News & Commentary

Cross posted from the League of Women Voters of Wisconsin.

By Allie Bohm, Advocacy & Policy Strategist

On Thursday, January 24, 2013, the City of Milwaukee Common Council’s Public Safety Committee held an open public hearing. The subject of the hearing was Mayor Tom Barrett’s appointment of Ms. Ann Wilson to the Milwaukee Board of Fire and Police Commissioners.   Dozens of Milwaukeeans came to the City Hall Council Chamber that afternoon, including ACLU members and our community allies. 

Mayor Tom Barrett on Tuesday appointed Ann Wilson, manager of the Housing Authority's Hillside Family Resource Center, to a vacant position on the Fire and Police Commission.

MADISON, Wis. -- Republicans scratching for a way to fund Gov. Scott Walker's plan to collect DNA from suspects upon arrest may have a chance at extra dollars courtesy of Congress.

The Wisconsin Court of Appeals today announced that the state’s law granting domestic partnership protections to same-sex couples will be upheld.

December 1 is the anniversary of the day in 1955 when Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a bus to a white man. Back then, racism was visible in signs that marked Jim Crow policies of segregation. We know that it took courageous organizers – like Rosa Parks, and thousands of others - and a national movement to shift our laws and policies toward racial justice.

The ACLU of Wisconsin is conducting its Biannual Education Survey, and has sent open records requests to 107 of the 425 school districts in Wisconsin to see how they are doing on some of the ACLU’s priority issues: nondiscrimination, bullying, and the right of each student to an adequate education.

The ACLU of Wisconsin does not endorse candidates, so we did not have a partisan stake in the outcome of yesterday’s election. However, we are committed to ensuring that Wisconsin citizens can cast a ballot without misinformation, intimidation or barriers. We focused our efforts leading up to November 6 on educating voters about their rights and working alongside partners in the Wisconsin Election Protection 866 OUR VOTE hotline project and poll watching.