Voter Suppression in South Carolina
February 8, 2012. The South Carolina legislature has come up
with yet another discriminatory law to block access to the polls.
H. 4549 aims squarely at voter registration and is scheduled for
debate and approval on Wednesday, February 8.
This unnecessary and burdensome law will require third-party voter
registration groups to register with the state and submit all new
voter applications within 5 days or be subject to significant fines.
Misguided lawmakers are attempting to stand in the way of civic groups such as the League of Women Voters, the NAACP, and campus political organizations from registering people to vote in our state.
Voter registration groups ease the application process for minorities, students and the poor. African-Americans, Latinos and voters making less than $10,000 per year register through such drives at twice the rate of other voters.
December 23. the Department of Justice blocked SC’s Voter ID Law, helping to ensure thousands of eligible voters will be able to exercise their right to vote. Read the DOJ's letter >>
Because South Carolina has a sad history of discrimination, it is required under the federal Voting Rights Act to have any changes in its voting laws approved by the Department of Justice or a federal court in Washington.
December 7. In an eight-page letter, the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Civil Liberties Union of South Carolina, and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights under Law, has again asked the U. S. Department of Justice to block this law. Comment Letter, News, Blogs
August 5, the ACLU, as part of a coalition of civil rights and advocacy groups, urged the Department of Justice to block implementation of a South Carolina law that would suppress the minority vote.
More information on SC's Voter Photo ID Law >>
Public Schools Are Not Sunday Schools
Chesterfield County School District Agrees to Stop Proselytizing Students
January 24: Consent and Decree order signed by Chesterfield County School Board.
January 12: The board of school district voted to adopt a proposed settlement agreement that would put an end to the district’s pervasive practice of school-sponsored prayer, preaching and religious activities aimed at students.
December 5: the ACLU and the ACLU of South Carolina filed a lawsuit challenging the pervasive practice of school-sponsored prayer, preaching and religious activities in the Chesterfield County School District. News, Blog and Legal Documents
The ACLU of South Carolina called on the Chesterfield County School District to launch an immediate investigation of this event and to ensure that school officials do not repeat their unlawful activities in the future.
ACLU Freedom of Information Act Request: Religious Activities at Chesterfield County Schools >>
September 22. The ACLU of South Carolina received complaints regarding a serious constitutional violation that occurred at New Heights Middle School in Jefferson, South Carolina, on September 1, 2011.
Press Release: Chesterfield County religious pep rally violates Constitution>
South Carolina Jail Agrees to End Unconstitutional Censorship
 January 10: Officials at a South Carolina jail agreed to stop barring prisoners from accessing books, magazines, newspapers and other periodicals as part of an agreement to settle an American Civil Liberties Union lawsuit.
Jail officials in Berkeley County also agreed to no longer enforce a policy banning any publication bound with staples and a policy banning materials containing any level of nudity, which a jail mailroom officer said would include newspapers with lingerie advertisements or magazines containing pictures of Botticelli’s Birth of Venus.
Read the full press release >>
ACLU and Civil Rights Coalition File Lawsuit Against South Carolina's Anti-Immigrant Law
Federal Court Blocks Major Parts of South Carolina's Anti-Immigrant Law/ Decision Is a Setback to National Effort to Pass Anti-Immigrant Laws
December 22. A federal district court today blocked major parts of South Carolina’s anti-immigrant law from going into effect January 1 after ACLU and partners in a civil rights coalition recently argued the law is unconstitutional, interferes with federal laws and would cause great harm if implemented.
Press Release: Federal Court Blocks Major Parts of South Carolina Anti-Immigrant Law >>
The Decision >>
Press Release: ACLU and Civil Rights Coalition Ask Court to Block South Carolina’s Anti-Immigrant Law >>
October 31, the federal government moved to block implementation of South Carolina's strict new immigration law, saying its provisions are unconstitutional and interfere with the nation's powers to set and enforce immigration policy.
October 12, The American Civil Liberties Union and a coalition of civil rights groups filed a lawsuit against South Carolina’s anti-immigrant law.
The ACLU will stand up for the civil rights and liberties of all residents of South Carolina. Under this extreme bill, police are required to demand "papers" from people they stop whom they suspect are not authorized to be in the U.S.
ACLU Leads Federal Immigration Lawsuit With Charleston County Focus >>
ACLU Immigrant Rights Project Legal Analysis of the law >>
ACLU Calls on South Carolina to End Discriminatory Segregation of Prisoners with HIV
Read more >>
ACLU's New Report Highlighting Ways to Reduce State Budgets and Prison Populations
Smart Reform Is Possible: States Reducing Incarceration Rates and Costs While Protecting Communities details how several states with long histories of being “tough on crime” have enacted bipartisan reforms relying on alternatives to incarceration, underscoring that reform is politically and fiscally viable. Read more >>
Nationwide Information Request on Government Cell Phone Tracking
The ACLU of South Carolina joined 33 other American Civil Liberties Union affiliates across the nation in seeking information from law enforcement agencies about when, why and how they are using cellphone location data to track local residents. Read more >>
Turner v. Rogers: A Decision from the Supreme Court of the United States
Is an indigent parent facing imprisonment for failure to pay child support entitled to appointed counsel?
Read more >>
Don't Filter Me!
ACLU Demands Schools Stop Unconstitutional Web Filtering of LGBT ContentRead more >> |
