News & Commentary
Ending Indefinite Solitary Confinement for the Vast Majority of People with Death Sentences in Oklahoma
By Travis Handler
Latest Event
OKC Pride Parade 2026
We are ecstatic to have you join us, as we walk in the annual Oklahoma City Pride Parade on Sunday, June 28th. As you probably know, the work of the ACLU is now more critical than ever, and we want this year's parade group to be the biggest yet!
Please complete the following registration form and we will be in contact with further details.
The first 80 people to register are guaranteed to receive a free limited-edition ACLU of Oklahoma t-shirt. We do not have a max on how many people can walk with us, but we cannot guarantee t-shirts will be available.
**Please submit one registration entry for every person (children too) that will be walking with us, so that we can have an accurate count for t-shirts and water.**
If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to Carly Heitland at cheitland@acluok.org.
FAQ: Oklahoma City's Anti-Panhandling Ordinance
The McCraw case is about protecting the freedom of speech for Oklahomans. In reaction to complaints about the visibility of panhandlers in Oklahoma City, the City Council passed an ordinance prohibiting virtually all activity on medians. It is an affront to free speech rights.
‘You Miss So Much When You’re Gone’: The Lasting Harm of Jailing Mothers Before Trial in Oklahoma
Mothers in jail are being torn from their families and losing contact with their children even before they have been convicted of a crime.
ACLU Responds to Denial of Commutation of Four Domestic Violence Survivors, including ACLU client Tondalao Hall
ACLU of Oklahoma Calls on State Board of Health to Retract Unconstitutional Medical Marijuana Rules
The ACLU of Oklahoma issued today a letter to Tom Bates, Interim Commissioner for the Department of Health, notifying the Department of serious concerns with the emergency rules and Constitutional violations within those rules. The ACLU joins in the concerns expressed by the Attorney General.
Oklahoma District Attorney Candidate Questionnaires
For more than 50 years, the American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma has worked in the courts, the legislature, and through public education to protect individuals’ civil rights and liberties. As part of our organization’s nationwide effort to cut the nation’s prison population in half while combating racial disparities in the criminal justice system, the ACLU of Oklahoma is launching a public education campaign around prosecutorial discretion. Our goal is to educate voters, including members of the ACLU of Oklahoma and those directly impacted by incarceration, about the role the district attorneys play in mass incarceration.
ACLU of Oklahoma, CAIR OK File Suit on Behalf of Muslim Woman Barred From Courthouse Over Hijab
The Oklahoma chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-OK) and the American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma (ACLU of OK) today announced the filing of a lawsuit in federal court on behalf of a Tulsa Muslim woman refused entry to the Tulsa County Courthouse because of her hijab, or religious head covering. The lawsuit alleges that the Tulsa County Sheriff’s Office violated Suha Elqutt’s rights under the First Amendment and under Oklahoma’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act.
ACLU of Oklahoma, Freedom Oklahoma Respond to Signing of SB 1140
We are disappointed, though frankly unsurprised, that the Governor chose today to continue the Legislature’s game of using children and LGBT Oklahomans as pawns in cruel political games. SB 1140 is discriminatory, anti-family, anti-children, and anti-First Amendment. Rather than stand up...
The Oklahoma Legislature Falls Short on Criminal Justice Reform
At the outset of this legislative session, it felt as if the political moment for criminal justice reform had finally arrived. Representative Scott Biggs, the former waterboy for the District Attorneys lobbying group, had just resigned. His resignation marked the end of his reign as a House Committe
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ACLU of Oklahoma Calls Upon Legislature to Immediately Reject Reckless and Cruel Proposal to Expand Use of Life without Parole Sentences for Juvenile Offenders
The ACLU of Oklahoma called today upon the Oklahoma Legislature to immediately reject SB 1221 as amended. Originally the bill was written to require training for members of the Pardon and Parole Board, however at the request of the District Attorney’s Council it was amended at the last minute to create a problematic process whereby children can be sentenced to life without parole. The following statement is attributable to ACLU of Oklahoma Executive Director, Ryan Kiesel: “It has been clear for too long that the legislature is playing puppet to the District Attorneys’ puppet master. The District Attorneys Council has used its unchecked power to push back against popular, meaningful reforms and now in a classic bait and switch, the DAC undermined another reform measure through an amendment targeting one of our most at-risk populations: children in the justice system.
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