News & Commentary

By Johanna Kaiser, Communications & Development Associate

By Johanna Kaiser, Communications & Development Associate

As the 2015 legislative session wound down, a number of pro-civil liberties bills were primed for passage and many anti-civil liberties bills were failing to move at all. In any legislative year, however, a great deal can happen in the closing days, and this session was no exception. A sudden collapse in negotiations between the House and Senate over a series of seemingly minor bills meant that a number of other bills slated for passage suddenly died in the last moments of the session when legislative leaders abruptly adjourned.

Volunteers help us at Rhode Island's annual Pride Fest. 

The American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island today raised deep concerns about a decision by T.F. Green Airport officials to participate in a Department of Homeland Security field test designed to expand a largely discredited “behavior detection” program that attempts to determine travelers’ motives of “mal-intent” by monitoring their mundane actions.

The ACLU of Rhode Island recognizes the Department of Health’s legitimate interest in promoting the HPV vaccine for both boys and girls. We also appreciate that there are some illnesses that warrant imposition of mandatory vaccinations in order to protect children attending school. However, excluding middle and high school students from school for being unvaccinated against HPV strikes us as an unfitting and disproportionate remedy.

A Superior Court judge this morning rejected a motion to dismiss a lawsuit by the ACLU of Rhode Island regarding the state's medical marijuana program.