News & Commentary
Ending Indefinite Solitary Confinement for the Vast Majority of People with Death Sentences in Oklahoma
By Travis Handler
Latest Event
Voices Uncaged: Hispanic Heritage Art and Activism
This event is in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month with the purpose of bringing together artists, organizers, and community members to explore the powerful intersection of art and activism. We aim to uplift the voices, experiences, and resilience of immigrant communities – particularly those impacted by detention, deportation, and harmful immigration policies.
The event will take place at a local art gallery in the Paseo Art district of OKC near Flora Bodega, a community hub. Attendees can come-and-go anytime from 6-9pm on Friday, September 4 during the Paseo District's First Friday gallery walk.
What Today’s Supreme Court Ruling Means for the LGBTQ Community
Rose Saxe, she/her, Deputy Director, LGBT & HIV Project, ACLU
The
We Won’t Address Our Mass Incarceration Crisis Until We Rethink Our Approach to “Violent Crime”
April Rodriguez, Former Paralegal, ACLU Criminal Law Reform Project
Duri
Supreme Court Says Firing Workers Because They Are LGBTQ Is Unlawful Discrimination
James Esseks, Director, LGBTQ & HIV Project, ACLU
In a landmark
Congress Can Lead the Charge on Divesting From Law Enforcement
Kanya Bennett, Former Senior Legislative Counsel, American Civil Liberties Union
As a
Policing the Press: A Journalist on the Frontlines
Journalists covering protests against police brutality across the country are facing an influx of violence, suppression efforts, and arrests by police. Since the George Floyd protests began, there have been more than 400 claims of aggressions against the press, according to the U.S. Press Freedom tracker. Violations include being assaulted with pepper spray and rubber bullets, dealing with damaged equipment, and even facing arrest. This week, At Liberty is joined by Jared Goyette, a freelance reporter who was hit in the eye with a police projectile while covering a protest in Minneapolis. “There’s always been a degree of tension between police, protesters, and media,” said Goyette of the protest at which he was attacked. “They are tense environments…But based on my experience in these types of events, this was markedly different than anything I’d seen before. It was different by the degree of the lack of clear communication. And it was different in the degree to which the projectiles coming from police seemed continuous, and to some degree arbitrary.”Goyette is now the named plaintiff in a lawsuit the ACLU of Minnesota filed last week against the City of Minneapolis, seeking justice for the violence he and other journalists experienced covering the protests.“There’s a feeling of just being in a historic and important moment and wanting to do as good a job as possible to document it,” Goyette told At Liberty. “And there’s just so much happening at once. As journalists, we’re doing the best we can.”
Defunding the Police Will Actually Make Us Safer
Paige Fernandez, Former Policing Policy Advisor, ACLU National Political Advocacy Department
This OpEd
Why is it so Hard to Hold Police Accountable?
Police are supposed to “protect and serve” the community, but that’s a far cry from what modern-day policing often looks like in our country. The recent murders of Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, George Floyd, and others highlight the need for drastic systemic change, yet again, as Americans across the country take to the streets in protest.
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