclusive education. Now there is federal pressure to end these programs. To the ACLU, it’s clear the Trump Administration is trying to weaponize and co-opt long-standing civil rights laws that seek to remedy discrimination and ensure equal opportunities. 

Criminal legal reform: To block reincarceration efforts and push for sentencing reform. The Trump Administration is threatening to accelerate mass incarceration and roll back decades of progress by encouraging aggressive policing practices, enacting draconian sentencing regimes and expanding the use of the death penalty. But with 1.6 million people in state and local jails and prisons (compared to 200,000 in federal jails and prisons), the ACLU still sees a pathway for reform. 

Immigrants’ rights: To prevent mass deportations and build safe havens through local and state coordination. The Trump Administration is executing a mass deportation and detention agenda. With 1 in 25 households having an undocumented immigrant, Trump’s plans threaten to fracture 5.6 million families nationwide.  

Transgender rights: The ACLU sees the Trump Administration's attempts to mandate discrimination against transgender people. They believe the administration’s cruel and inhumane overreach is intended to virtually erase all communities that don’t conform to “traditional” white patriarchal standards. This political scapegoating is a tipping point and they fear it won’t stop with the transgender community.  

Abortion rights: To challenge abortion bans through litigation, advocacy and ballot measures. Two years after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, the ACLU is prepared for the second Trump Administration to further imperil abortion access. They are determined to use every tool at their disposal to oppose proposed bans and, where possible, to build firewalls in states. 

Democracy protection: To block voter-suppression efforts and educate voters about down-ballot races in battleground states. The ACLU believes the Trump Administration poses dangerous risks to every aspect of our elections: from who is able to cast a ballot to candidates to officials bent on rigging our electoral processes. They are prepared to fight in the courts, the streets, and the halls of Congress to defend our democracy and protect our right to vote. 

I hope this information brings you a little hope in what often feels like very dark times. Find more information at aclu.org and aclumich.org/en.

— Jude Vereyken, LMSW, CAADC, ACSW, is a clinical social worker/owner of JD’s Midlife Tools For Living Practices LLC. Jude can be reached at jude@midlifetoolsforliving.com.