LIVE: Fighting for Our Rights: An Urgent ACLU Town Hall

The ACLU has mounted an aggressive legal campaign, filing 239 legal actions, including 139 full-on lawsuits, to challenge the Trump administration's policies. This broad effort targets issues such as the suppression of dissent, the targeting of politically weak groups like immigrants, and the abuse of power that undermines checks and balances.

Anthony Romero states, 'All in we have filed about 239 legal actions. about 139 of them are lawsuits.' He also outlines three major buckets of work: 'shutting down of dissent and debate,' 'targeting of politically weak groups,' and 'abuse of power and the uprooting of the system of checks and balances.'

The ACLU's litigation strategy, termed 'Defeat, Delay, Dilute,' has achieved a significant 70% success rate in obtaining relief from federal courts. This includes securing court orders for wins, temporary blocks on challenged policies, or the administration ceasing unlawful conduct after a lawsuit is filed.

Cecilia Wong reports, 'We've got about a 70% success rate in obtaining relief from federal courts. As Anthony said, our strategy of defeating, delaying, and diluting the Trump administration's unlawful actions.'

Minnesota has experienced 'rampant lawlessness' from ICE, including agents storming parks and schools, using tear gas, and targeting Somali refugees. The ACLU of Minnesota responded by filing two significant class-action federal lawsuits: Hincher v. Gnome, which secured an injunction against unlawful targeting of protesters, and Hussein v. Gnome, addressing warrantless arrests and racial profiling of immigrant populations.

Depender Mayel describes the situation: 'Agents have stormed our parks and school yards... They've thrown tear gas in front of our homes and schools.' He details the lawsuits: 'Hincher versus Gnome... getting at the way the government is targeting protesters' and 'Hussein versus Gnome... zeros in on the group of people that ICE says that they're going after... about warrantless arrests and racial profiling.'

The ACLU is preparing to argue a critical birthright citizenship case before the Supreme Court, challenging the Trump administration's attempt to reinterpret the 14th Amendment's citizenship clause. This case is framed as a defense of a 'bedrock right' and a 'core pillar of America,' with the ACLU expressing high confidence in a favorable outcome.

Anthony Romero states, 'We're going to win. Cecilia is going to kick butt in the Supreme Court. We are going to win that case.' Cecilia Wong explains, 'He's purporting to reinterpret the citizenship clause... The Supreme Court already rejected it in an 1898 decision.'

The 'Firewall for Freedom' initiative, co-created with ACLU affiliates, has successfully implemented 90 protections at the state and local levels since Trump's inauguration. These actions include banning 287g agreements (which forbid cooperation between local law enforcement and ICE) and passing 'sensitive locations protections' to prevent ICE from operating in hospitals, churches, and schools.

Deerra Dafling reports, 'We have passed 90 firewall for freedom protections since President Trump's inauguration. 60 of those at the state level and the rest at the municipal level.' She cites examples like Delaware banning 287g agreements and New Jersey prohibiting ICE in sensitive locations.

The ACLU is launching its largest-ever national election safeguarding program for the 2026 midterms, structured in four phases: 'fight, win, prove, and force.' This initiative involves deploying 10 organizers in key states, hiring new voting rights staff, and training thousands of volunteer election observers to ensure fair elections, combat interference, and uphold results.

Deerra Dafling details, 'This year will be the largest election protection program in our organization's history. We've added 10 organizers on the ground in key states... This program really is coming in four phases. The four phases are fight, win, prove, and force.'