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Taking photos of things that are plainly visible from public spaces is a constitutional right. Unfortunately, officers keep ordering people to stop taking photos, and harassing, detaining and arresting those who fail to comply. Know your rights. Read More

Today, the effort to repeal the School Success and Opportunity Act—California’s new law ensuring that all children have opportunities to do well in school—failed to qualify for the ballot. Read More

Today parents and physicians dismissed their lawsuit against the Clovis Unified School District (CUSD), whose sex education curriculum was not in compliance with California state law. As a result of the lawsuit, the district has made dramatic improvements to sex education, including removing wrong and biased materials, adding information about contraception, and training teachers. Read More

Government agencies from the NSA to local law enforcement have taken advantage of weak protections for “metadata” to build huge databases about ordinary Americans. In response, the ACLU of California today released “Metadata: Piecing Together a Privacy Solution,” a new policy paper that offers a way forward. Read More

Our new policy paper, Metadata: Piecing Together a Privacy Solution, examines how outdated laws and new technologies combine to put personal privacy at risk and proposes a way forward to ensure that sensitive data of any type gets the protection it deserves. Read More

A year ago, Kyle Thompson a young, Black, freshman was led away from his school in handcuffs and ultimately expelled from school. His offense? Mistakenly thinking that his teacher's attempt to take a note for him was a joke and playfully trying to get the note back. When he realized this wasn't play, he immediately let her have the note. That misunderstanding left Kyle out of school and facing cri... Read More

The ACLU of Northern California sent this letter urging the Oakland City Council not to approve the Domain Awareness Center (DAC), Phase 2 Contract. The resolution does not reflect the views of City Councilmembers, missing key facts and legal info interfere with meaningful oversight by the Council, and there are concerns with federal access to DAC data under the Patriot Act. Read More

Question: Who are the most powerful elected officials most voters have never voted for? Answer: Your district attorney & sheriff. They speak for you, but what are they saying on these issues? Download this voter toolkit and vote on June 3. Read More

In 2010, Long Beach officers shot and killed Douglas Zerby when they mistakenly believed the garden hose nozzle he was holding was a gun. A concerned LA Times journalist requested the names of the officers involved under the CA Public Record Act, but the requested information was not disclosed. Read More

In the strongest language yet used by any elected official in California, Newsom boldly offered a blistering critique of the criminal justice system and the willingness of too many in California to simply abide by the status quo, arguing that needlessly harsh sentences for low level, non-violent crimes have ravaged entire communities – particularly communities of color – and cost state taxpayers b... Read More