ACLU Liberty Watch 2012 is monitoring the Republican and Democratic conventions, reporting and commenting on all the activities, including floor speeches, from a constitutional and civil liberties perspective. From immigration to LGBT equality, voting rights, women's rights and a safe and free national security policy, this is the place to follow the conventions.
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UPDATE 88: Thursday, 11:05 PM
Thanks for watching the Republican and Democratic National Conventions with us! We’re following the candidates all the way through to election night. Check out ACLU Liberty Watch daily for the latest on your civil rights and liberties in the 2012 election.
UPDATE 87: Thursday, 11: 03 PM
Obama just talked about “a young immigrant who grew up here and went to school here and pledged allegiance to our flag will no longer be deported from the only country she’s ever called home” – now that sounds like a fair immigration policy!
UPDATE 86: Thursday, 10:49 PM
Obama just said, “Four years ago, I promised to end the war in Iraq. We did. I promised to refocus on the terrorists who actually attacked us on 9/11. We have.”
We noticed that he forgot to say, “Four years ago, I promised to close Guantanamo Bay. We did.” Oh, wait... we didn’t.
UPDATE 85: Thursday, 10: 42 PM
Obama: “Education was the gateway to opportunity for me. It was the gateway for Michelle. And now more than ever, it is the gateway to a middle-class life.”
It’s also the gateway to opportunity for all the DREAMers out there!
UPDATE 84: Thursday, 10:40 PM
President Obama just said: “I’m asking you to rally around a set of goals for your country.”
Cool. Our goals are: reproductive freedom, LGBT equality, voting rights, fair immigration policy.
UPDATE 83: Thursday, 10:30 PM
President Obama just accepted the Democratic Party’s nomination for President. Breaking News!
UPDATE 82: Thursday, 10:23 PM
Senator Dick Durbin of Illinois said talked about President Obama’s “fight for justice for women in the workplace and ending the discrimination of "don't ask, don't tell" in our military,” as well as his efforts to bring DREAMers “out of the shadows and into the America they have always called home.” We appreciate all efforts to make sure
everyone’s civil rights and liberties are respected!
UPDATE 81: Thursday, 10:07 PM
Biden says he believes in “a future where women control their own choices, health, and destiny.”
So do we. Everyone’s right to form intimate relationships and to decide whether and when to have children should be respected. With reproductive freedom comes opportunity: opportunity to build a secure, productive, and meaningful life.
UPDATE 80: Thursday, 10:04 PM
Biden: “President Obama believes that even though these DREAMERs—these kids—didn’t choose to come to America-they’ve chosen to do right by America and we should do right by them.” Upholding the rights of immigrants is important to us all!
UPDATE 79: Thursday, 9:52 PM
Biden just said that President Obama has shown “resolve” and a “steady hand, in his role as Commander in Chief.” What happened to his resolve to closing the prison at Guantanamo Bay?
UPDATE 78: Thursday, 9:41 PM
Biden just talked about President Obama sitting behind the Resolute desk in the Oval Office.
National Treasure anyone? Our real national treasures are the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and our civil rights and liberties!
UPDATE 77: Thursday, 9:30 PM
Vice President Joe Biden is up next. If you’re unfamiliar with his record on civil rights and liberties issues – check it out
here.
UPDATE 76: Thursday, 8:50 Pm
Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts is on now talking about President Obama’s record on foreign policy. There are some things Obama could improve upon – for instance, closing Guantanamo Bay and ending illegal drone strikes.
UPDATE 75: Thursday, 8: 43 PM
Charlie Crist, Jr., former Governor of Florida, is on now. He called Florida a state “bursting with opportunity.” Opportunities…to violate the Voting Rights Act?
The state is trying to purge voters from voter registration rolls. In May of this year, Secretary of State Ken Detzer, distributed nearly 2,700 names for removal from the voter registration rolls, claiming that those voters on the list were not U.S. citizens.
The right to vote is fundamental to our democracy…and that’s why ACLU
filed a lawsuit.
UPDATE 74: Thursday, 8:36 PM
Brian Schweitzer, Governor of Montana, just said that all four of his grandparents were immigrants. Lucky for him, they weren’t forced to self-deport under an unfair immigration policy.
UPDATE 73: Thursday, 8:25 PM
Eva Longoria just gave a shout out to the DREAM Act! She gets it. The DREAM Act promotes fundamental fairness for young people by allowing access to affordable post-secondary education and military service opportunities, regardless of immigration status.
UPDATE 72: Thursday, 8:22 PM
Actress Eva Longoria is a proud Texan. But she’s probably not so proud of her state’s discriminatory
voter ID law.
UPDATE 71: Thursday, 8:15 PM
Rep. Xavier Becerra of California just said, “The American dream. El sueño Americano. Dr. King marched for it. Cesar Chavez organized for it.” And our civil rights and liberties make it happen!
UPDATE 70: Thursday, 7:50 PM
Actress Scarlett Johansson is on now. She said, “Vote, so that your voice is heard.” But if you live in a state with a discriminatory voter ID law, that might be difficult.
UPDATE 69: Thursday, 7:49 PM
Kerry Washington just said, “there are people trying take away rights that our mothers, grandmothers and great-grandmothers fought for: our right to vote, our right to choose, affordable quality education, equal pay, access to health care.” It’s important for all of us to be vigilant of our civil rights and liberties.
UPDATE 68: Thursday, 7:47 PM
Despite being a Hollywood starlet, Kerry Washington is no stranger to Washington, D.C. She knows how important reproductive freedom is. Earlier this year she
said: “We’re supposed to be moving to a place of equality, not a place of stripping away our rights as women.”
UPDATE 67: Thursday, 7:41 PM
Rep. James E. Clyburn of South Carolina is up now. Wonder if he’ll mention his state’s discriminatory
voter ID laws.
UPDATE 66: Thursday, 7:33 PM
FUN FACT: The Foo Fighters just performed their song “My Hero” – taking it back to the ‘90s. The year this song was released as a single President Obama was elected to his second term as an Illinois State Senator.
UPDATE 65: Thursday, 7:25 PM
Beau Biden: “I've watched him (Joe Biden) use more than three decades of relationships, experience, respect and goodwill to help move vital legislation, just like he did with the Violence Against Women Act.”
Thanks, Papa Joe! Women and girls deserve to live their lives free from violence.
UPDATE 64: Thursday, 7:24 PM
In case you missed it, Antonio R. Villaraigosa
, Mayor of Los Angeles, just announced that Vice President Joe Biden is officially the Democratic Party’s 2012 vice presidential candidate.
UPDATE 63: Thursday, 7:15 PM
Beau Biden, Attorney General of Delaware and son of Vice President Joe Biden, is on now. He said “there should be no debate about our shared commitment about taking care of our veterans.”
When it comes to our servicemembers and veterans, let’s make sure not to
discriminate against the women who serve in our military.
UPDATE 62: Thursday, 7:00 PM
And we’re back in action for our third and final night of DNC Convention Watch 2012.
Here is a glimpse into what happened working up to the 7 o’clock hour.
We heard from Mayor Villaraigosa, Mayor Nutter, and Wisconsin Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin.
Mary J. Blige took the stage for a number or two.
Also seen on stage was Zack Wahls, a 6
th generation Iowan, notable for his advocacy for LGBT equality and his compelling speech on behalf of his two
moms.
We’re fired up and ready to go too, at least when it comes to civil liberties.
UPDATE 61: Wednesday, 11: 29 PM
Two nights down! One to go! We’ll be back tomorrow at the DNC 2012 at 7PM EST. See you then!
UPDATE 60: Wednesday, 11: 26 PM
Clinton just talked about “changing voting procedures just to reduce the turnout of younger, poorer, minority and disabled voters” and opening the “doors of American opportunity to young immigrants brought here as children who want to go to college or serve in the military.”
Discriminatory voter ID laws and anti-immigrant policies violate our civil rights and liberties.
UPDATE 59: Wednesday, 11:15 PM
Clinton: “My fellow Americans, we'll be deciding what kind of country you want to live in.”
We want to live in a country where are ALL of our civil rights and liberties are respected.
UPDATE 58: Wednesday, 10: 51 PM
Yikes!
Clinton just praised President Obama’s record on national security. Perhaps he didn’t notice that Obama failed to keep his promise to close Guantanamo Bay and has allowed illegal drone strikes.
UPDATE 57: Wednesday, 10: 49 PM
Clinton just told us to “look at [President Obama’s] record.”
We have. You can check it out
here.
UPDATE 56: Wednesday, 10:43 PM
Former President Bill Clinton just said “advancing equal opportunity” is morally right. Defending and securing civil rights and liberties is always right!
UPDATE 55: Wednesday, 10: 27 PM
Elizabeth Warren, candidate for Senate in Massachusetts, said: “This is a great country.”
It is!
But we could use a few minor improvements. For starters, we should enact LGBT marriage equality, pass the DREAM Act, close Guantanamo Bay…. Shall we go on?
UPDATE 54: Wednesday, 10:15 PM
Jim Sinegal, co-founder and former CEO of Costco said, “America needs to be a nation with sensible immigration laws.”
Yes please, sensible and fair.
UPDATE 53: Wednesday, 10:05 PM
Sandra Fluke is on now. She reminds us that
access to contraception is critical to an individual’s autonomy, equality and ability to participate in the social, economic, and political life of the nation.
UPDATE 52: Wednesday, 9:20 PM
Saralegui: “The American promise isn't just an idea or a theory—it's my life story. I want to pass that promise on to my grandchildren…. I want them to grow up in the kind of country I did.”
Can we make a few improvements? Like expanded reproductive freedom, LGBT equality, fairer immigration policy.
UPDATE 51: Wednesday, 9:18 PM
Cristina Saralegui said, “Muchas gracias to all the DREAMers.” Enough said.
UPDATE 50: Wednesday, 9: 22 PM
Shout out to Benita Veliz, a brave DREAMer!
Those who stand to benefit from this fairer immigration policy are talented, motivated young adults aspiring to attend college and serve our military, after overcoming many obstacles. Like Benita Veliz, DREAMers are already valued members of our communities.
What could be more important than helping our young people achieve their dreams and pursue a better future as
citizens of this nation?
UPDATE 49: Wednesday, 9:17 PM
For those who missed the memo, the DREAM Act promotes fundamental fairness for young people by allowing access to affordable post-secondary education and military service opportunities, regardless of immigration status, and would provide a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children, have lived here for at least five years and have graduated from high school.
UPDATE 48: Wednesday, 9: 16 PM
Harris said the American Dream “belongs to the men and women across this country who know it shouldn't be against the law to marry the person you love. It belongs to the immigrants, young and old, who come to this country in search of a better life….The American dream belongs to all of us.”
So does the Constitution.
Those rules are embodied in the Constitution and Bill of Rights.
UPDATE 47: Wednesday, 9:12 PM
California Attorney General Kamala D. Harris said she believes “in the American ideal that our country should work for everyone. That ideal is written into our laws, the rules of the road that create a level playing field in this country. Those are the rules I became attorney general to uphold.”
Those rules are embodied in the Constitution and Bill of Rights.
UPDATE 46: Wednesday, 8: 57 PM
Delaware Gov. Jack Markell just said, “I am a card carry capitalist.”
That’s nice. Because we’re focused on civil rights and liberties we’re interested in card carrying members of the ACLU.
Mitt Romney would get an honorary ACLU card if only he’d
come back home to civil liberties.
UPDATE 45: Wednesday, 8: 53 PM
Sister Simone Campbell, executive director of Roman Catholic Social Justice Organization, NETWORK said: “We care for the 100%!”
What a coincidence – so does the
Constitution!
UPDATE 44: Wednesday, 8: 50 PM
Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper said he was the “first governor since Sam Adams to get his start brewing beer.”
Constitutional factoid: The Twenty-first Amendment to the U.S. Constitution repealed the Eighteenth Amendment, which had mandated nationwide prohibition on alcohol.
Again, we have proven that everything comes back to the Constitution (and that’s why it’s
for the 100%)
UPDATE 43: Wednesday, 8: 34 PM
Gen. Eric Shinseki is on now talking about his family’s history of military service and the GI Bill.
Not to sound like a broken record, BUT we
really wish someone would mention the gender-based discrimination that still takes place in the military context.
Official policy bars the armed services from assigning women to direct ground combat units in most situations, regardless of how well they perform under fire.
UPDATE 42: Wednesday, 8:29 PM
Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland focused on the many things Obama accomplished during his term. Too bad closing Guantanamo Bay was not one of those things.
UPDATE 41: Wednesday, 8:17 PM
Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, is on now talking about the importance of women’s rights and reproductive health care.
Our civil rights and liberties protect everyone's right to make informed decisions free from government interference about whether and when to become a parent.
UPDATE 40: Wednesday, 8:10 PM
Elizabeth Ann “Libby” Bruce talked about the importance of reproductive health care and the role of Planned Parenthood. Without such care, women’s access to safe, reliable family planning services is jeopardized – and so are their civil rights and civil liberties.
UPDATE 39: Wednesday, 8:00 PM
Singer/songwriter Jessica Sanchez is performing "You're All I Need to Get By" – might she be referring to the Bill of Rights?
UPDATE 38: Wednesday, 7:59 PM
Former North Carolina Gov. Jim Hunt, and many before him tonight, talked about the importance of education.
We wish someone would mention a disturbing trend in education called the “school-to-prison pipeline.” Policies and practices of our nation’s public schools, especially those serving our most at-risk children, lead to an alarming number of kids in the juvenile and criminal justice systems.
From inadequate resources to assist students in schools to strict enforcement of the harsh zero-tolerance disciplinary actions, many students, overwhelmingly students of color,
face very adult consequences for adolescent mistakes.
UPDATE 37: Wednesday, 7:45 PM
Education Secretary Arne Duncan is on now. We hope he’ll remind everyone that education is a civil rights issue!
A few months back (on the anniversary of the Civil Rights Act of 1964) Duncan
said, “The progress we've made toward fulfilling the promise of equal educational opportunities is marked by significant advances made by people of color across the nation…. But serious work remains to ensure equal opportunity for all students.”
UPDATE 36: Wednesday, 7:35 PM
Sen. Barbara Mikulski of Maryland is up now. Her record is one of strong support for of civil rights and liberties,
saying:
“I will always stand up and fight to end discrimination of any kind, anywhere in the United States of America. We must say no to hate crimes, racial profiling, racial redlining and racial sidelining. And we must say yes to equal work for equal pay and equal access to opportunity and protection under the law."
UPDATE 35: Wednesday, 7:33 PM
Pelosi keeps talking about all the things that are “just plain wrong.” We noticed she hasn’t mentioned U.S. drone strikes. We think they’re
just plain wrong.
UPDATE 34: Wednesday, 7:28 PM
Pelosi: “The American dream is about freedom.” That includes both religious
and reproductive freedom.
Actually, all types of freedom as far as we are concerned!
UPDATE 33: Wednesday, 7:24 PM
Nancy!
She made history six years ago by becoming the first-ever woman speaker of the House of Representatives. A sign that women have made great strides in the fight for equality, from women's suffrage (the right to vote), to
equal opportunity in the workplace and in education.
But gender bias continues to create huge barriers for many, especially poor women, women of color, and immigrant women. That’s where our civil rights and liberties come in!
UPDATE 32: Wednesday, 7:18 PM
Denise Juneau, superintendent of the Montana Office of Public Instruction, is the first Native American women in history to win a statewide election. Right on!
UPDATE 31: Wednesday, 7:03 PM
Earlier this evening, Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez of Illinois spoke about the importance of civil rights and liberties.
He said: “We believe that America is never greater than when we protect the rights we have won – and strive to make real the call of our founders to create a more perfect Union. We are never more American than when we demand that all people are treated with dignity and respect. We are never more patriotic than when we see a group of people being cast aside and say: Stop. In America, we do not tolerate anyone being treated unfairly. We are truly American when we live up to our original promise of liberty and celebrate those quintessentially American words—‘All men are created equal.’”
Congressman Gutierrez , we couldn’t agree more.
UPDATE 30: Wednesday, 7:00 PM
And we’re back!
Here is a quick recap of what we missed!
The DNC heard from a number of elected officials from both the House and Senate. Among those who spoke were Representative Guiterrez from Illinois, Representative DeGette from Colorado, and Representative Chu from California. Senator Patty Murray and Senator Chuck Schumer also spoke this evening.
We also heard from Mayor Menino of Boston, Deputy Sheriff Ken Myers from Carroll County Iowa and Richard Trumka, the President of the AFL-CIO.
The convention took an official photo and then returned to the speakers!
Representative Emanuel Cleaver , II of the Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus and Member of the US House of Representatives, Missouri brings up to 7:00pm!
UPDATE 29: Tuesday, 11:00 PM
Thanks for hanging with us tonight at the DNC. We will be back tomorrow at 7:00pm EST.
UPDATE 28: Tuesday, 10:16 PM
San Antonio Mayor Julián Castro’s family story illustrates the need for fair immigration policy, especially policy that fosters access to education. His grandmother was brought to Texas at age 5 by relatives following the revolution in Mexico. She worked as a maid and babysitter to help his mother attain degrees in higher education and “live out her American Dream.”
Castro has said: “There are so many young people in our country who are in that very same position.” He added, “They’ve done nothing wrong and they deserve to be American citizens.”
The DREAM Act promotes fundamental fairness for young people by allowing access to affordable post-secondary education and military service opportunities, regardless of immigration status, and would provide a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who came to the U.S. as children, have lived here for at least five years and have graduated from high school.
UPDATE 27: Tuesday, 10:14 PM
Mayor Julián Castro of San Antonio has spoken about the importance of civil rights and liberties in his personal life. Regarding his educational opportunities, Mayor Castro said “Joaquín and I got into Stanford because of affirmative action.” He added that while his standardized test scores may have been lower than average, he “did fine in college and in law school. So did Joaquín. I’m a strong supporter of affirmative action because I’ve seen it work in my own life.”
Affirmative action is one of the most effective tools for redressing the injustices caused by our nation's historic discrimination against people of color and women, and for leveling what has long been an uneven playing field.
UPDATE 26: Tuesday, 9:55 PM
Next up is Governor O’Malley. He has been a long-time supporter of LGBT-equality. In March of 2012, he signed the Civil Marriage Protection Act into law – making Maryland the 8th state to legalize same-sex marriage.
Explaining his support for this historic law, Gov. O’Malley later wrote “Religious freedom was the very reason for our state's founding. And at the heart of religious freedom is respect for the freedom of individual conscience.”
We agree, Gov. O’Malley, we can have religious freedom and LGBT equality.
UPDATE 26: Tuesday, 10:00 PM
Next up is Governor O’Malley. He has been a long-time supporter of LGBT-equality. In March of 2012, he signed the Civil Marriage Protection Act into law – making Maryland the 8th state to legalize same-sex marriage.
Explaining his support for this historic law, Gov. O’Malley later wrote [hyperlink: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/gov-martin-omalley/maryland-gay-marriage_b_1314982.html]: “Religious freedom was the very reason for our state's founding. And at the heart of religious freedom is respect for the freedom of individual conscience.”
We agree, Gov. O’Malley, we can have religious freedom and LGBT equality.
UPDATE 25: Tuesday, 9:43 PM
Lilly Ledbetter is up now.
She is the namesake of the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, which restored rights taken away by a 2007 Supreme Court case, Ledbetter v. Goodyear, which virtually immunized employers from wage discrimination. The Ledbetter Act insures that employees, regardless of their gender, race, national origin, age, or disability, are protected from the additional burdens of pay disparities during an economic recession.
This was the first bill President Obama signed into law after being elected.
UPDATE 24: Tuesday, 9:41 PM
Why do we care about equal pay? Nearly half of American workplaces either discourage or specifically prohibit employees from discussing pay practices. That’s one of the biggest challenges in fighting pay discrimination. For most women, it’s nearly impossible to find out whether discrimination is occurring.
UPDATE 23: Tuesday, 9:32 PM
Kal Penn is up now. He’s a busy guy! He Escap[ed] from Guantanamo and worked his way from White Castle to the White House. Get it? (That was for the Harold and Kumar fans out there!)
Seriously though, Penn is talking about the importance of voting. Voting rights are under attack in this country as state legislatures nationwide pass voter suppression laws under the pretext of preventing voter fraud and safeguarding election integrity. These voter suppression laws take many forms, and collectively lead to significant burdens for eligible voters trying to exercise their most fundamental constitutional right.
UPDATE 22: Tuesday, 9:24 PM
Rahm Emanuel, Mayor of Chicago and former White House Chief of Staff is up now. Regarding the crises facing America, Emanuel recalled Obama saying, “We were sent here to tackle all of them, not to choose between them.”
We take the same approach when it comes to defending our civil liberties. Our government must respect ALL of our civil rights and liberties, even when it comes to national security. President Obama, are you listening?
UPDATE 21: Tuesday, 9:17 PM
Secretary of U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius is on now. She said, “ Under Obamacare insurance companies can no longer discriminate against women.” It’s about time! Women have the right to make their own decisions about whether and when to use contraception, based on their own beliefs – not those of their bosses.
UPDATE 20: Tuesday, 9:12 PM
The Affordable Care Act implicates your civil rights and liberties!
The availability of contraception has given women the ability to make their own decisions about whether and when to have children, which in turn has allowed them to make decisions about their schooling, a particular job or career, and their families.
Contraceptive coverage helps to eliminate gender disparities in health costs: currently, women of child-bearing age pay significantly more for out-of-pocket costs than men, in large part because of reproductive health needs, including contraception.
Denying equal access to contraception coverage discriminates against women, plain and simple.
It has never been acceptable to use religion as an excuse to discriminate. Religious beliefs can’t trump the contraception rule, which is designed to eradicate discrimination, any more than religious beliefs could trump laws designed to combat racial discrimination.
UPDATE 19: Tuesday, 8:52 PM
Governor of Rhode Island, Lincoln Chafee said: “We believe that government can and should be an instrument for the greater good,” and that “we believe in personal freedom.” Yes we do! That’s why we need to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties that the Constitution and laws of the United States guarantee to everyone in this country.
UPDATE 18: Tuesday, 8:47 PM
Tammy Duckworth, Former Assistant Secretary of the US Department of Veterans Affairs, said she became one of the first women to fly combat in Iraq. Thank you for your service, Ms. Duckworth.
UPDATE 17: Tuesday, 8:39 PM
Just like the GOP convention, we are glad to see our service men and women and veterans represented and honored at the Democratic National Convention. We’re still waiting for someone to talk about the current policies that do a disservice to the brave women who serve in our military.
President Obama has yet to overturn the military’s official policy which bars the armed services from assigning women to direct ground combat units in most situations, regardless of how well they perform under fire. It is widely acknowledged that women are already engaging in combat. This official exclusion prevents women's service from being fully recognized and stifles their career advancement.
Under current Department of Defense policy servicewomen are prohibited from using their insurance to pay for abortion services if they become pregnant as the result of rape or incest.
Those who defend our rights should not be restricted from exercising their own! Let’s make sure we protect the civil rights and liberties of ALL of our servicemembers.
UPDATE 16: Tuesday, 8:30 PM
Nancy Keenan, President of the National Abortion Rights Action League – Pro-Choice America, said Obama “trusts women” and praised his support for “a woman’s right to make her own decisions.”
The ability to decide whether or not to carry a pregnancy to term is essential to women’s equality, autonomy, and dignity, with implications for every aspect of her life – her educational aspirations, career goals, economic status, and, more broadly, her ability to live the life she planned.
Despite the right to a safe and legal abortion, for many women, abortion access is regulated so heavily that it’s almost, or entirely, out of reach.
UPDATE 15: Tuesday, 8:29 PM
Reproductive freedom means the right to make informed decisions free from government interference about whether and when to become a parent.
UPDATE 14: Tuesday, 8:22 PM
Rep. Jared Polis of Colorado said that America is a place where “loving families of all forms are respected and celebrated.” He also gave shout outs to President Obama’s other accomplishments on behalf of LGBT equality: repealing DADT and supporting same-sex marriage.
Marriage equality. Marriage Fairness. Gay marriage. Marriage for same-sex couples. Many people have many different names for it, but all of them refer to the same thing: Extending the freedom to marry and the thousands of protections and obligations that opposite-sex married couples enjoy, to same-sex couples through civil marriage.
UPDATE 13: Tuesday, 8:16 PM
R.T. Rybak, Mayor of Minneapolis, keeps thanking President Obama for his achievements during his term. Obviously, “Thank you for closing the prison at Guantanamo Bay,” was not included.
UPDATE 12: Tuesday, 8:07 PM
Former Florida Rep. Robert Wexler is on now. We wish he’d also say something about Florida’s abysmal voting rights issues! The state is trying to purge voters from voter registration rolls. This is precisely why Congress has enacted the Voting Rights Act – to prevent state officials from interfering with the constitutional rights of minorities.
UPDATE 11: Tuesday, 7:53 PM
Senator Ted Kennedy: “My opponent (Romney) is multiple choice.” Ouch! The truth hurts.
Gov. Romney, please come back home to civil liberties.
UPDATE 10: Tuesday, 7:50 PM
When Senator Kennedy passed away in 2009, the civil rights community lost one of its giants. He was a stalwart champion and defender of civil liberties who often worked with the ACLU to defend the values and ideals inherent in the United States Constitution, fighting to ensure free speech, equality and justice for all people, particularly the disadvantaged.
UPDATE 9: Tuesday, 7:45 PM
The Honorable Ken Salazar, Attorney General of Colorado – and 12th Generation Mexican-American – said: “My parents believed in the American Dream.” Similarly, he added, “Obama was not born into wealth or privilege,” yet he “has lived the American Dream.” Let’s make that dream accessible to everyone in America by passing the DREAM Act.
UPDATE 8: Tuesday, 7:37 PM
Rep. Carolyn Maloney of NY said: “Where are the women?” They’re on stage! We love seeing so many women serving in the highest levels of our nation’s leadership.
All women and girls should be able to lead lives of dignity, free from violence and discrimination, including discrimination based on gender stereotypes. This means an America where all women and girls have equal access to quality education, employment, housing, and health, irrespective of race, class, income, immigration status or involvement with the criminal justice system.
UPDATE 7: Tuesday, 7:30 PM
Rep. Gwen Moore of Wisconsin just raised the profile of the Violence Against Women Act. All women deserve to live free from violence. Obama thinks so too, that’s why he voted in favor of it in 2005 when he served in the Senate.
Also, h/t to Vice President Biden, who sponsored the original Violence Against Women Act.
UPDATE 6: Tuesday, 7:21 PM
Education is important for our economy – but it’s also an important civil rights issue. More than 50 years after Brown v. Board of Education, many students of color continue to struggle in inadequate schools.
Affirmative action, school integration, the improvement and equalization of educational programs and facilities, and other initiatives help ensure high-quality education for all students.
UPDATE 5: Tuesday, 7:15 PM
Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada said: “Trust comes from transparency.” Because we value transparency, we are concerned about the Obama administration’s activities Obama administration’s activities regarding domestic drones.
UPDATE 4: Tuesday 7:12 PM EDT
Anthony R. Foxx, Mayor of Charlotte is up now. He talked about the history of desegregation in Charlotte and the importance of education and breaking down barriers.
Getting an education isn't just about books and grades – it’s also about learning how to participate fully in the life of this nation.
“I live by my values!” Foxx added. So do we – and we value our civil rights and liberties.
UPDATE 3: Tuesday 7:05 PM EDT
We're back! The DNC convention kicked off this afternoon with a welcome address by DNC Chairwoman and Florida Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz and continued with the very procedural presentation of the Credentials Committee, Rules Committee, and the Gaveling in of Permanent Chair, Antonio R. Villaraigosa, Mayor of Los Angeles.
Steny Hoyer, Democratic Whip and Maryland Congressman, Andrew Tobias, treasurer of the DNC and Alice Germond, secretary of the DNC also made opening remarks.
California Congresswoman Barbara Lee spoke about the DNC Platform. Lieutenant General Claudia Kennedy spoke as well. She is the first woman to reach rank of three-star general in the U.S. Army. Mayor of Newark Cory Booker took the stage next and was followed by Governor Bev Perdue of North Carolina.
UPDATE 2: Tuesday 6:51 PM EDT
We want you to keep tabs on civil liberties during the convention as well. Watch and play along all week with our convention themed Bingo Board.
UPDATE 1: Tuesday 5:24 PM EDT
Updates start tonight at 7pm ET! Stay tuned, and follow us on
Twitter!
