vol. 63, no. 5

Wotume LXIill

n August 11, the ACLU-NC submit-

QO: an amicus brief to the Ninth

Circuit Court of Appeals in support

of the appeal of a ruling that permits the

use of pepper spray against nonviolent

demonstrators engaged in civil disobedi-

ence. The brief argues that the case,

Humboldt, should be presented to a jury.

"The ACLU believes that the use of pep-

" per spray as a kind of chemical cattle prod

on nonviolent demonstrators resisting

arrest constitutes excessive force and vio-

lates the Constitution,' said ACLU-NC staff

attorney Margaret Crosby. "Certainly, a

jury should be afforded an opportunity to

evaluate this new experimental use of a

chemical weapon."

When the case was originally heard in

1997 the jury hung, and in an unusual judi-

cial action, U.S. District Court Judge

Vaughn Walker did not order a new jury tri-

al. Instead he ruled that application of

pepper spray to nonviolent protestors

engaged in civil disobedience constituted

reasonable force as a matter of law. The

ACLU argues that, in justifying the denial

of a jury trial, the district court and

authority to use pain compliance on

demonstrators engaged in civil disobedi-

ence, and understated the harmful impact

of pepper spray.

BY MarIA ARCHULETA

ous lead, San Francisco and

Sacramento are considering vehicle

seizure ordinances that would authorize

the seizure, forfeiture and sale of cars

believed to have been used to solicit prosti-

tution or to acquire, or attempt to acquire,

drugs. Because neither ordinance would

require a person to actually be convicted of

a crime before valuable personal property

is irretrievably lost, ACLU-NC Managing

: Press the City of Oakland's dubi-

proposed laws in letters and testimony.

"The ACLU recognizes that prostitution

communities and are matters of legitimate

government concern," testified Schlosser at

the San Francisco Board of Supervisors

Housing and Social Policy Committee on

August 3. "However we urge San Francisco

not to establish a harsh and overbroad local

forfeiture operation that places at risk basic

individual and property rights."

Under San Francisco's proposed

Vehicle Seizure Ordinance-introduced by

Mayor Willie Brown and Supervisor Amos

Brown-a vehicle can be seized and sold

without anyone being convicted, or even

arrested, for the underlying criminal

offense. Even an acquittal of the criminal

Headwaters Forest Defense v. County of

Humboldt overstated the constitutional |

Attorney Alan Schlosser has fought these .

and drug traffic adversely impacts local -

NEWSPAPER OF THE AMERICAN Civil LIBERTIES UNION OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

aclu news.

SEPTEMBER-OcTOBER 1999

On three separate occasions, as a novel

and dangerous experiment in facilitating

the removal of demonstrators who had

locked themselves together, sheriffs

|

is a benign organic substance that causes

only transient discomfort," Crosby noted.

"In fact, pepper spray ingredients,

alone and in combination with solvents

"Pepper spray is a kind of chemical

cattle prod on nonviolent

demonstrators resisting arrest..."

directed pepper spray at close range, or

near the protestors' eyes-sometimes

directly on the eyelids. The Humboldt

Sheriff said, "what we have done here' with

pepper spray "is new'-never before used

in Humboldt County, in the state of

California or in the nation.

The demonstrators sued the County

and its officers in United States District

Court, charging that the sheriffs' use of a

chemical weapon to inflict pain in the eyes,

face, throat, and lungs was an unconstitu-

tional response to civil disobedience.

The ACLU-NC brief summarizes empir-

ical, scientific and toxicological research

on pepper spray. "Scientific literature

refutes the repeated depiction, by the trial

judge and by Humboldt, that pepper spray

charge would not result in the return of

- the vehicle.

Schlosser said, "The basic presumption

of our justice system-innocent until

proven guilty-is violated by the ordinance.

Vehicles can be seized without any prior

judicial hearing based on something more

than a hunch but far less than what is nec-

essary to prove guilt in a criminal court."

The unfairness is even more extreme

in the City of Sacramento's proposed ordi-

nance: a vehicle can be seized even if the

owner is not present at the time of its sus-

pected use in criminal activity. In an

August letter to Sacramento Mayor Joe

Serna and to the City Council members,

Schlosser wrote, "Loaning your car to your

teenager or your spouse or a friend would

be sufficient grounds to be subjected to

government confiscation and loss of title if

it is used for illegal purposes."

In such circumstances, once the vehi-

cle is seized the innocent owner has the

burden of fighting the system to regain his

or her property. No public defender will

represent indigent persons in civil forfei-

ture proceedings, ensuring that the ordi-

nance would unfairly effect low-income

persons. The unfairness is aggravated by

_the provision that owners have only ten

days to file a claim before forever losing the

right to attempt to regain their property.

that create the weapon, have a variety of

physiological effects. Courts have recog-

nized that pepper spray may be a danger-

ous chemical weapon, resulting in

liability to government or private parties,

or incarceration to criminal defendants,"

Crosby argued.

The ACLU brief also noted that the

Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled ear-

lier this year, in the context of senten-

cing guidelines for criminal defendants,

that pepper spray may constitute a dan-

gerous weapon. Federal sentencing

guidelines define a dangerous weapon as

"capable of inflicting death or serious

bodily injury," causing "extreme physical

pain or the protracted impairment of a

function of a bodily member, organ, or

ACLU Fights Vehicle Forfeiture

Ordinances

In his letter to the Sacramento City

Council, Schlosser pointed out that the

ordinance would be inconsistent with state

Non-Profit

Organization

US Postage

PAID

Permit No. 4424

San Francisco, CA

No. 5S

ACLU Exposes Danger of Pepper Spray

Against Redwoods Demonstrators

mental faculty; requiring medical inter-

ventions such as surgery, hospitalization

or physical rehabilitation."

The ACLU argues that the use of pepper

spray on environmental demonstrators

requires a jury evaluation under estab-

lished constitutional standards. The single

most important consideration in assessing

the reasonableness of the use of force is

whether the suspect poses an immediate

threat to the safety of the officers or others.

Crosby noted, "The Humboldt authorities

arrested peaceful demonstrators, seated,

linked and locked into a metal device. They

were dramatizing their commitment to pro-

tecting old-growth redwood trees. They

were not menacing anyone."

Pepper spray weapons-both their

active ingredients and their chemical sol-

vents and propellants-may have damaging

short- and long-term effects on a number of

body systems and functions. These

weapons are particularly dangerous for peo-

ple with compromised health status and for

young people. Several of the redwoods

demonstrators were minors.

"Pepper spray's effects on the respirato-

ry, ophthalmologic, and neurologic systems

may be severe. Studies also show that pep-

per spray also may produce carcinogenic

effects and disrupt the body's temperature

regulation system," Crosby said.

The ACLU brief summarizes animal

studies, research and case studies involving

humans. The studies report incidents of

correctional officers suffering physical

injuries during training exercises with pep-

per spray, emergency room reports of eye

injuries from pepper spray, children hospi-

talized after accidental exposure to pepper

spray, spice workers suffering respiratory

ailments from long-term exposure to pep-

per spray's active ingredients, and cancer

rates in countries with high consumption of

Continued on page 5 | hot peppers. Ml

Students Step into the Journey of

"Homelessness: Unplugged"

In August, twenty high school students from the Howard A. Friedman First

Amendment Education Project went on a 9-day exploration of youth homelessness in

the Bay Area and Los Angeles, visiting drop-in centers, group homes, needle

exchanges and listening to the experiences of homeless teenagers. Read about their

journey on pages 4-8.

See Inside: Key aT TKS on the Governor's Desk-What You Can Do... pages 6 and 8

Racial Insults at the Workplace

Free Speech or Illegal Harassment?

BY MARGARET CROSBY

ACLU-NC Starr ATTORNEY

n August 2, the California Supreme

QO Court, in the case of Aguilar v. Avis

Rent-a-Car System, Inc. upheld an

injunction barring an Avis manager from

continuing to call his Latino workers by

such names as "motherfuckers" and "wet-

backs." The ACLU of Northern California

supported the Latino employees' effort to

secure a workplace environment free of

racial harassment. The Supreme Court's

decision advances equality without threat-

ening freedom of expression.

A jury had found Avis liable for race

discrimination based on its supervisor's

repeatedly hurling racist epithets at his

Latino workers. The jury awarded money

damages for this proven race discrimina-

tion. Avis did not challenge the damage

award, thereby conceding that the speech

was not constitutionally protected. The

only question Avis presented on appeal was

whether the court could restrain the

views. The government may not ban expres-

sion simply because most people find it

offensive or even outrageous. Flag burning,

salacious parodies, political messages with

The workplace is not Hyde Park.

Speech that is protected on the

street corner may not be protected

in the workplace

supervisor from continuing his illegal

harassment or whether the Latino workers

were relegated to filing a series of repeti-

tive damage suits.

On a soapbox, on a public street, an indi-

vidual may express racially demeaning

Airline to Provide |

Domestic Partner Benefits

CLU leaders applauded United

Airlines for becoming the first U.S. -

carrier to provide comprehensive

fringe benefits to the domestic partner of

its lesbian and gay employees nationwide.

The July 30 announcement "marked a

huge step towards equality in the work-

force," said ACLU-NC staff attorney

Robert Kim. :

"Social recognition of lesbian and gay

couples has largely been the result of

efforts to persuade local governments and

major businesses to include them in fringe

benefit plans," noted Kim. "Until United's

decision, most of the progress had come

from the high-tech, entertainment, and

finance industries. This is a major addition

to the growing list of businesses that treat

lesbians and gay men fairly."

With United's decision to provide these

benefits, transportation becomes the

fourth major industry to recognize gay and

lesbian relationships.

"United is the first major U.S. carrier to

fully recognize domestic partners," said

Matthew Coles, Director of the National

ACLU Lesbian and Gay Rights Project.

"Since it is the largest airline in the world,

its domestic competitors have already fol-

lowed suit."

Only few days after United's announce-

ment, American Airlines, the second

largest airline in the world, said that it

would also offer domestic partner benefits

to its lesbian and gay employees.

These changes in policy come after the

City of San Francisco passed the contro-

versial Equal Benefits Partners Ordinance

in 1996, which requires companies that the

City does business with to provide the

same benefits to unmarried domestic part-

ners that they provide to married couples.

Challenging their obligation to follow

the ordinance, the American Transport

Association filed suit in federal court

against the City of San Francisco on behalf

of major twenty six major airlines, includ-

ing United. The ACLU, along with Lambda

. Legal Defense and Education Fund and

the National Center for Lesbian Rights,

filed a friend-of-the-court brief in defense

of San Francisco's ordinance. Coles, Kim,

and former ACLU-NC staff attorney Kelli

Evans represented the ACLU.

In April, 1998 U.S. District Court Judge

Claudia Wilken upheld the ordinance and

ordered United to provide travel privi-

leges, bereavement leave and medical

leave to both same-sex and opposite-sex

domestic partnerships.

Despite United's ground-breaking

move for lesbian and gay rights, the Air

Transport Association is still proceeding

with its appeal on Wilken's ruling. Hi

n July, the ACLU filed a friend-of-the-

| court brief in ATA v. San Francisco in

to information submitted to the court as

part of the ongoing litigation. At the ini-

tial stage of the airline industry lawsuit

`seeking to avoid compliance with the

city's domestic partnership ordinance,

the parties had agreed that documents

containing highly sensitive trade secrets

or business information could be sealed

and removed from public scrutiny.

However, according to staff attorney

Robert Kim, the airlines were improperly

sealing information that was outside the

scope of the agreement.

"The public has a First Amendment

right of access to information filed in a civ-

il case," Kim said. "Litigation should not be

shrouded in secrecy. The right to know

support of the public's right of access .

ACLU Shek. Info from United

|

would surface, then surface they should."

what's going on in the courts is essential as

a check on the judicial system. Materials

that are filed with the court should not be

hidden from view merely because they may

prove embarrassing to the airlines.

"This is especially important in a civil

rights case," Kim added. "If potential evi-

dence of bigotry or unsavory comments

"In addition, where the government is

a party to the litigation involving a matter

of significant public interest, the public is

especially entitled to know as much about

the details of the lawsuit as possible."

The San Francisco Examiner also

intervened in the lawsuit, asserting its

right to print information about the case

to the public. Kim expects that the air-

lines will agree to unseal most of the doc-

uments in dispute.

ACLU News = Seprenser-OcToseR 1999 = Pace 2

four letter words, are all protected against

government censorship despite their strong

emotive impact. These are important con-

stitutional principles. The ACLU steadfast-

ly defends the core right in a free society to

speak out-including the right to proclaim

racial superiority.

But the context of speech is also

important. The workplace is not Hyde

Park. Speech that is protected on the

street corner may not be protected in the

workplace. The Supreme Court has recog-

nized that verbal harassment along pro-

tected lines, racial or sexual, may

constitute an act of employment discrimi-

nation. Employees have the right to work

in an environment free from discriminato-

ry intimidation, ridicule and insult. While

the Avis supervisor has the right to use the

language of prejudice in the public square,

he does not have a right to humiliate and

harass the Latino workers he supervises.

As any employee knows, the realities of

the workplace have an inevitable impact

on the application of the First Amendment

to speech on the job. It is impossible, as a

practical matter, for the victims of racial

harassment in the workplace simply to

walk away or shut their eyes when their

own boss harasses them on the job.

An employer's speech to subordinates

has a coercive character, because of the

power imbalance inherent in the relation-

ship. Speech that would be protected on

a street corner may not be protected

when the boss says it to the worker, who is

not in a position to dispute it, or even

walk away.

That problem is compounded, more-

over, by the fact that harassment is rarely

designed to elicit a response or, more to

the point, to precipitate a dialogue.

- Usually, the constitutional remedy for

provocative speech is more speech, not

enforced silence. Thus, if the Klan plans

to march down Main Street, its critics

must not petition to revoke the Klan's per-

mit, but stage a robust counter-demonstra-

tion in favor of equality.

The operating assumptions are very

different in a workplace where many

employees have little choice but "enforced

silence" when they are harassed on the job

by their own boss. The hierarchical rela-

tionship skews the robust exchange of

ideas. In the Avis case, for example, the

supervisor is insulated from the vigorous

response he might expect were he to hurl

racial slurs at passing strangers on a street

corner. As subordinates, his workers are

muzzled from responding as sharply as

they might wish to the racial slurs their

boss casts at them. This is not a fair

exchange in the marketplace of ideas.

Pervasive racist invective on the job is

therefore illegal. It is not constitutionally

protected expression. If it were, a court

could not award money damages for racial

harassment. A court may punish and

enjoin illegal verbal acts, like terrorist

threats, bribes or securities frauds.

Avis had its day in court. The jury

found that the supervisor's racist epithets

created a hostile working environment for

the Latino worker forced to endure them.

Avis did not challenge the damage award

based on that finding. An order requiring

Avis and its supervisor to cease its proven

illegal behavior is not a prior restraint. As

Chief Justice Ronald George concluded:

"Once a court has found that a specific pat-

tern of speech is unlawful, an injunctive

order prohibiting the repetition, perpetua-

tion, or continuation of that practice is not

a prohibited `prior restraint."

This decision does not make every

_ workplace a zone sanitized of any provoca-

tive speech. The antidiscrimination laws

do not prevent us from discussing racist

literature or sexy movies. The law forbids

only severe and pervasive behavior, which

creates the kind of hostile working envi-

ronment that most employers would and

should not condone.

Most companies would fire, or at least

discipline, a manager whose violation of

the antidiscrimination laws had resulted

in a substantial damage award. They

would not champion the supervisor's right

to continue creating a hostile working

environment. In most cases, an injunction

restraining racist invective should and

would not be necessary.

But where companies fail to protect

workers from race discrimination, courts

must act. The Constitution holds out a

promise of equality as well as expressive

freedom. The Constitution permits state

and federal governments to enact laws

securing the right of people all races to

equal treatment at work. Those laws nec-

essarily place some limits on the unre-

strained speech of bigots in the

workplace, particularly when they are in

positions of authority on the job. In the

Avis case, the Supreme Court, enforcing

California's law against race discrimina-

tion, accommodated fundamental princi-

ples of equality and expression.

Estes Honored with FrontLine Award

BY NANCY MAGIDSON

n July 14, in the spirit of Bastille Day |

liberation, more than 200 friends of |

the ACLU came together to celebrate

and-honor Dr. Milton Estes with the first "On

the FrontLine" award at the Ed Hardy San -

Francisco gallery. "The FrontLine award is

given to an individual who has done signifi-

cant and sustained work to protect and pre- |

serve the rights of lesbians, gay men,

bisexuals, transgender people, and people

with HIV and AIDS. We especially want to |

honor those who do this work in the larger _

advocacy context of protecting civil and con- -

stitutional rights for all people," explained |

ACLU-NC Executive Director.

Ehrlich said that the innovative event -

is one component of the Frontline

Tanya Neiman and honoree Milton Estes.

fundraising campaign which gives donors

an opportunity to evenly split their contri-

butions between the National ACLU

Lesbian and Gay Rights and HIV/AIDS

Projects and all the civil liberties work of

the ACLU-NC.

Nadine Strossen, president of the

National Board, made a surprise visit to

the Bay Area to honor Estes. Matt Coles,

director of the National ACLU Lesbian and

Gay Rights Project and HIV/AIDS Rights

Project also flew in from New York for the

event. "The ACLU is involved in more les-

bian and gay rights litigation and legisla-

tive work combined than any other single

organization in the country," Coles told the

crowd of ACLU supporters.

Tanya Neiman, Director of Volunteer

Legal Services for the San Francisco Bar

SUSANA MILLMAN

Association pre-

sented the hand-

crafted glass

sculpture award

to, "Dr Estes,

"Milton lives his

life on the front-

line every day;

activism perme-

ates all aspects

of his daily life,"

Neiman said.

On receiving

the award, Estes

asked the crowd

"to remember

that gay and les-

bian liberation

has not as yet

been realized, and that the struggles of les-

| bians and gay men are inextricably linked

with the civil liberties and liberation of all

_ people. " Always the organizer, Estes

encouraged supporters to get involved in

the campaign to defeat the Knight

Overcome."

Carol Vendrillo and Estes lead

SUSANA MILLMAN

crowd in singing "We Shall

San Francisco jails. In addition to his med-

ical work, Dr. Estes has dedicated substan-

| tial volunteer time to his work for the

| ACLU. He served four years as the first

| openly gay Chair of the Board of the ACLU-

Initiative, the anti-gay marriage measure, |

slated for the March 2000 ballot. To further

bring home the real reasons for gathering,

Estes invited his friend Carol Vendrillo to

lead the singing of "We Shall Overcome."

Estes has focussed his efforts on pro-

tecting the rights of those with HIV and

AIDS, working for freedom of speech and

reproductive freedom, and striving to

ensure racial justice. The first physician in

Marin to treat people with AIDS, Estes cur-

rently serves as the Medical Director for

the City of San Francisco's Forensic AIDS

Project, dividing his time between his

AIDS practice in Marin and providing com-

passionate care to those incarcerated in

NC and currently serves as a vice-president

of the national ACLU Board as well as the

Chair of the Board's Lesbian and Gay

Caucus.

"Because of his work and the way

Milton has chosen to live his life, he

became the obvious and unanimous choice

for the award," said Executive Director

Ehrlich.

Ehrlich also thanked Pacific Bell for

underwriting the evening with a generous

donation and Ed Hardy for inviting the

gathering into his beautiful antique gallery

| forthe event.

Nancy Magidson is the interum Major Gifts

- officer of the ACLU-NC.

SOSOS9HSHSHSHSHHHHHHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHHHHSHSHSHHSHSHSHSHSHHHHHHHHSHSHSHSHHSHSHSHHSHSHHHSHHSHHHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHSHHSHHSHEHHHHHSHHHKEHSHHSEHHSEHEHSHHSHSHEHSEHBHHSHSEHEHEHSHEHEHHEHEHEHHSSSESEEHE

Unlawfully Imprisoned

Asylum Seeker

uling that the Immigration and

Posts Service had been

unlawfully incarcerating Salvadoran

immigrant Miguel Rivera for over a year, on

. July 18, U.S. District Court Judge Thelton

Henderson ordered the San Francisco

Office of the INS to grant Rivera a hearing

to determine whether the asylum appli-

cant could be released while his immigra-

tion case was pending. Less than two

weeks later, Rivera was out of jail.

"Judge Henderson's decision is the first

ruling in the Northern District of California

to find that the INS is misinterpreting

immigration detention statutes," said for-

mer ACLU National Immigrants' Rights

Project attorney Chris Palamountain.

The ACLU filed a lawsuit for Rivera on

June 22, charging that INS officials and

Attorney General Janet Reno violated

Rivera's Fifth Amendment due process

rights and the Immigration and

Nationality Act (INA). Specifically, the

ACLU argued that the INS misread the

INA as mandating Rivera's detention

without giving him any opportunity to

demonstrate that his imprisonment

served no purpose because he is not a

danger to the community or a flight risk.

"The Immigration and Nationality Act

can not allow the government to strip peo-

ple of their basic right to a hearing before

being incarcerated, " said ACLU-NC man-

aging attorney Alan Schlosser.

The judge who heard Rivera's asylum

case carefully considered whether Rivera's

six month jail sentence in 1994 might dis-

qualify him from asylum and decided it did

- not, because of the highly favorable reports

of his probation officer and his regular par-

ticipation in Alcoholics Anonymous and an

anti-domestic violence program. But only

a few days after Rivera was granted asy-

lum, President Clinton signed into law the

Illegal Immigration Reform and

Immigration Responsibility Act. As a

result of the Act, the INS argued that

Rivera is an "aggravated felon" and ineligi-

ble for asylum.

Because a state court later vacated

Rivera's sentence, his conviction can no

longer be considered an "aggravated

felony. However, on April 3, 1998 the INS

ordered him to report for deportation-

three full years after his release from his

jail sentence. Rivera complied and was

incarcerated without a hearing at the

Tehama County jail on May 4, 1998, where

he was held until the ACLU obtained the

court ruling that his detention violated the

Immigration Act and the Constitution.

"This case proves, once again, that the

federal courts are crucial to stopping the

illegal practices of a federal agency with a

sad history of ignoring the law and violat-

ing constitutional rights," said Lucas

Guttentag, Director of the ACLU National

Immigrants' Rights Project.

Rivera is represented by Chris

Palamountain, Judy Rabinovitz and Lucas

Guttentag of the ACLU National

Immigrants' Rights Project, ACLU- NC

managing attorney Alan Schlosser, and

attorney Robert Lewis.

Annual Activist Conference

of the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California

SAVE THE DATE!

|9O99 BILL OF RIGHTS

DAY CELEBRATION

SUNDAY, DECEMBER

ir

HONORING WITH THE EARL WARREN CIVIL LIBERTIES AWARD

LAWRENCE FERLINGHETTI

SAN FRANCISCO'S POET LAUREATE HAS BEEN FIGHT- _

ING FOR FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION FOR HALF A CEN-

ARTE O ee

IN THE |950'S HE WAS PROSECUTED FOR

PUBLISHING ALLEN GINSBURG'S HOWL-- IN THE

| 990'S HE IS PART OF THE ACLU LAWSUIT AGAINST

CENSORSHIP IN CYBERSPACE. JOIN US IN HONORING

LAWRENCE FERLINGHETTI'S LIFE AND WORK.

ACLU News = SEPTEMBER-OcTOBER 1999 = Pace 3

For nine days in August, twenty high school students ranging in age from 15 to

18 went on a journey to explore the issue of youth homelessness. Sponsored

by the ACLU-NC Howard A. Friedman First Amendment Education Project, the

students traveled from San Francisco to Los Angeles, visiting youth drop-in

centers, group homes, needle exchange programs, clinics, merchant

associations, youth employment centers and the streets.

The students came from high schools throughout northern California - from

Martinez and Oakland to Santa Rosa and Vallejo. Throughout the year, they

will soeak about their experiences to other high school students and publish a

report "Through Our Eyes: Homelessness Unplugged."

Here, Shayna Gelender, a 17-year old senior from Castro Valley High School

and the editor-in-chief of her school newspaper, shares some her thoughts

on the journey.

ong time heroin addict,

Le grade education, HIV

positive, dirty, cold, hun-

gry, weary, no where to go, no

where to sleep, age 16. Who is he?

He is part of the rapidly grow-

ing generation of homeless

youth, street kids. On our

Homelessness Unplugged `99 trip

we learned where he may have

come from, why he stays on the

streets, what services are avail-

able to him, and what can-be

done to prevent others like him

from becoming homeless.

The Coalition on Homeless-

ness, a political advocacy orga-

nization in San Francisco,

taught us about the trend of sys-

tematic criminalization of

homeless people. Cities pass

laws making it illegal to hold

signs on median strips or to sit

on the sidewalks. These laws

Kathleen Flanagan, Saba Moeel, and Sanam Jorjani at Dome Village, an innov-

ative housing community for homeless people in Los Angeles.

out homes.

ACLU News = eee D2 ie V4 ae

| pass because there is a climate of |

_ vengeance and hatred against those with- |

a break fr prep G

Memorial Church in San Francisco.

Police are often instructed to "clean up

the streets," which translates into unlawful

action taken against homeless people to

remove them from public view. Police issue

tickets to homeless folks for allegedly

breaking laws regarding encampment or

sleeping in the park. Yet it is not illegal to

sleep in the park during the day. Simple

tickets grow into warrants because home-

less people often have trouble keeping

court dates and can't pay fines.

In Hollywood, we learned that mer-

chants hire private security called the

Green Shirts, solely to harass homeless peo-

ple. In reality, these guards have no more

legal rights than any other citizen. But

most people, homeless or otherwise, espe-

cially youth, do not know their rights. We

seek to educate our peers on these issues.

There's a stigma attached to homeless

youth: the prevailing wisdom is that

they're all irresponsible, runaway delin-

quents, out to have a party and get high,

and that we should either pity or walk all

~ over them. These are the myths.

What is true is that most all of them are

running. Usually they are either running

from poisonous homes or from a system

that's repeatedly failed them. What they

are running from in the home may be so

horrific - sexual, emotional, physical and

mental abuse, or neglect - that it's safer

for them on the dangerous streets.

Many youth from across America seek

refuge in San Francisco and Los Angeles.

Not because of the so-called "magnet theo-

ry' that politicians would have us believe,

that it's so "easy" to be homeless in these

cities. Though the services provided here

are often better than most other cities

around the country, youth come to L.A. or

San: Francisco for reasons as varied as the

individuals. Many youth flee to the Castro

and the Haight seeking escape from fami-

lies and communities who have made them

outcasts for being gay, lesbian, bisexual,

Nancy OTTO

transgender, or questioning. A dispropor-

tionate number of street kids are GLBTQ.

Many homeless youth would like to go

home but can't find a pathway through

their pride and shame to make it back. We

visited many programs in the Bay Area and

Los Angeles that address the needs of

homeless youth .

The Haight-Ashbury Youth Outreach

Team provides a drop-in site, clinical refer-

rals, counseling, street outreach, and other

services. They offer assistance to youth with-

out judgment or discrimination. Here, youth

can be themselves and receive the care they

need. My Friend's Place in LA and the

Berkeley Chaplaincy are two other drop-in

sites that provide outreach, educational

opportunities, hygiene supplies, referrals to

shelters, food, trusted adults, and a number

of other services. Drop-in programs give

homeless youth a place to go during the day

where they can receive necessary services.

Youth Industries in San Francisco

takes another approach to assisting home-

less youth. Here, youth are trained with

marketable skills for self-sufficiency and

are hired to work in one of the program's

businesses, such as Einstein's Cafe, Pedal

Revolution, or thrift stores.

Substance abuse, HIV, and ae

are major problems in the homeless com-

munity. We learned that drug addiction |

knows no class borders. Needle exchange

programs seek to provide ways in which

users can be safer. Needle exchanges pro-

- vide clean needles, safety supplies for

users, condoms, and oftentimes therapy,

HIV testing, food, clothing and other ser-

vices. In San Francisco we visited Horizons

Unlimited, Clean Needles Now, and the

San Francisco AIDS Foundation exchange

site for women.

For the most part, needle exchanges

are illegal but ignored, yet clients are often

harassed by police upon exiting a site. One

of the sites we visited is legal because it

Vehicle Forfeiture...

Continued from page |

and federal law, which explicitly state

that the vehicles of innocent owners used

for illegal purposes without their knowl-

edge or consent cannot be forfeited.

Besides being illegal and unfair,

Schlosser charges that both the San

Francisco and Sacramento ordinances

would implement a "cash bounty system"

of law enforcement, because the seizure |

and subsequent sale of vehicles directly

generates revenue for the government,

half of it slotted for local authorities.

"There is an inherent conflict of interest

built into the exercise of prosecutorial

applies for "Public Emergency' status

every two weeks.

Our journey took us to many facilities

that provide assistance to homeless peo-

ple: Harrison House, BOSS Youth Shelter,

Huckleberry House, Marion House,

AMASI, AQUA, and Larkin St. Youth Center

in the Bay Area and Angels' Flight,

Covenant House and LA Youth Network in

Los Angeles. Although we were often high-

ly critical of some of the programs' policies

and limitations,

our judgments

are irrele- vant.

What is relevant is

that we learn to

analyze the impact

of approaches on

solving the prob-

lems.

The homeless

youth we met told

us their sentiments:

Youth often choose

the streets over a

shelter because they

feel unsafe in some

shelters. There are

very, very few shelters

available for minors,

and most of them will

call parents - an

obvious deterrent for

youth who are running

from their parents.

There simply are not nearly enough shelter

beds in the city for everyone. Youth often

engage in survival sex work because the one

thing they have control over are their bod-

ies. Often, the money made by prostituting

goes directly into feeding a drug addiction,

which spirals them into further despera-

tion, thus repeating the vicious cycle.

Well-meaning, effective, programs can

and do help some individuals. With the

numerous agencies

A

in Oakland.

already in existence help- |

~ ing homeless people, how can we do more?

We can start by not permitting ourgovern-

discretion when the local prosecutor will

receive 50% of the forfeiture proceeds,

and there will be a strong temptation for

law enforcement to pursue assets and not

convictions," said Schlosser. "To innocent

owners or those guilty of a first time

offense, this cash bounty system will seem

very much like legalized extortion." '

Schlosser warned both cities that

because their proposed ordinances

would authorize the seizure of valuable

property for relatively minor offenses,

the punishment would not be in propor-

tion to the crime, which is prohibited by |

the Excessive Fines Clause of the Eighth

Amendment. San Francisco Mayor

Willie Brown was quoted in the press as

looking forward to the seizure of BMW's

ACLU | a Ae SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 1999 u anh . J

5 work with activists from UNI

ment to simply throw money at "the home-

less situation." Yes, city and county govern-

ments do give money to social services. |

However, this tiny amount of money is mis-

directed and with it comes strings |

attached that do not allow programs the |

freedom they need to operate successfully.

Some of the facilities we visited receive

most of their funding from private donors.

These places are often more free

to

function as they

see fit because individual donors are much

less demanding than governments.

Ted Hayes, the founder of Dome Village |

in Los Angeles, taught us a great deal about

being solution-oriented. Hayes voluntarily

became homeless fifteen years ago so he

could study homelessness firsthand, with the

goal of eliminating it altogether. Since then,

he created Dome Village and actively pro-

motes his theory of the National Homeless

Problem. Hayes's theory teaches that wide-

spread, increasing homelessness cannot be

handled locally. A viable, comprehensive

plan backed by resources to

put it into action is the only

way to arrive at a nation-

al solution to the home-

less problem.

There have always

been homeless people,

more in times of depres-

sion, and fewer in times of

1B to survey TaTlss and low-inc

prosperity, until recently. Now, when our

nation's economy is growing, the homeless

population is also growing. There are lots

of contributing factors to this phenome-

non. Local governments are overwhelming-

ly ill-equipped and unwilling to handle the

_ Situations in their areas. The national budget

must in-clude more funds to build Section 8

housing. Homeless

people are moved

from place to place;

there is nowhere for

them to go, and no

one wants to take

responsibility for

housing them and

providing neces-

sary opportunities

for _ self-suffi-

ciency.

All the

inspiring pro-

grams we visit-

ed are doing

the best they

can with limit-

ed resources.

= But agencies

that serve

= homeless peo-

ple are only

"band aid"

solutions. Food Not

Bombs and the Meals Program at Glide

Memorial Church specifically address the

very real need of people to eat everyday.

Feeding or housing an individual for a

night is important; yes, people need to eat

and sleep everyday. These measures how-

ever, do nothing to eradicate the deeply

rooted societal causes of why a person is

hungry and homeless to begin with. Why do

we more readily fund programs that react

to problems instead of those that prevent

problems from occurring.

Our first priority as a student group is

to educate our peers about what we've

ome youth

_ learned. At the same time, we need to keep

learning, and start doing.

When we returned home to the com-

fort of our pampered lives and loving

families, we were a bundle of contradic-

tions; drained, empowered, baffled, and

energized all at once. Yet we could not

escape one single fact: we have a ton of

work to do. @

The Travelers on "Homelessness: Unplugged"

The following students participated in the ACLU-NC 1999 journey:

Shayna Gelender, 17 Castro Valley; Kathleen Flanagan, 16,

Oakland; Sirena Putman, 17, Castro Valley; Lani Riccobuono, 18,

Martinez; Jed Kinnison, 17, Santa Rosa; Kandyce Wilson, 17, Vallejo;

Ryan Ricco-Pena, 15, San Anselmo; Zac Moon, 17, Berkeley; Sierra

Martinez, 18, Martinez; Gabriel Martinez, 16, Martinez; Chris Uyeda,

17, Martinez; Jamie Christiansen, 17, San Ramon

18, Martinez; Suemyra Shah, 17, Berkeley; Sanam Jorjani, 16, Albany;

Saba Moeel, 16, Albany; Rachel Aonan, 17, Castro Valley.

They were accompanied by Adult Chaperones: Nancy Otto, Director,

=| ACLU-NC Howard A. Friedman First Amendment Education Project;

Bernadette Montemayor, SF State; Jeannie Lee, UC Berkeley; William

Walker, SF City College; Shaffy Moeel, UC Berkeley; Catrina Raollos, SF

State; lain Finlay, ACLU-NC Finance Director.

; Cindy Downing,

used in the purchase of a "$10 bag a mar-

ijuana;" however, the maximum fine for .

the possession of small quantities of

marijuana is $100 and no jail time.

Also of great concern is the likeli-

hood that if passed, the ordinances

`would have a disparate impact on racial

minorities because police are more like-

ly to stop minority drivers, especially

African-Americans and Hispanics. "In

recent months, the phenomenon of

Driving While Black has been widely dis-

cussed in the news and President

Clinton has called for a national effort to

document the problem of drivers being

singled out by law enforcement based on

race and ethnicity," Schlosser said. "In

view of this well-documented problem,

San Francisco and Sacramento should

question the appropriateness of adding

another weapon to the arsenal of the

police that will give them both the dis-

cretion and the financial incentive to

single out drivers suspected of minor

offenses."

The ACLU-NC has _ repeatedly

expressed civil rights concerns on vehi-

cle seizure ordinances and legally chal-

lenged the Oakland ordinance on which

the San Francisco and Sacramento pro-

-posals are modeled. The case Horton v.

City of Oakland: is pending in the.

California Court of Appeal.

Maria Archuleta is the former ee

Editor of the ACLU News.

ae

Governor's Veto of Key Civil Rights Bill

Draws Fury from Advocates

rights advocates throughout the state,

Governor Gray Davis vetoed a key bill

providing for equal opportunity for women

and people of color in state employment

and education.

The measure, SB 44, authored by

Senator Richard Polanco (D-Los Angeles)

supported outreach and recruitment pro-

grams for women and people of color and

ensured equal access to information about

opportunities in education and employment.

Moments after news of the veto came

on July 28, the Coalition for Civil Rights

fired off a letter to the Governor charging

that his veto "sends the unequivocal mes-

sage that your administration will make

no room for the women and minorities

that now constitute the majority of

California's population."

"The Governor's veto places state and

local agencies between the proverbial rock

and a hard place," said Michelle Alexander,

Director of the ACLU-NC Racial Justice

Project. "Governmental entities have a

constitutional duty not to discriminate.

They have an obligation to distribute the

| n a political move that outraged civil

_ more than $4 billion in annual public con-

| tracts, 200,000 state jobs, and 2 million in

public higher education slots equitably.

Where they have identified discrimination

in the letting of contracts or hiring and

promotion practices, governmental agen-

cies are required to act affirmatively to

remedy the situation. By precluding them

from instituting such modest efforts as

outreach and recruitment, the Governor is

_ denying them the ability to act.

"Outreach on the basis of socioeconom-

ic status or geographic area simply will not

work. Race- and gender-based problems

need race-and gender-conscious solu-

tions," Alexander charged.

"The Governor's veto is contrary to the

intent of the voters in passing Proposition

209. It is contrary to the authors and propo-

nents of 209 who have stated repeatedly

that the initiative was not meant to ban out-

reach and recruitment programs. And it is

| contrary to several court decisions that

have held that "preferential treatment"

does not encompass measures designed to

level the playing field and equalize opportu-

| nities," said Beth Parker, Program Director

Ce ee ee eo Oe te

Governor Davis and the

Legislative Endgame

BY VALERIE SMALL NAVARRO

LEGISLATIVE ADVOCATE

overnor Gray Davis has _ until

Gon 10 to sign or veto the bills

that were sent to him during this

first year of our two-year legislative ses-

sion. It is crucial that ACLU members

write or FAX a letter to Governor Davis,

State Capitol, Sacramento, CA 95814 (FAX

916/445-4633) on bills that will protect our

civil liberties.

CIVIL RIGHTS

SB 78 (Murray) - The Traffic Stops Data

Collection measure, a.k.a. the "Driving

While Black or Brown' bill. This modest

measure merely requires officers to keep

statistical information regarding race,

what the legal basis was for the stop,

whether a search was conducted, and what

was seized for traffic stops.

Although a similar bill was recently

signed by the Republican Governor of

Connecticut, our Governor has not indicat-

ed that he will sign this bill. [See p. 5]

AB 1670 (Kuehl)- The "California Civil -

Rights Amendments of 1999" is an omnibus

legislative proposal intended to strengthen |

the civil rights protections afforded by the

Fair Employment and Housing Act

(FEHA), and other their civil rights

statutes. The religious right added this

measure to its "hit list".

Among its most important provisions,

AB 1670 would extend protections against

harassment at the workplace to indepen- _

dent contractors; would require employers -

to provide reasonable accommodation to ~

pregnant employees; would increase the |

amount of damages that can be awarded |

through the administrative process form

$50,000 to $150,000; would prohibit genetic

testing by employers; and would clarify that

the current prohibitions against discrimina- |

tion by agencies or entities receiving stated |

funds is enforceable through a civil action |

for equitable relief. The Governor has not

indicated that he will sign this measure.

AB 1001 (Villaraigosa) - moves the provi-

sion prohibiting employment discrimination |

on the basis of sexual orientation from the |

Labor Code to the Civil Code (FEHA). The

protections currently afforded by the Labor

Code are less extensive than those afforded

by the Fair Employment and Housing Act.

For example, there is a 30-day time limit for

filing instead of the one year under FEHA

and prevailing parties may not recover

attorneys' fees. It is unclear whether the

Governor will sign this bill.

PRIVACY RIGHTS

AB 103 (Migden) - implements for the |

first time a system of HIV reporting in

California based on the use of a unique

identifier (instead of using an individual's

name) to track the trends of the epidemic.

People who fear that their names will be

added to a government HIV list will be

reluctant to be tested and may be reluctant

to participate in partner notification

because they fear their name may be

revealed. The Governor has not indicated

whether he will sign this measure.

FIRST AMENDMENT

of Equal Rights Advocates. "Indeed,

Governor Davis's position that Proposition

209 prohibits any race based programs to

achieve diversity - is far more extreme

than the position taken last year by former

Attorney General Dan Lungren when he

supported the measure."

The Coalition, a group representing

more than 50 organizations, noted that the

"Governor's decision contradicts the will of

the people in passing the initiative."

Polling data taken before and after 209's

passage showed that most voters support-

ed outreach and recruitment. A pre-elec-

tion survey conducted by Hewlett-Packard

and Kaiser Permanente found that 70 per-

cent supported outreach programs to

expand minority enrollment in colleges

and 68 percent supported targeted out-

reach efforts to recruit women and minori-

ties for employment. Exit polls taken on

election day similarly confirm that a sub-

stantial number of even those who voted

for the initiative did not intend to elimi-

nate equal opportunity for women and

people of color.

Not surprisingly, Governor Davis was

lauded in the media by U.C. Regent Ward

Connerly, the architect of Proposition

209 who is now involved in a campaign to

bring the same divisive measure to other

states.

Civil rights activist and engineer Fred

| Jordan, director of a coalition of minority

_ business owners, thought that Connerly's

_ praise should be a source of worry for the

Governor. "To take some action that Ward

Connerly, perhaps the most despicable

| black man in America would applaud him

_ for, is a major problem," said Jordan.

The Governor was lambasted in an edi-

_ torial in the New York Times, which noted

"The anti-affirmative action camp in

California is trying to twist the meaning of

Proposition 209 to ban outreach and recruit-

_ ment efforts that merely encourage minori-

ties and women to compete for jobs,

contracts, and college slots. This pernicious

attack, if successful, would take away a cru-

cial remaining tool to remedy the lingering

effects of racial and gender discrimination.

"Mr. Davis apparently believes that

diversity in the workplace and on college

campuses can be achieved solely through

outreach programs based on nonracial

characteristics like economic status or geo-

| graphic residence. But the legacy of racial

discrimination is not fully accounted for by

measuring qualities like economic status.

"The attack on outreach programs

looks like an attempt to deny minorities

and women the very information they

need to compete fairly," the Times editor-

ial concluded.

"`Censored!"' Sculpture

Exhibit Reaps Lively

Discussion, Benefits for

ACLU-NC

. censorship case he tried

AB 1440 (Migden) - overturns a regula- -

tion that imposed a blanket ban on media |

interviews with

specified prisoners.

However there is a provision to allow the |

Department of Corrections to impose rea-

sonable time, place, and manner restric- |

tions; the bill also allows the Department

to prohibit an interview that would pose an

immediate and direct threat to the security |

of the institution or the physical safety of a _

member of the public.

As the ACLU News goes to press, the |

Governor has expressed grave reservations -

about the measure. However, this is a crucial -

freedom of press bill that would allow public -

scrutiny of our correctional system, one of the _

largest expenditures of taxpayer funds.

BY STAN YOGI

midst thought-provoking sculptures,

Aw ACLU supporters gathered at A

ew Leaf Gallery in Berkeley on the

afternoon of August 14 for an opening recep-

tion and benefit in conjunction with the:

exhibit "Censored! Sculptors Responding to

the Wave of Puritanism in the 90s."

ACLU-NC Executive Director Dorothy

Ehrlich, moderated a pro-

gram which began with

ACLU advisory counsel

Ephraim Margolin describ-

ing with great vigor a 1964

with former ACLU-NC legal

director Marshall Krause.

The two defended sculptor

Ron Boise against obscenity

charges stemming from an

exhibit of Boise's work at

the Vorpal Gallery, which

included 12 pieces based on

the Kama Sutra. This was

the first jury trial for

Margolin, now a nationally renown defense

attorney, and he successfully convinced the

jurors that the works in question were not

obscene. In appreciation for their efforts to

defend his First Amendment rights, Boise

gave Krause and Margolin each one of the

sculptures in the Kama Sutra series.

Margolin brought his piece to the event to

share with the audience.

ACLU-NC staff attorney Ann Brick, an

expert in censorship issues, reminded the

crowd that the First Amendment goes

hand in hand with artistic expression.

ACLU News " SEPTeNseER-OcTOBER 1 999 = Pace 6

ACLU-NC Executive Director Dorothy Ehrlich (7. to 1.)

leads a panel on arts censorship with ACLU advisory

counsel Ephraim Margolin, ACLU-NC staff attorney

Ann Brick and Philip Linhares, Chief Curator of the

Oakland Museum.

Because art communicates ideas, the cre-

ation of art is essential to keeping the mar-

ketplace of ideas free and diverse. "Artists

must be free to create or display their art,

regardless of whether some members of

our society consider their art blasphe-

mous, disrespectful or overtly sexual,"

Brick said.

She explained, however, that the courts

have placed limits on artistic expression.

"Obscene" art, for example, can be prohibit-

ed. To be considered "obscene," a work must

lack serious artistic value.

Philip Linhares, Chief Curator of Art at

the Oakland Museum of California and the

curator of the "Censored!" exhibit,

described the role of the curator as that of

a gatekeeper who makes judgments based

on artistic merit and knowledge about

audiences' tastes and values. He talked

about recent objections from African

American patrons of the Oakland Museum

Continued on page 7

| tors was thrilled to

ACLU-NC Supports Voices of Free Speech Radio

n July 28, when the doors of local

Q community-sponsored radio station

KPFA were padlocked and broad-

casters were on the street instead of in the

studios, the ACLU-NC wrote to Pacifica

Foundation President Mary Francis Berry

noting that Pacifica's actions had "weak-

ened the exchange of ideas in northern

California, not strengthened it."

"Over its remarkable fifty-year history,

KPFA has been a voice for the voiceless,

airing ideas from people who otherwise

may never have been heard. Conscientious

objectors, prisoners, demonstrators, poets

angry and obscure, teenagers, philoso-

phers and America's dissenters to wars

from Vietnam to El Salvador to Iraq have

all shared KPFAs airwaves," wrote ACLU-

NC Board Chair Dick Grosboll and

Executive Director Dorothy Ehrlich.

"As a listener-sponsored radio station

that eschews commercial sponsorship,

KPFA has brought these voices to com-

munities that are alienated from main-

stream news reporting," Grosboll and

Ehrlich noted.

"As an organization that cherishes

free speech, the ACLU must be con-

SCHOOSHSHHOHHSHSSHHOHSHSHHOHHSHSHSHHHHHHHSHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHSHEHHSSHH8EEHE

cerned when a listener-sponsored radio

station is shut down, locked up and

silenced. Is the free exchange of ideas

not threatened when:

e Armed guards drag a veteran broad-

caster out of the studio and out of

the building?

e A news director is accused of trespass-

ing in the office she has worked out of

for two decades?

e A studio built by the contributions of

thousands of listeners is boarded up

like an abandoned house, its doors

chained shut?

e All staff are barred from the building,

denied access to the airwaves, and pre-

vented from protecting their own

research, writing and files containing

potentially sensitive information from

confidential sources?

e There is no sound on 94.1 FM except

canned speeches from years ago,

accompanied by protest songs that

grew out of movements supported by

many of those same listeners?"

Edgar Morse's Enduring

Gift to Civil Liberties

BY STAN YOGI

ong-time ACLU member, Edgar

[ jee: who passed away on June 13

of a sudden heart attack at the age of

72, left a powerful bequest to the ACLU

Foundation of Northern California. Morse

named the ACLU Foundation as the major

beneficiary of his revocable living trust,

which should generate approximately $1

million for the ACLU.

This gift represents one

of the largest bequests

that the ACLU

Foundation of Northern

California has ever

received.

"Our board of direc-

learn of Mr. Morse's gen-

erosity and commit-

ment to the ACLU," said -

ACLU-NC Board Chair

Dick Grosboll. "He is an

inspiration to us all. His

wonderful gift will help

ensure that the ACLU

will protect civil liber-

ties for future generations."

Morse enjoyed a varied life that includ- |

ed three distinct professions: electrical

engineer, professor of history, and antique

dealer. Born in Chicago, he served in the

Navy during World War II and earned a

degree in Physics from the Illinois |

Institute of Technology. Upon graduation, -

he worked as an electronic engineer in |

Chicago and Michigan before moving to |

Mountain View in 1957 to accept a position |

as a Supervising Engineer for Sylvania |

Electrical Products. |

Although Morse was always interested -

in history (doing genealogical research

which traced familial relationships to

Samuel Morse, inventor of the telegraph),

in 1962 he dramatically shifted the focus of

his professional life and entered a doctoral

program in history at UC Berkeley.

While at Berkeley during the days of

the tumultuous Free Speech Movement,

Morse witnessed events in the fight for

freedom of expression that resulted in his

lifelong devotion to First Amendment -

Rights. Although he was not himself an "on

Edgar Morse

the streets" activist, he developed an

enduring commitment to freedom of |

speech and the work of the ACLU.

After receiving his Ph.D. in the History |

of Science, he taught for 20 years in the

innovative Hutchins School at Sonoma

State University. As one of eight faculty

members who organized and taught in this

special program, his charge was to develop

new ways to teach the

liberal arts and _ sci-

ences, making use of

small discussion semi-

nars, tutorials, and

occasional lecture

courses. He taught

= courses ranging from

g "Human Experience and

=the Arts' to "Science

= and Society."

In 1976, he co-

aner Michael Weller,

= 8 Argentum Antiques, a

~ San Francisco business

that is the principal

dealer in fine antique

silver in the Western United States.

Because of his expertise and interest in sil-

ver, it was no surprise that the Oakland

Museum of California selected Morse to be

the Consulting Curator and Editor of the

1985 exhibit "Silver.in the Golden State."

Morse was a long-time member of the

Sierra Club and served on the advisory

board of the American Art Study Center at

the De Young Museum. During the last sev-

eral years of his life, he was a board mem-

ber and enthusiastic supperter of the

American Bach Soloists.

"The ACLU Foundation of Northern

California is honored and moved to be the

_ beneficiary of Edgar Morse's extraordi-

nary generosity. We will use his remark-

able bequest to defend the civil liberties

that he cherished. He has left an extraor-

dinary legacy, and we are deeply grateful,"

said ACLU-NC Chair Grosboll. @

If you are interested in leaving a legacy

to the ACLU, please contact Stan Yogi,

Director of Planned Giving, at 415/621-

2493, ext. 330.

"Because of KPFA, issues vital to civil

liberties have been aired: listeners have

learned about our prison system, about

racism, about immigration, about workers'

rights, about lesbian and gay rights and

about attacks on reproductive freedom.

This type of free, political speech is what

makes democracy possible."

Grosboll and Ehrlich wrote Berry

that the ACLU-NC supports a "resolution

| that allows KPFA's vibrant and eclectic

voices once again to enhance the politi-

cal and intellectual life of Northern

California."

The station was reopened in August;

several unresolved staffing, programming

and management issues are still pending.

The controversy is currently under scutiny

by the Legislative Audit Committee of the

| California Legislature.

S E founded. with his part-

ormer ACLU-NC Board Chair

F Howard Jewel, renowned civil liber-

ties advocate, died on July 28.

Jewel, who served as

director of the constitu-

tional rights unit of the

state Department of

Justice, was an attorney

with the Oakland law firm

of Neyhart and Grodin

when he was elected

ACLU-NC Chair in 1969.

"No one loved the Bill

of Rights or the ACLU

more than Howard," said

Thomas Layton, Presi-

dent of the Gerbode

Foundation and former

ACLU-NC Associate Dir-

ector. "He combined a

passion for civil liberties

with great leadership abilities and an

extraordinarily wry sense of humor. He

will be greatly missed."

Jewel presided over the affiliate

during the turbulent political battles of

the times ranging from abortion rights,

to anti-war demonstrations to student

dress codes. Under his leadership, the

ACLU-NC defended the rights of stu-

dents, teachers and even military per-

sonnel to demonstrate. Perhaps one of

the most pivotal decisions of the ACLU-

NC Board, was the exceptional vote in

1970 to condemn the illegality of the

U.S. government's involvement in the

Vietnam War.

The burgeoning student movement -

and subsequent backlash - drew the

HOWARD JEWEL

CHAIR OF ACLU-NC BoarbD

DURING TURBULENT TIMES

Howard Jewel in 1974.

_ ericans during World War II," Layton noted.

_ ACLU into litigation challenging suspen-.

sion for long hair or political buttons and

defending freedom of the press of under-

ground newspapers.

The ACLU was.a leader

in securing a woman's

right to choose, both

nationally and - four

years before Roe v.

Wade - in California.

"Howard guided

our affiliate through its

process of rejoining

with the National

ACLU, after our long

separation as the result

of National's refusal to

support our challenge

to the internment of

more than one hundred

thousand Japanese Am-

After leaving the Board Chair in 1973,

Jewel served as the affiliate representa-,

tive to the National Board of Directors.

"Both locally and nationally, Howard

played a played a key role in the decision

to advocate for impeachment of Richard

Nixon," Layton said.

Jewel, raised in Napa, was a graduate

of U.C. Berkeley and Boalt Hall School of

Law. He served as a public defender in

Alameda County before being appointed

to the Department of Justice post by

then-Attorney General-elect Stanley

Mosk, later a Supreme Court justice.

After his retirement, he and his wife

Nancy Meyer Strawbridge, who died in

1997, moved to Guatemala.

Censored! Exhibit...

Continued from page 6

who found African American painter

Robert Cole Scott's depiction of a particu-

lar black character offensive. Linhares

explained that the Museum responded to

these objections, not by taking down the

work in question but by creating new inter-

pretive materials that discussed the vari-

ous perspectives on the painting.

He added that problems of censorship

are currently more prevalent among per-

forming artists, not visual artists. He not-

ed, however, that the fundraising needs of

art museums can result in wealthy donors

exerting tremendous influence on the kind

of art that is - and is not -- shown in

museums.

Brick echoed his as by noting the

U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in

NEA v. Finley, a case focused on govern-

ment funding of the arts. After controver-

sies in the late 1980s regarding National

Endowment for the Arts funding, Jesse

Helms added an amendment to legislation

authorizing federal funding of the arts

instructing the arts endowment. to take

a Mak Mellie des ih deahtaedactahde cls Siateedendeedlalaitainrlcttad

into consideration "general standards of

decency" and the "beliefs of the American

public" when making funding decisions.

Although lower courts had ruled this

amendment unconstitutional, the

Supreme Court last year decided not to

strike down the amendment, instead say-

ing that it is purely advisory. Because the

amendment is still in place, it can have a

"chilling effect" on artists and arts organi-

zations who need NEA support and might

self-censor their work in fear of jeopardiz-

ing their funding. "The good news from

the decision is that the Court ruled

Congress cannot deny funding to a project

because it disagrees with the content,"

Brick noted. :

Executive Director Ehrlich gave special

thanks to A New Leaf Gallery and its owners

Brigitte Mickmacker and John Denning,

and Gallery director Benjamin Rodefer for

hosting the reception and for donating a

portion of the sculpture sales during the

`week of the event to benefit the ACLU

Foundation of Northern California.

Stan Yogi is the ACLU-NC Director of

| Planned Giving and Foundation Support.

What You Can Do For Civil Liberties

Two Dangerous Initiatives

TPT CA AIT)

Primary Election

Two very dangerous initiatives, they don't have

numbers yet, will be on that ballot in March 2000.

ANTI-YOUTH

ete Wilson's Youth/Juvenile Crime Initiative, will put our youth into jail-track lives.

Pr initiative imposes a harsh punitive approach to addressing juvenile crime by

incarcerating many more juveniles for longer periods of time. The intiative, which

makes hundreds of changes in California law, contains many failed proposals of former

Governor Wilson that were rejected by the Legislature in prior years. If passed, this initia-

tive will fill our prisons with youthful offenders placed alongside adult convicts and will

make it nearly impossible for youthful offenders to rehabilitate.

ANTI-GAY

he so-called Defense of Marriage or Knight intitiative spearheaded by State Senator

[Tre Knight would make it constitutionally impossible for any couple other than a

man and a woman to marry in California. This initiative is a "wedge" issue which is

intended to use homophobia to codify anti-gay measures. In states with similar legislation

on the books, courts and policymakers have relied on such laws to deny adoptions by les-

bian or gay parents, to defeat anti-discrimination measures for lesbians and gay men, and

even to justify the elimination of protections provided by anti-hate crimes laws. The

California State Assembly has already defeated similar bills five times.

WATCH OUR WEBSITE FOR

DEVELOPMENTS: WWW.ACLUNC.ORG

You Can Help Stop These Initiatives!

A

CHECK AS MANY AS YOU WISH

(Yes, I want to help defeat the Anti-Youth Initiative

Yes, I want to help defeat the Anti-Gay Initiative

(c) I'll work wherever you need me against either/both of these dangerous measures.

Name

Address

City | State Zip

Your telephone and/orEmail

Send to or contact:

Lisa Maldonado, ACLU-NC Field Representative, Email (lisam@aclunc.org),

Telephone: 415 621-2498, Address: American Civil Liberties Union of Northern

California, 1663 Mission Street, Suite 460, San Francisco, CA 94103

a ee ee eee ee eee

Thursday) Meet at 7:00 PM, at 460 South California

Avenue, Suite 11, Palo Alto. For more information, con-

tact Ken Russell at 650/325-8750.

Chapter Meetings

(Chapter meetings are open to all interested members.

Contact the Chapter activist listed for your area.)

B-A-R-K (Berkeley-Albany-Richmond-Ken-

sington) Chapter Meeting: (Usually first

Wednesday) For more information, time and address of

meetings, contact Diana Wellum at 510/841-2069.

Monterey County Chapter Meeting: (Usually third

Tuesday) Meet at 7:15 PM, Monterey Library. For more

information, contact Richard Criley at 408/624-7562.

North Peninsula (San Mateo area) Chapter

Meeting: (Usually third Monday) Meet at 7:30 PM, at

700 Laurel Street, Park Tower Apartments, top floor.

Check-out our web page at: http://members.

aol.com/mpenaclu. For more information, contact Marc

Fagel at 650/579-1789.

Fresno Chapter Meeting: (Usually fourth

Tuesday). Please join our newly-reorganized Chapter!

Meetings are held at 7:00 PM at the Fresno Center for

Non-Violence. For more information, call Bob Hirth

209/225-6223 (days).

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights

Chapter For more information, contact Lisa Maldonado

415/621-2493.

Oakland/East Bay Chapter Meeting: (Usually

fourth Thursday) For more informaton contact Stan

Brackett: 510/832-1915.

Marin County Chapter Meeting: (Usually third

Monday) Meet at 7:30 p.m. at the Marin Senior

Coordinating Council, "Whistlestop Wheels," Caboose

Room, 930 Tamalpais Ave., San Rafael. For more infor-

Redwood (Humboldt County) Chapter

Meeting: (Usually every. third Tuesday) Meet at

Luzmilla's, 1288 G Street, Arcata at 7:00 PM. For infor-

mation on upcoming meeting dates and times, please

mation, contact Coleman Persily at 415/479-1731.

Mid-Peninsula Chapter Meeting: (Usually fourth

call 707/444-6595. :

Sacramento Valley Chapter Meeting: (Usually

|

~ Meet at 6:45 PM at the ACLU-NC Office, 1663 Mission -

ACLU NEws ada et) ia ee ee

Have You Been Stopped by Police

Because of Your Race?

Call | -877-DWB-STO P=

Or in Spanish:

|-877-PARALOS**

Share your experience - and help put an end to race-based stops.

Call the ACLU toll free in California.

*1-877-392-7867 "0x00B0F 1-877-727-2567

More than 2,000 people have called the ACLU DWB Hotline since it was initiated last

October. The respondents have called from cities, suburbs and rural areas throughout the

entire state. Each story, each voice will help stop the practice of race-based police stops.

Culver City), mandates that data on race and traffic stops be collected by police and

reported to the Department of Justice. The bill passed the full Senate and is heading

for a vote in the Assembly. Then, it must be signed by Governor Davis. Last year, Governor

Wilson, saying vetoed AB 1264, Murray's first attempt to require data collection on racial pro-

filing. ;

As the ACLU News goes to press, Governor Davis has not yet stated whether or not he

will sign this measure.

Call, FAX or write Governor Gray Davis, urging him to vote YES on SB 78

Write: Governor Gray Davis, 1st Floor State Capitol, Sacramento, CA 95814

Phone: 916/ 445-2841 Fax: 916/ 445-4663

e President Clinton, Attorney General Janet Reno, and the American Bar Association are

calling upon states to enact comprehensive legislation. The President led the effort by

issuing an executive order requiring federal law enforcement agencies to collect the

type of data required by SB 78. The President also directly challenged state and local

governments to follow his example.

Tr "Traffic Stops Statistics Act" (SB 78), sponsored by Senator Kevin Murray (D-

e There has been national bipartisan support of efforts to halt the practice of race-based.

police stops. Democratic Governor Jim Hunt of North Carolina and Republican Governor

John Rowland of Connecticut recently signed bills similar to SB 78. At least a dozen other

states have other pending measures. Republican Governor Christine Todd Whitman of

New Jersey headed an effort to address profiling practices after the state attorney gener-

al's office collected data confirming long standing complaints of profiling practices.

e All the law enforcement agencies in Alameda County and Stanislaus County as well as

the police departments of San Diego, San Jose, and Sunnyvale have implemented vol-

untary traffic stop data collection efforts.

Now is the time to pass a state law in California!

_ Please send copies of your correspondence to Field Representative Lisa Maldonado,

ACLU-NC, 16638 Mission Street, #460, San Francisco 94108.

psn

SSS SSS

Davis. For more information, call Natalie Wormeli at

530/756-1900 or Dick Livingston at 530/753-

1255,

first Wednesday) Meet at 7:00 PM at the Java City in

Sutter Galleria (between 29 and 30, J and K Streets) in

Sacramento. For more information, contact David Miller

at 916/991-5415,

Chico Chapter: If you are a member in the

Chico/Redding area, please contact Steven Post-Jeyes at

San Francisco Chapter Meeting: (Third Tuesday)

530/345-1449.

Street, Suite #460, San Francisco. Call the Chapter

Hotline (979-6699) for further details. Cc hap ters Reorgan izing

If you are interested in reviving the Mt. Diablo

Chapter, please contact Field Representative Lisa

Maldonado at 415/621-2006 ext. 46.

Santa Clara Valley Chapter Meeting: (Usually

first Tuesday) Meet at 7:00 PM at the Peace Center,

48 S. 7th St., San Jose, CA. For further chapter infor-

mation contact Dan Costello at 408/287-6403. -

Field Action Meetings

(All meetings except those noted will be held at the

ACLU-NC Office, 1663 Mission Street, 460, San

Francisco.)

Santa Cruz County Chapter Meeting: (Usually

third Monday) Meet at 7:15 PM. For more information,

contact Dianne Vaillancourt at 408/454-0112.

Sonoma County Chapter Meeting: (Usually third

Tuesday) Meet at 7:30 PM at the Peace and Justice

Center, 540 Pacific Avenue, Santa Rosa. Call Judith

Volkart at 415/899-3044 for more information.

Student Outreach Committee: Meet to plan out:

reach activities. For more information, contact Nancy

Otto at 415/621-2006 ext. 37.

Yolo County Chapter Meeting: (Usually third | Student Advisory Committee: For more informo-

Tuesday) Meet at 7:30 PM, 2505 5th Street #154, tion, contact Nancy Otto at 415/621-2006 ext. 37. i