News & Commentary

“It is incredibly important in today’s political environment that the First Amendment rights of the people to assemble, protest, and petition the government are preserved. By filing this action, our clients have decided to stand up on behalf of all Rhode Islanders to preserve those fundamental rights.”

A federal judge entered an order preliminarily blocking the unlawful restrictions imposed on federal grants administered by the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

The ACLU of Rhode Island sent a letter to Brown University President Christine Paxson condemning the Trump Administration’s new “compact”

Court strikes down unconstitutional grant restrictions on various legal grounds

"The ACLU has a long history of defending free speech — not just when it’s easy or agreeable, but also when it’s difficult and divisive. Core political speech must be defended most fiercely when it is controversial, because that is precisely when it is most at risk."

In a victory for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault and the state coalitions, a federal court in Rhode Island today issued a preliminary order blocking the Trump-Vance administration from enforcing many of the new unlawful restrictions on grants from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office on Violence Against Women.

Rhode Island District Judge Melissa R. DuBose has granted a request to temporarily block the Trump-Vance administration from adding harmful new restrictions on federal grant programs administered by the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS) and Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

New Certification Requirements Threaten Critical Services for Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Survivors, LGBTQI+ Youth, and Unhoused Communities

Group asks court to strike down grant restrictions on various legal grounds