Blog

Here in California, students have a fundamental right to equal education opportunity. And yet, one in five students doesn't graduate high school in four years. So we’ve launched www.MySchoolMyRights.com, a multi-media campaign intended to educate students on their rights and empower them to have a say in their education. Read More

In response to a lawsuit brought by the ACLU, the Sacramento Sheriff has now admitted that it used intrusive cellphone surveillance technology – commonly known as a “StingRay” – without obtaining court approval. Days after this stunning admission, the Sheriff publicly announced a new policy for the use of StingRay technology. While having an actual policy in place is certainly a step in the right ... Read More

Hi, my name is Ngan. I’m a tenth grader at Oakland Technical High School, and I’m a sex education activist.Tomorrow morning, I’ll be joining forces with other high schoolers from across California and meeting with Governor Jerry Brown’s staff in Sacramento to talk about sex ed.We’re coming to Sacramento armed with a petition signed by 5,000 people who all believe that California youth deserve accu... Read More

It was a really good week in California for privacy rights. The legislature passed the California Electronic Communications Privacy Act (CalECPA SB 178) with strong bipartisan support. The bill is now on Gov. Brown’s desk, and he needs to hear from all of us that it’s time to update privacy law for the modern digital world and sign CalECPA into law. Read More

SB 249 would allow the DMV to issue driver’s licenses that include a tiny RFID chip that broadcasts your personally identifying information. Read More

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Since Michael Brown’s death, unarmed black men have been killed by law enforcement at alarmingly disproportionate rates. Specifically, reports indicate that black men account for 40% of 60 unarmed deaths at the hands of police this year, and are seven times more likely than white men to be shot to death by police while unarmed. At the state level, California holds the ominous record for the highes... Read More

Much of the recent outcry over policing reflects the concern that when cops violate the law, or shoot someone, the public doesn’t get the full story. Read More

Imagine you’re on your way to buy a used car and a police officer pulls you over. After asking you a few questions, the officer asks to search your car. Knowing you’ve done nothing wrong, you agree. The next thing you know, the officer is telling you that he’s suspicious that you have $2,500 in cash – and he takes it. You explain that you’re on your way to buy a car. He doesn’t believe you and tel... Read More

After three years of litigation, we’ve finally settled a portion of one of our long-running Freedom of Information Act suits against the federal government for information about its location tracking practices.  A person’s digital location information reveals detailed, private information that the government should only be able to get through a warrant based on probable cause.  As part o... Read More

A Catholic-affiliated hospital will now perform a common reproductive healthcare procedure after the ACLU threatened to sue. Read More

What if once a week the police drove by your home and took a picture?That is what the San Jose City Council proposed last week with an effort to install automatic license plate readers (ALPRs) on garbage trucks.ALPRs are high-speed cameras that sit atop patrol cars or on roadsides and are capable of snapping photos of thousands of license plate numbers per hour, including their location. This tech... Read More