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Documents Received on Oct. 7, 2011On Oct. 7, 2011 the ACLU of Northern California received 98 pages of responsive documents.View DocumentsDocuments Received on May 23, 2011On May 20, 2011 the ACLU of Northern California sent a letter to the Drug Enforcement Administration clarifying the scope of the ACLU-NC's Jan. 4, 2011 Freedom of Information Act request regarding Import Declarations (DEA form 2... Read More

On Sunday, California Gov. Jerry Brown signed the Reader Privacy Act of 2011, giving Californians strong legal protection for records of their reading habits in the country. Thanks to everyone who wrote to their legislators and the governor in support of the Act!The law requires the government and civil litigants to demonstrate a compelling interest in obtaining reader records and show that the in... Read More

Documents Received on September 30, 2011On Sept. 30, 2011 the ACLU of Northern California received 240 pages of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) documents.  View Documents - Set 1View Documents - Set 2Documents Received on April 11, 2011On April 11, 2011 the ACLU of Northern California received three pages of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) documents.  Prior to sending the documen... Read More

BART's shutdown of wireless service last month in response to a planned protest—and the ensuing public backlash—underscored just how essential wireless access has become to our daily lives. Nearly 50 million of us carry smartphones, and we do so because we want to access the full range of ideas and information available on the Internet not just at home or the office but also when we're out and abo... Read More

Taking photographs and video of things that are plainly visible in public spaces is a constitutional right — and that includes the outside of federal buildings, as well as transportation facilities, and police and other government officials carrying out their duties. Read More

By Jay StanleyACLU National OfficeToday the ACLU won a significant victory in our battle to ensure that cell phones don't become Big Brother tracking devices. Following a four-year fight, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has ordered the Department of Justice (DOJ) to comply with our Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request and turn over the names and docket numbers in numerous cases... Read More

The Reader Privacy Act has passed the California legislature with a strong bipartisan vote in both the Senate and Assembly and is now headed to Governor Brown's desk.The Reader Privacy Act is authored by Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco/San Mateo), co-sponsored by the ACLU of California and the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and supported by diverse organizations and companies, from the Consum... Read More

Today, California lawmakers took an important step towards updating reader privacy for the digital age. The California Assembly passed the Reader Privacy Act of 2011 (SB 602) with a strong bipartisan vote of 60-13. The Reader Privacy Act is authored by Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco/San Mateo), co-sponsored by the ACLU of California and the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and supported by di... Read More

Civil Rights Groups Win Major VictoryWhile studying for a doctorate, San Francisco-based engineer Satinder P. Singh chose to specialize in the retrofitting of bridges. He joined a team charged with evaluating the structural soundness of the Bay Area's bridges following the Loma Prieta earthquake. Soon thereafter, Singh was hired as a Caltrans engineer. And in 1999, he founded his own structural en... Read More

Would it surprise you to hear that almost 85% of LGBT students are verbally harassed at school? Or that 40% are physically harassed? Perhaps you've already heard these troubling statistics, and know that when it comes to stopping bullying, "zero tolerance" is the new catchphrase.But contrary to popular belief, zero tolerance anti-bullying policies don't actually improve school safety and can end u... Read More

Today Facebook is rolling out a series of changes to its privacy controls. We reviewed the changes in detail on Tuesday; now here's how you can take advantage of these changes:Turn On "Profile Review" One of the biggest changes to Facebook's privacy controls is the option to review any content you're tagged in (including photos, Places, and more) before that content is fed into your news feed. Yo... Read More

I was raped by a fellow soldier when I was stationed in Korea. I found out I was pregnant as a result of the rape when my commander called me into his office one day to charge me with adultery. A doctor at the medical center had told my commander – but not me – that I was pregnant. I hadn't reported the rape because I was trying to "soldier on" and I didn't trust my chain of command. As it turns o... Read More