David Fidanque - US Supreme Court

By David Fidanque, Executive Director

Today I am at the U.S. Supreme Court to watch our volunteer attorney, Steven Wilker of the Tonkon Torp firm, argue against the federal government’s position that Secret Service agents cannot be sued for intentionally violating the First Amendment rights of protesters.

The Moss case started almost ten years ago after police were directed to move only those protesting the policies of the Bush administration but not the people who showed up to support the President. Do you know your rights to protest?

We've also been working hard on other legal cases. Last week:

• We were in federal court again in our "No Fly" case. Earlier, the court had agreed with the ACLU that fundamental liberties are at stake when the government doesn't allow Americans to fly internationally. At last week's hearing, we provided additional information about the lack of due process with the current "No Fly" List procedures. The human consequences associated with inclusion on the list are brilliantly illustrated in a comic by award-winning artist Jen Sorensen.

• We moved one step closer to bringing the freedom to marry to Oregon. The Oregon Attorney General issued her response to our lawsuit in an eloquent brief that asserts that prohibiting marriage for same-sex couples is "indefensible" and explains in detail why Oregon's marriage ban violates the 14th Amendment. Oral arguments are scheduled for Wednesday, April 23 in federal court in Eugene. Read more.

• We filed a petition in the Oregon Supreme Court urging it to improve the proposed ballot title for an initiative filed by opponents of marriage for same-sex couples. This Arizona-style proposal would allow businesses to violate existing anti-discrimination laws by refusing wedding services and other "arrangements" for same-sex couples. Treating people differently based on who they are and who they love is discrimination.

It's your support that drives this work and inspires us to keep fighting day after day. Thank you!