How You Can Protect Your Rights in the Age of AI

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Excitement about AI has many people thinking about its potential to improve our lives. But we also must be mindful of the dangers that come with a technology this powerful.  

The risks of AI are particularly serious for the communities who are most often in the government’s crosshairs: immigrants, abortion seekers, LGBTQ people, Black people, activists, religious minorities, and the unhoused. Individuals, policymakers, and companies all have a role to play in protecting rights and safety in the age of AI.

While it may seem like the government and corporations hold all the strings, in a democracy, we the people get to choose what course AI takes. If we organize, we can exert power at the local, state, and federal levels to influence how AI systems are developed and used.

We deserve transparency, accountability, and oversight. We must demand that our leaders step up and make informed decisions about how, when, and where AI is used. Fortunately, we’ve created tools to help you and your community do just that. 

Seeing Through Surveillance: Why Policymakers Should Look Past the Hype

Our new comprehensive report, Seeing Through Surveillance: Why Policymakers Should Look Past the Hype, illustrates the real costs of many of these systems and provides a modern framework for understanding and scrutinizing proposals.

Fighting Local Surveillance: A Toolkit

On our Fighting Local Surveillance webpage, you can also find a variety of additional resources, including sample letters on these issues. This toolkit summarizes lessons learned about how to work together effectively and fight against local surveillance. It builds on more than a decade of work with partners in California and around the country to pass local and state surveillance laws and chart a path to reform.

Get plugged into our activist network

Consider getting involved with local privacy groups, including one of our many ACLU of Northern California chapters.

Chapters are the grassroots power of the ACLU and are central to our ability to build a movement for justice, equality, and freedom. Chapter leaders host events to build community and educate the public, cultivate partnerships with local leaders and organizations, and work with ACLU organizers to move forward ACLU campaign goals and civil liberties priorities. These networks are the base we'll use to push for AI civil rights protections - locally, statewide, and federally