Will you watch the House read the Constitution?

The House is scheduled to open their session tomorrow with a public reading of the U.S. Constitution.  You can watch live on C-SPAN beginning at 10:00 AM. I'm sure it will be on around the office here - we're all looking forward to the looks of shock and astonishment when they get to that part about "establishment of religion."


This move by the new House majority certainly has stimulated debate.  Speaking for myself, while I might disagree with the motives behind this particular reading, I don't see how starting a session by reading aloud the document Congress is sworn to uphold can be a bad thing.


One thing the Pope and I agree on (is it the only thing?  I wonder if he thinks chocolate is delicious...) is that it's a lot easier to read a document out loud than to live by it.  My guess is even after a public reading of the Constitution, America is still going to need the ACLU.


Then again, maybe Congress will finish reading, wipe away their patriotic tears, and throw open the doors of Guantanamo Bay.  They draw up a repeal of DOMA on a napkin, and throw in repeals of USA PATRIOT and the Military Commissions Act while they're at it.  As they're joined in singing the little-known second verse of the Star Spangled Banner, Habeas Corpus returns from his nine-year vacation and all is right in the United States.


Wouldn't that be a hell of day on C-SPAN.


So what are your thoughts on this public reading of the Constitution?  Will you be watching?

Eleven reasons you should make a last-minute donation to the ACLU

Click here to make a tax-deductible gift to the ACLU Foundation.


11. Because you like to swear.
Admit it.  You do.  We all do.  There's nothing quite as cathartic as unleashing a few choice words when a day isn't going your way.  Even certain mayors know the value of a well-timed dirty word.  Trouble is, some people in authority seem to think there's a "no dirty words" exception to the First Amendment.

In the past few years, we've represented a woman arrested for swearing at an inanimate bathroom fixture, a man who was told that calling his business "I Choose Hell" was illegal for being 'blasphemous,' and a whole slew of people who used words that police officers didn't like.  

So if you enjoy the right to legally use every word in the lexicon, or if your family swear jar is filled to the brim, maybe toss a few dollars our way.  Who knows?  We may someday keep you out of prison.

10. Because you own a cell phone.

...and you'd rather the government didn't use it to track your every movement, or go through it when you aren't looking, or charge you as a child pornographer because you took a naked (or near-naked) photo of yourself.  Cell phones are fast becoming a new front in the fight for civil liberties, and the ACLU is working hard to remind the government that you don't waive your right to privacy when you buy a cell phone.

9. Because criticizing the government does not make you a terrorist.
Nor does protesting against natural gas extraction or attending a vegan block party, and yet people engaged in these very activities ended up in intelligence bulletins distributed to the State Police to warn them of potential terrorist activity.  The ACLU has been helping activists from around the state obtain information as to whether they or their organizations were listed, and has called for an investigation into the matter from an independent party.

Read more »

PA Senate ignores big problems, goes after gay people

A friend who is a senator likes to joke that the Pennsylvania Senate is where good ideas go to die. Apparently, it's also the place where some bad ideas never die.

Like a zombie freak show yet again rising from its grave, the attempt to amend the Pennsylvania constitution to ban same sex marriage is back. Senate Bill 707 would embed discrimination into our constitution.

On Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to vote on SB 707, an idea that has already died twice, in 2006 and 2008.

Please contact your senator and ask him or her to vote "no" on SB 707. Don't know who your senator is? Use our "find your legislator" tool.

It pains me to say this, but we almost have to encourage you to contact every member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. That's what our opponents do, and they are effective when they do it.

Since we've beaten this twice before, you probably know the talking points, but here are some ideas:

• The constitution has historically been used to protect and expand rights, not restrict them.
• A poll conducted last year by The Morning Call found that only 44 percent of Pennsylvanians want this constitutional amendment. 45 percent are opposed to the idea.
• Pennsylvania is facing a lot of major issues, including a pension crisis, a drop in tax revenues, and prison overcrowding. There couldn't be a worse time to take on this divisive, distracting legislation.

Here's a full page of talking points (pdf) that you may find helpful.

This committee vote is going to be very close. If this bill goes down in committee, it could be the end of the efforts to amend our constitution to ban same sex marriage. Let's do this!

Andy in Harrisburg

An ACLU Thanksgiving

Today, as Americans reflect on the many things we have to be thankful for, I am reminded of how thankful I am to live in a country with the following guarantees:

Amendment 1
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Amendment 2
A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

Amendment 3
No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.

Amendment 4
The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

Amendment 5
No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offense to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb, nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use without just compensation.

Amendment 6
In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed; which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defense.

Amendment 7
In Suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury shall be otherwise re-examined in any Court of the United States, than according to the rules of the common law.

Amendment 8
Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

Amendment 9
The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

Amendment 10
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Amendment 13
Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude … shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

Amendment 14
… No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws …

Amendment 15
The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude …

Amendment 19
The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.

I am also thankful for the people who recognize that it is these things that make our country what it is, and that to give them up for any reason diminishes it and us. It is because of the time, talent, and resources of these people that the ACLU is able to defend the freedoms we cherish.



Becca in Harrisburg

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Quote of the day

"As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake."
--President Barack Obama, January 20, 2009

Capitol chatter

In a Senate State Government Committee meeting today, Senator Vincent Hughes (D-Philadelphia) said something that caught my attention. After another senator implied that Thomas Jefferson would favor legislative term limits, Hughes reminded the committee and the audience that "there were no Founding Mothers" and went on to talk about the fact that women didn't have the vote and that Africans were enslaved. Hughes' point was that the Founders weren't perfect.

This is something I think about from time to time. I usually use the words "Framers" or "Founders" so as not to reference the patriarchy of that day.

The imperfections of the Framers are apparent. On the one hand, they were brilliant by setting up the system of government that they created. On the other hand, they were clearly limited by the mores of the day, and the continuation of slavery after the nation's founding is the first major example of compromise at work within a democracy. I often wonder if the Framers were real progressives who were just held back by the society they lived in or if they embraced the patriarchal, racist values of the society at large.

The ultimate brilliance, though, was in making the Constitution broad enough and general enough that future generations could improve on what they started.

Andy in Harrisburg