News & Commentary

Today is International Human Rights Day. On this day, we are reminded that all persons as members of the human family have certain inalienable rights. These rights are enshrined in our nation’s Constitution as a living testimony to our humanity. One of these rights is the right to vote, and this foundation of our democracy has become a human rights crisis in our state.

Florida is one of only a few states that denies the right to vote for individuals with prior felony convictions, and is by far the worst offender, with more than 1.5 million people in Florida shut out of our democracy. This situation was exacerbated under rules passed by the Florida Board of Executive Clemency – made up of Governor Scott, Attorney General Pam Bondi, and several other cabinet officers – shortly after their inauguration in 2011.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Florida celebrates the President Obama’s executive action on immigration along with communities across Florida who will now qualify for temporary protection from deportation. The President’s action is a significant step – but only a first step towards a pathway to citizenship which would affirm the fuller recognition of all immigrants’ rights.

An important part of the President’s announcement of executive action on immigration was the accompanying DHS memo that ended the federal government’s failed Secure Communities program.

I am pretty concerned – as maybe you are as well – about the impact of this week’s elections on civil liberties. But I’m not discouraged. Let me tell you why.

Do you remember the final match that the U.S. Men’s team played in this year’s World Cup? I don’t watch a lot of soccer, but that match is helpful in understanding where things stand after this week’s election.

An aggressive Belgian team had the U.S. rocked back on their heels playing defense for nearly the entire match. It should have been a blowout by the Belgian team, but it wasn’t -- because of the heroic effort of the U.S. goalkeeper, Tim Howard. He made an incredible athletic effort, refusing to give up. He set a World Cup record for blocking shots, keeping the Belgians scoreless in regulation and forced overtime.

That’s what ACLU is. You, me and all of our thousands of members and supporters across Florida -- when civil liberties are under attack, we are the goalkeeper.

For many Floridians, the end of October is about claiming their red or blue affiliations, but for me the color of the season is pink. For me the pink ribbon, the universal symbol for Breast Cancer Awareness, is about more than a walk or fundraiser. When I see pink I think of my mother, who for the second time is fighting stage four metastasized breast cancer.

But with all of the coverage of this year’s gubernatorial race (including #fangate), an important constitutional amendment that could help patients like my mother is getting little attention, and it needs your support.

You’ve got to admire the Florida Legislature for its creativity in inventing ways to circumvent democracy and minimize the power of the people’s vote.

Voters should not be fooled by the Legislature’s latest con – proposed constitutional Amendment #3. It is a pernicious proposal “requiring” that a lame-duck Governor, rather than the newly-elected Governor, fill judicial vacancies.

It should be soundly defeated.

This morning, I hit the snooze on the alarm clock, stretched, put on some comfy slippers, and performed my most fundamental right as an American citizen– I voted!

Election Day is almost two weeks away, but Floridians don’t have to wait to make their voices heard in our democracy. You can vote easily and confidently now.

After the long lines that many voters had to wait in on Election Day in 2012, many Floridians are choosing to take advantage of the different, simpler options that are available for them to vote: early voting and voting by mail. Here’s what voters need to know to take advantage of these choices.

By a unanimous vote, Hillsborough has become the latest county in Florida to expand anti-discrimination protections to the LGBT community.

The historic vote to add sexual orientation and gender identity or expression as protected classes to the current Human Rights Ordinance (HRO) took place on October 1st with the leadership of Commissioner Kevin Beckner, Hillsborough’s first openly gay county commissioner.

The tragic shooting of Mike Brown in Ferguson, Missouri has raised many questions about how law enforcement treats the very citizens it is supposed to protect, including whether local law enforcement should be armed to the teeth with military grade equipment. Could a military response happen here in Florida? It’s impossible to know right now, and we need to change that.

In June, the ACLU released a national report on the militarization of local law enforcement, which documented the federal to local pipeline of war machines and weapons. There are several programs that enable even the smallest towns to obtain massive reserves of weapons.

By Cassandra Stubbs,
Director, ACLU Capital Punishment Project

This post originally appeared on ACLU's National Blog of Rights.

According to Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, Henry Lee McCollum deserved to die for the brutal rape and murder of 11-year-old Sabrina Buie. There's just one problem, and a frequent one in death penalty cases: Henry Lee McCollum didn't do it.

Instead of tracking down the true killer, police and prosecutors went after Henry Lee McCollum and his half-brother Leon Brown, two intellectually disabled and innocent teenagers.