News & Commentary
Dec 07, 2015
ACLU Calls Barrington Police Arrests of Youth for Social Media Behavior "Unconscionable"
Just days before suing the Tiverton Police Department for unlawfully arresting an 8-year-old student without cause last week, the ACLU of Rhode Island sharply criticized the Barrington Police Department for “an unconscionable use of law enforcement authority” in bringing criminal charges against children as young as 12 years old for violations of state “social media” laws. These recent incidents, the ACLU said, show an increasing trend towards punishing rather than teaching Rhode Island’s youth.
Dec 03, 2015
Week In Review: Nov. 30-Dec. 4
By Johanna Kaiser, Development & Communications Associate
Dec 03, 2015
ACLU Sues Tiverton On Behalf of Third Grader Searched And Arrested Without Cause
The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island today filed a federal lawsuit against Tiverton police and school officials over an incident in which an 8-year-old girl was removed from a school bus, had her belongings searched, was taken alone to the police station without her parents’ knowledge, and then held and questioned at the police station for several hours before being released. The seizure, detention and interrogation of the young child were based solely on unsubstantiated claims from another child that the girl was carrying “chemicals” in her backpack, and occurred even after the police found nothing in the backpack.
Dec 03, 2015
Religious Freedom Isn't A Seasonal Issue
By Johanna Kaiser, Communications & Development Associate
Dec 02, 2015
Proposed Bristol Ordinance Puts Medical Marijuana Patient Privacy At Risk
The ACLU of Rhode Island is urging the Bristol Town Council to reject an ordinance that will impose unnecessary burdens on medical marijuana patients and caregivers and severely impact their privacy.
Dec 01, 2015
On This Day in 1955: Rosa Parks Takes a Stand
By Johanna Kaiser, Communications & Development Associate
Nov 20, 2015
In Light of PARCC Results, a Dozen Groups Call on RIDE to Prevent Any Punitive Use of Scores
Responding to the release of PARCC test results on Tuesday, a dozen organizations today called on the state Department of Education to immediately reverse its policies that allow school districts to use PARCC scores in a punitive manner against students as early as next year. The organizations called the reversal “a necessary step to promote a meaningful discussion of alternative graduation standards in the months ahead.” The groups’ statement follows below:
Nov 19, 2015
Religious Groups, ACLU Call on Governor to Denounce Xenophobia, Welcome Syrian Refugees
The Rhode Island State Council of Churches, the RI Council for Muslim Advancement, the Board of Rabbis of Greater Rhode Island and the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island today issued this open letter to Governor Gina Raimondo, following her comments yesterday that the controversy surrounding the resettlement of Syrian refugees in Rhode Island was “much ado about nothing”: today issued this open letter to Governor Gina Raimondo, following her comments yesterday that the controversy surrounding the resettlement of Syrian refugees in Rhode Island was “much ado about nothing”:
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