3. Passing the Torch 1
Freedom is fragile. It cannot
protect itself. For liberty to be
preserved, we must nurture it.
That is why the ACLU of
Washington strives to prepare
the next generation of civil liberties activists.
“Passing the Torch” describes our work to inspire
young people to become guardians of freedom.We
want them to cherish our heritage of rights and
to embrace the Bill of Rights as a vital part of our
democracy.
Our youth program provides information, support,
experiences and advocacy to make civil liberties
tangible and important in young people’s lives. We
work in several ways:
Educating youth about their
rights and the importance of civil
liberties to our society
Promoting activism to organize
effectively for change
Reaching out to youth with events,
videos and resources on the Internet
Advocating for the rights of youth
in their schools and communities
Our work helps ensure that today’s young people
will grow into adults with the courage to challenge
injustice, look past stereotypes, debunk false
assumptions and take a stand when rights are
violated. Our future depends on it.
Introduction
Kathleen Taylor
Executive Director
4. 2 Passing the Torch
Student Conferences
That’s how an 11th-grader summarized her
experience at the ACLU-WA Student Conference
on Civil Liberties.
Students and teachers from high schools around
Puget Sound come to the University of Washington
campus each year for a day of talks, films and
performances designed to make civil liberties come
alive. The annual conference addresses issues that
matter to young people – student rights, military
recruitment, gay-straight clubs, rights with the
policeandfreespeech.Theconferencehasshowcased
student poetry readings and dramatizations of civil
liberties dilemmas by actors from the GAP and
Book-It Repertory theatres. Attorneys, community
activists and other experts lead some sessions, and
students themselves lead others.
Students have been inspired by the likes of former
Army Chaplain James Yee, who recounted his
experience of being falsely accused of treason and
imprisoned while counseling Muslim prisoners in
Guantánamo; and by Claire Lueneburg and Sara
Eccleston, former editors of The Kodak newspaper
at Everett High School, who challenged their school
district’s censorship of the newspaper.
Educating Youth
About Their Rights
Student talks about rights at the Student Conference
on Civil Liberties.
5. Passing the Torch 3
Taking Civil Liberties
into the Classroom
We don’t just wait for young people to come
to us. The ACLU-WA actively reaches out
to students and their teachers at schools,
providing expert speakers, instructional
materials, curriculum ideas and teacher
education seminars.
The ACLU sends 30 to 40 speakers a year to
middle schools, high schools, colleges and
student clubs throughout the state. Topics
range from student free speech and locker
searches to the PATRIOT Act and the
death penalty. Speakers engage in dialogue
and encourage young people to think for
themselves.
It ain’t enough to preach conscious lyrics
if you can’t live it
ain’t sufficient to dedicate one song to the
women’s movement
because at the end of the day
if you can’t live what you say
then your presence is useless
let’s get back to the basics of human interaction
figure out what you’re lacking
that balance that is so vital to survival
if acting like a man is being destructive
then we need to rework the language
manipulate its usage
instead of being trapped in our tracks
repulsed and abusive
just because we made a wrong turn
doesn’t mean we can’t do this.
From Conquistador Rhetoric by
Hollis Wear and Madeleine Clifford
Madeleine Clifford in performance at the 2007 Student
Conference on Civil Liberties. Photo by Paul Sanders
ACLU student events encourage dialogue.
6. 4 Passing the Torch
Resources for Teachers
The ACLU offers daylong, accredited workshops
for educators on teaching about the Bill of Rights.
These seminars focus on the latest challenges to
civil liberties – government surveillance, ethnic
profiling, Internet censorship and more. We also
collaborate with others to reach teachers. For
example, the Museum of History and Industry
has invited the ACLU to speak to teachers about
freedom of speech and the WTO protests. And
Seattle Arts and Lectures has distributed our
resources to educators participating in theTeachers
as Scholars professional development program.
Dozens of educators get ideas for classroom
discussions by subscribing to our e-mail Teachers
Network, which alerts teachers to “hot” civil liberties
issues and informs them of ACLU publications and
online resources.
Hands-on Learning
If the defense of freedom were a trade, then
our intern and volunteer programs would be
the apprenticeship, offering young people the
opportunity to learn about advocacy, lobbying
and litigation through personal experience. ACLU
interns and volunteers work side-by-side with our
staff, and see up close the practical efforts that
go into defending freedom. They gain priceless
experience while making valuable contributions to
all phases of our work.
Voting Rights Restoration Project volunteers learn about the legal system as they help individuals
regain a cherished right.
7. Passing the Torch 5
In the summer, we welcome a dozen or more
interns to our Seattle office. Interns help the
ACLU with outreach events, conferences,
policy research, office administration, design,
writing and production of print and online
materials. Some take civil liberties to the
streets, distributing flyers and collecting petition
signatures at gathering places and rallies.
Others work on the front lines of our legal
department as intake counselors, responding to
calls, e-mails and letters about possible violations
of civil liberties. Volunteers with the Voting
Rights Restoration Project help people navigate
the complicated process of regaining their right
to vote after completing a prison sentence.
The John Caughlan Summer Fellowship,
our only paid internship, gives law students
invaluable experience by working directly with
ACLU attorneys on important litigation. It was
established by a generous gift from two Seattle
attorneys and is designed to motivate aspiring
lawyers to pursue careers in civil liberties and
civil rights. The attorneys named the fellowship
after their friend and mentor, John Caughlan,
one ofWashington’s most dedicated civil liberties
lawyers. During a long and productive career, he
never allowed difficult issues or circumstances to
prevent him from following his principles.
“I will never forget my
experiences here. I
feel that I come away
from this position with a
greater understanding
of many things—the
judicial system
(unjust), free speech (suppressed), the
Drug War (worthless), the separation
of Church and State (barely hanging in
there), Washington jails and prisons
(yikes! Where to start with that one…),
what REALLY constitutes a “Civil Liberties
Violation” (no sir…the fact that your wife
stole your car and ran away with her tattoo
artist is NOT a civil liberties violation),
Voting Rights (for those who can pay), the
“No Fly List” (you can never have your
name completely removed…ever).”
–Kaiulani Swan, student intern, 2006
“I know without a doubt that I want to do
work one day which will be meaningful
and socially responsible. . . For now I can
say that you have, with great generosity
of spirit, inspired me to think at a higher
plane and to find that even in darkness it is
possible to aspire to bigger things.”
–Ameya Krishnan, 2006 intern with the
ACLU-WA Drug Policy Reform Project
ACLU INTERNS
8. 6 Passing the Torch
Student Clubs
The ACLU-WA sponsors student
clubs to help channel the natural
desire of youth to make a difference
in the world. These student-led clubs
provide an opportunity for activism,
leadership development, and civil
liberties education, guided and
supported by the ACLU. The clubs
hold debates and film screenings
on current topics and mobilize
students to safeguard civil liberties.
An annual activist conference offers
in-depth training on advocacy and
organizing. In the fall of 2007, there
were 10 clubs in universities and
high schools in the state.
Promoting Activism
CREATING Dialogue
The clubs often help to shape the
conversation about civil liberties on their
campuses. For example, in 2006, a group
called the Center for Bio-Ethical Reform
set up an antiabortion demonstration at the
Western Washington University campus. The
group displayed photos of aborted fetuses,
and of lynching and holocaust victims. Many
students reacted strongly to the group’s
in-your-face tactics, and soon there was
talk of banning its images from campus.
But members of the ACLU-WA’s student
club intervened, organizing a “speech-in”
that brought together the demonstration’s
sponsor with other student groups
opposed to its tactics. Students agreed that
censorship was not in the best interest of the
university community, and talk of restricting
the group was dropped.
Student club members at Western Washington University stage a
“speech-in” to support abortion rights.
9. Passing the Torch 7
“I wanted to thank you and the ACLU for
the wonderful experience I had this last
year. First, the conference at San Francisco
was eye-opening. It made me an activist.
Second, being able to possess a leadership
role has been challenging and rewarding.
Challenging in that organizing events and
creating visibility is an incredibly difficult
task. Rewarding in that speaking to
individuals, changing minds, and meeting
community leaders . . .has taught me how
and why to instigate social change.”
–Former leader of ACLU-WA UW
Student Club
The clubs bring notable civil liberties advocates
to campus to spread awareness.
When the Whitman College club brought to
campus Juan Melendez, a former Florida death
row inmate who was exonerated, students
gained a better understanding of the opposition
to executions at the nearby Walla Walla State
Penitentiary.
The Gonzaga University Law School club raised
important concerns about free speech and
fairness since 9/11 when it co-sponsored a speech
by David Nevin, an ACLU of Idaho cooperating
attorney who successfully defended a graduate
student wrongfully accused of aiding terrorists.
Several ACLU clubs promoted understanding
of equal treatment for same-sex relationships by
featuring ACLU plaintiffs who challenged the
state’s ban on marriage for same-sex couples.
In one especially ambitious project, ACLU
student club members at Garfield High School
in Seattle went into 20 classrooms to lead
discussions about civil liberties since 9/11. They
presented scenarios based on real-life situations
the ACLU has encountered, posed thought-
provoking questions, and generated many
stimulating discussions.
Scholarships and Awards
Studentactivistsneedencouragementandsupport
to help them pursue their dreams. Each year, the
national ACLU awards college scholarships of
$5,000 each to high school seniors across the
Sara Eccleston, ACLU Youth Activist Award winner.
Photo by Paul Sanders
10. 8 Passing the Torch
Dinorah Flores,
ACLU Scholarship Winner
When Dinorah “Dino” Flores-Perez
overheard students at her school joking
about using A-bombs to get Mexicans to
“go running back to where they belong,”
she didn’t laugh. She didn’t respond in kind
either. She got organized.
The daughter of Salvadoran and Mexican
parents who immigrated to the United
States, she helped found a group dedicated
to ensuring that The Center School in Seattle
is supportive of all students regardless of
race. She initiated dialogue between faculty,
staff and students on the experience of being
a student of color.
Dino also raised concerns about racial
disparities in Washington’s standardized
testing system, which fails a high proportion
of low-income students and students of
color. She collected signatures, wrote an
editorial, spoke before the Seattle School
Board and masterminded an interactive
“Haunted High” performance to spread
awareness about the disparity.
Dino Flores-Perez is a natural leader
who is unwilling to back down in the face
of discrimination. She represents a new
generation of students who are working to
promote civil liberties.
country who have shown exceptional commitment
to civil liberties and civil rights through activism.
Youth from Washington state are consistently
among the winners. Our recipients have battled
censorship, created gay-straight alliances and raised
awareness of prejudice and inequality among fellow
students.
The ACLU-WA Board of Directors also recognizes
young civil libertarians with its annual Youth
Activist Award, presented at the Bill of Rights
Celebration Dinner, for activism to promote civil
liberties in Washington state. Winners have spoken
out on discrimination against Muslim students,
fought to maintain the editorial independence of
their student newspaper, and organized students to
protect controversial speech on campus.
11. Passing the Torch 9
Event Sponsorships
To reach young people, the ACLU-WA gets
involved in community events and celebrations
that attract them. We cosponsor the Capitol
Hill Block Party rock festival, host booths at the
University District and Fremont fairs in Seattle,
and participate in annual Pride events in cities
across the state. We provide pamphlets, buttons,
stickers and fun activities, such as our “Game of
Civil Liberties,” in which individuals get prizes for
answering questions about famous cases.
Web Sites
As children of the Information Age, today’s young
people have grown up with the Internet as the
essential means for finding out about the world.
The ACLU has responded by staking out a dynamic
presence on the Web and utilizing an array of high-
tech tools to engage people online.
The ACLU-WA’s Web site, www.aclu-wa.org,
features a section highlighting student and youth
rights, with cases and initiatives focused on civil
liberties and young people. We blog on technology
and liberty, and use online surveys to collect
information and stories to explain the personal
impact of our work. We provide information
about rallies and other opportunities for activism
sponsored by the ACLU. Items on our Web site
can easily be added to social networking sites such
as Facebook, Digg or Newsvine.
Reaching into
the Community
An ACLU-WA intern marches in the Seattle Pride
parade.
12. 10 Passing the Torch
The national ACLU Web site for young people
(www.aclu.org/StandUp) provides news and
information, comic books, music and podcasts,
and opportunities for youth to enter contests for
producingvideosandpublicserviceannouncements.
Several blogs target young audiences, such as the
findhabeas.com site, which spreads news about the
campaign to restore habeas corpus and repeal the
Military Commissions Act.
Television and Videos
In collaboration with Robert Greenwald of Brave
New Films, the national ACLU has produced a
groundbreaking television series, “The Freedom
Files.” Each half-hour episode highlights the
personal stories of everyday people affected by
restrictions on liberty. The fast-paced documentary
is filled with vivid imagery and cutting-edge music
to appeal to youthful audiences. The series aired
initially on a satellite network, and was soon picked
up by Court TV. The second year’s series has been
picked up by the Public Broadcasting System.
After the initialTV broadcast, the ACLU distributes
the DVDs for use by student clubs and other
interested groups. The timely subjects and personal
stories lead to valuable discussions. Young people
have been riveted by the case of an Oklahoma
student who challenged her school’s mandatory
drug testing policy all the way to the U.S. Supreme
Court. Another story told the case of a Pennsylvania
teenager whose house was raided by a SWAT team
and who was expelled from school after the lyrics
in one of his rap songs were wrongly labeled a
terrorist threat.
The second season explores sex education, the
school-to-prison pipeline, same-sex parenting and
more.
13. Passing the Torch 11
Helping Youth to Help
Themselves
Knowledge is power, and information is the first
step to effective action. Information can spur young
people to stand up for their rights and those of
others.
With that in mind, the
ACLU-WA produces a
variety of publications
that explain civil liberties
to youth. Several address
rights in the schoolhouse,
as school is a major part of
the lives of young people.
Our booklet “Know Your
Rights – A Guide for
Public School Students in Washington” is popular
with both students and administrators. It covers
the whole range of students’ rights in schools –
free speech, due process and discrimination – and
should be required reading for any student who
pushes the boundaries or challenges the status
quo.
Other “know your rights” guides deal with gender
equity in sports, truancy and how to work with
school boards. Our wallet-sized cards advise
people of their rights when confronted by police,
and brochures offer students advice on how to set
up gay-straight alliances at schools and the rules
involving extracurricular clubs. Our materials are
available on our Web site and in print, and are
available in Spanish.
Advocating for
the Rights of Youth
Students recount how they stood up for their rights.
Photo by Paul Sanders
14. 12 Passing the Torch
Advocating for Youth
When the ACLU goes to bat for young people, we
not only protect their rights but also demonstrate
to them the effectiveness of advocacy. We work with
youth and their parents to gather information, assess
strategies and push for remedies. Experiencing the
power of advocacy can give youth and parents the
tools and confidence to pursue their own defense
of civil liberties.
For example, the ACLU helped a parent defend
his son’s rights when Kamiakin High School in
Kennewick disciplined him for failing to participate
in the Pledge of Allegiance exercise in his classroom.
School officials cited a school district policy that
wrongfully required all students to stand for the
flag salute. After the father directed school officials
to information about student rights on the ACLU
Web site, the administration acknowledged its error
and rescinded the discipline.
The ACLU spoke up when the city of Yakima
considered a new juvenile curfew ordinance
that would have restricted the rights of young
people to be in public during certain hours. The
ordinance would have treated youth as criminals
simply for not being home at night. After our
attorneys explained why the Washington courts
have consistently overturned juvenile curfews, the
Yakima City Council removed the ordinance from
consideration.
When the ACLU learned that Grand Coulee Dam
School District’s in-house police officer routinely
interrogated Native American students without
notifying parents and pressured kids to confess, we
sent a community organizer to the region. We also
learned that Native American students were sent
home from school for wearing “Native Pride” gear
because it looked “gang-related.”
“I just wanted to thank the ACLU of
Washington. On the first day of my 2nd
semester of English, my English teacher
. . . passed out a packet entitled “The
Rights of Public School Students in
Washington State.” I used this packet as
proof for my math teacher that I was not
required to stand for the flag salute. I now
refer to it every time I feel as if my rights
as a student have been violated.”
–Colten Sullivent, a student at Long High
School in Longview
ACLU staff helps high school students learn about
their rights.
15. Passing the Torch 13
ACLU Helps Students
Establish Gay-Straight
Alliance Club
All Walter Schlect and his friends wanted
was to start a new student club to address
prejudice on campus. But the Associated
Student Body at West Valley High School in
eastern Washington would not consider their
application. Instead, the student government
forwarded the application to school, who
insisted that the group apply directly to the
school board.
Why all the fuss? Schlect wanted to form
a Gay-Straight Alliance club. Students at
many other schools in Washington had
done the same, but administrators at his
school in Spokane felt a GSA could be too
controversial for their community.
Schlect sought help from the ACLU.
Staff Attorney Aaron Caplan sent the
principal a letter detailing the students’
legal rights to form a club and meet on
campus. Caplan explained that federal law
requires secondary schools to give all non-
curriculum student clubs – clubs that aren’t
part of a class – equal access to school
facilities, regardless of the content of the
speech in their meetings. Soon afterwards,
school administrators approved Schlect’s
application.
Schlect, now a student at Washington
State University, said the West Valley High
School GSA eventually settled into being
another small student club among many.
“GSA became pretty normal at the school.
Everybody accepted it because it’s just
there,” Schlect said.
Student activists
express themselves
while they march.
16. 14 Passing the Torch
Our community organizer collected data, connected
withparentsandmetwithschoolofficials.Analyzing
school district data, the ACLU found that Native
Americans were disciplined out of proportion to
their numbers, and were referred to juvenile court
for truancy far more often than white students for
similar conduct.
Working with the ColvilleTribe, we obtained policy
changes from the school board. Administrators are
now required to call parents before their children
can be questioned by police at school, and the
district has invested in training and professional
development opportunities for staff.
Going to Court for Youth
The ACLU-WA has won many court victories and
set important precedents in support of the basic
rights of young people. These victories demonstrate
that a willingness to take a stand and be persistent
can lead to lasting changes that make a difference
in their communities.
Unreasonable Searches
Strip searches are intrusive and humiliating, which
is why state law prohibits routine strip searches of
individuals booked into detention facilities. Jail
officials may conduct them only when a person
engages in violence or conceals contraband.
But a guard at the Okanogan County juvenile
detention facility strip-searched a 15-year-old
girl who was arrested simply for failing to appear
at a truancy hearing. Authorities had no reason
to believe that she was concealing weapons or
contraband. The search was conducted in a room
with a large window and an open door, making it
possible for other juveniles and detention staff to
see the search.
Rose Spidell, ACLU-WA education equity attorney,
speaks at a conference. Photo by Paul Sanders
17. Passing the Torch 15
The ACLU sued the facility on her behalf, and
Okanogan County settled the case by paying
$35,000 for the violation of rights and by changing
its strip search policy.
Random Urine Testing of Students
Students should not be treated as suspects when
there is no reason to think they have done anything
wrong. The ACLU is challenging policies of two
school districts –Wahkiakum and Cle Elum-Roslyn
– that require students to be randomly tested for
drugs in order to participate in extracurricular
activities.
In both suits, the ACLU contends that suspicionless
testing violates the “privacy clause” of the
Washington Constitution, which provides that
“No person shall be disturbed in his private affairs,
or his home invaded, without authority of law.”
“I object to the urine-testing policy as an
unwarranted invasion of privacy. I want school to
teach our children to think critically, not to police
them,” said Hans York, a deputy sheriff and plaintiff
in the Wahkiakum suit.
Studies have found that suspicionless student
drug testing does not deter student drug use. The
first large-scale study, published by researchers at
the University of Michigan in 2003, found no
difference in rates of drug use between schools
that have drug testing programs and those that
do not.
Students learn
how to protect
their rights.
Photo by Paul Sanders
18. 16 Passing the Torch
In another district – Nine Mile Falls in eastern
Washington – the ACLU challenged the use of
dogs to search students, their personal lockers
and property without reasonable cause or without
obtaining a court warrant. Officials would place a
school in “lockdown,” and dogs would be taken
around the school, sniffing students’ belongings
for contraband. The searches were intrusive,
humiliating, and unproductive, with dogs reacting
incorrectly 85 percent of the time.
The ACLU and Spokane’s Center for Justice
reminded the school district of the landmark ACLU
case, in which the state Supreme Court ruled in
1985 that public schools may not search a student
without individualized suspicion that he or she is
breaking a law or school rule. With the two legal
groups poised to file suit on behalf of a student
and her parent, Nine Miles Falls decided to stop
the dog searches.
This report is just a sampling of the
ACLU’s activities with and for young people.
We continue to expand and extend our efforts
to make civil liberties come alive for youth.
We welcome your support for this work to pass
on a legacy of freedom to new generations.
Western Washington University students at ACLU
Lobby Day in Olympia.
19.
20. AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION OF WASHINGTON FOUNDATION
705 2ND AVENUE, 3RD FL., SEATTLE, WA 98104 WWW.ACLU–WA.ORG
4/2008
