Posted by: BGB | April 26, 2013
Smash CISPA!
Posted in Privacy, Take Action
Posted by: BGB | April 25, 2013
“Two Americans” Film Screening and Discussion
Posted in Events
Posted by: BGB | April 15, 2013
Tell the Hillsborough County Commission to protect all couples
Tell the Hillsborough County Commission to protect all couples |
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Dear ACLU Supporter, On January 24th, the Hillsborough County Commission voted 4-3 against a proposal to establish a domestic partner registry (DPR) in Hillsborough County. Join us at a vigil this Tuesday, April 16th, to call on commissioners to protect all couples. The commission had an opportunity to let same-sex couples in Hillsborough County have important protections that are currently denied to them. Instead, they chose to maintain a status quo that unfairly prevents some members of our community from accessing basic rights that many of us take for granted. These include certain financial and insurance rights, emergency notification, hospital visitation and the ability to make certain medical decisions about someone you love. This Tuesday, April 16th, in the downtown square next to the County Commission offices and the County Courthouse, we’re holding a vigil calling on commissioners to support the DPR and protect all Hillsborough couples at their next meeting. Our speakers will include:
For more information, please contact Joyce Hamilton Henry, Mid-Florida Regional Director for the ACLU of Florida, at jhamiltonhenry@aclufl.org. Join us on the 16th to show the County Commission that you support equal rights for all. Thank you for standing with us in support of freedom. ACLU of Florida |
Domestic Partnership Registry Vigil
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HELP US PROTECT FREEDOM.
JOIN THE ACLU |
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Posted in Events, Take Action
Posted by: BGB | March 1, 2013
Join us March 9th for the Tampa Chapter’s Annual Meeting
Join us March 9th for the Tampa Chapter’s Annual Meeting |
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Dear ACLU Supporter, The President is coming to town! This is an opportunity for Tampa Bay area civil libertarians to join Susan Herman in discussing “Civil Liberties in Times of Crisis” with ACLU of Florida President, Col. Mike Pheneger and Howard Simon, Executive Director of the ACLU of Florida. In addition to being President of the ACLU, Susan is a Centennial Professor of Law at Brooklyn Law School. She is the author of Taking Liberties: The War on Terror and the Erosion of American Democracy; Terrorism, Government, and Law: National Authority and Local Autonomy in the War on Terror; and The Right to a Speedy and Public Trial. Susan’s visit to the Tampa Chapter is your opportunity to meet with one of the nation’s top experts in civil liberties. The meeting is free and open to the public. There will be a meet-and-greet reception from 2:00 to 2:30 P.M., with the program beginning immediately after. For more information, contact Mike Pheneger at ACLUFL_Tampa@Yahoo.com. Don’t miss your chance to meet Susan Herman at the Tampa Chapter Annual Meeting. ACLU of Florida |
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HELP US PROTECT FREEDOM.
JOIN THE ACLU |
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Posted by: BGB | February 14, 2013
Free the Vote Rally
Posted by: BGB | January 23, 2013
ACLU Opposes Use of Surveillance Cameras Operated by Tampa Police, Government
Below appear letters addressed to Tampa Police Chief Jane Castor and the Tampa City Council.
Posted in Letters And Statements, Privacy
Posted by: BGB | January 22, 2013
Stand Together in Support of a Domestic Partner Registry
| Speak out for equality!Hillsborough County Commission Domestic Partner RegistryThursday, Jan 24th Meeting starts 9:00am DPR on agenda at 3:00pm County Center |
Dear ACLU Supporter,
On Thursday, January 24th, the Board of County Commissioners for Hillsborough County will consider creating a Domestic Partnership Registry (DPR) for Hillsborough County. Join us in support of this important step for equality for same-sex couples.
Through a DPR, couples can get access to important protections that would otherwise be denied to them, including access to domestic-partner health-insurance coverage and other benefits through a participating employer plan, visitation rights in medical facilities, emergency notification, and rights to certain medical decision-making. Although the bundle of benefits is small, these benefits are among the most important a couple can have.
Because of a discriminatory amendment to Florida’s constitution forbidding same-sex couples from marrying or creating a civil union, there is no other way for such couples to obtain some of these protections. Although the City of Tampa created a DPR for its citizens last year, these protections were still unavailable to same-sex couples elsewhere in the county. But you can help change that.
Join us at the board meeting to show your support for fundamental fairness. Supporters of the DPR are asked to wear red as a sign of unity and support. If you can’t attend the meeting, you can still help by urging the board to support domestic partnerships for Hillsborough families.
Thank you for taking action for fairness in Hillsborough County.
ACLU of Florida
www.aclufl.org
Posted in Events, Issues, Take Action
Posted by: BGB | January 19, 2013
Security and the Over-Policing of Schools
Below appear letter and memorandum addressed to the Hillsborough County School Board and Superintendent.
Posted in Letters And Statements
Posted by: BGB | October 10, 2012
Voting rights are human rights: A free forum with national leaders. Wed. 10/17, 6-8 p.m.
Dear ACLU supporter,
From women’s suffrage to voting rights for racial minorities to ending poll taxes and other barriers, human rights workers have fought to expand and protect the fundamental — and human — right to vote.
On October 17, join us for “Voting Rights are Human Rights,” a free forum featring Jamil Dakwar, director of the ACLU Human Rights Program.
In recent years, in Florida and across the country, voter suppression laws have been passed that make it more difficult for some Americans to exercise this fundamental right, especially minority voters, the elderly, and students.
At the forum, we will discuss the vital role that free, fair and transparent elections have in guaranteeing human rights, and how by working in the context of international human rights, voter suppression laws in states like Florida are the next challenge that activists can overcome here at home.
The panel also includes Jotaka L. Eaddy, Senior Director of the Voting Rights Initiative at the NAACP, Leon W. Russel, Vice Chairman of the NAACP Board of Directors, and Julie Ebenstein, Staff Attorney at the ACLU of Florida.
The right to vote is recognized as a fundamental human right. Join us at the forum to learn how to protect it.
The forum is co-sponsored by The University of Tampa’s Human Rights Think Tank and the NAACP. To RSVP or if you have any additional questions or comments, please contact our Mid-Florida Regional Director Joyce Hamilton Henry at jhamiltonhenry@aclufl.org.
ACLU of Florida
www.aclufl.org
Posted by: BGB | October 5, 2012
Speech and Privacy Forum Tuesday, October 9, 6-9 p.m.
Dear ACLU supporter,
A few weeks ago, the Tampa Bay area was at the center of the national spotlight hosting the Republican National Convention. ACLU supporters like you spent months preparing to make sure that the free speech and privacy rights of Tampa citizens were protected during the convention.
But our work around the RNC didn’t end when the balloons came down from the ceiling in the arena, and many civil liberties issues from the convention remain unresolved. Join us on October 9th for The Afterparty: Reviewing Speech and Privacy After the RNC.
We will explore what worked in protecting individuals’ rights during the convention, what didn’t, and what issues will be of concern next for civil libertarians. The ongoing controversy of the surveillance cameras in downtown Tampa is sure to be raised.
Invited speakers include guests from our series of pre-RNC forums: Hillsborough County Public Defender Julianne Holt, Tampa City Attorney James H. Shimberg, Jr., Deputy Chief of Police John Bennett and moderator Louis Virelli, Professor of Constitutional Law at Stetson University College of Law.
The forum is co-sponsored by Stetson University College of Law American Constitution Society and is free and open to the public. To RSVP or if you have any additional questions or comments, please contact our Mid-Florida Regional Director Joyce Hamilton Henry at jhamiltonhenry@aclufl.org.
The RNC has impacted the rights of everyone in the Tampa Bay area. Join us at the forum and know your rights.
ACLU of Florida
www.aclufl.org
Posted in Events, First Amendment, Privacy
