Stories from the ACLU of Washington

Often, we take for granted our abilities to attend protests, to speak our opinions, to remain silent under arrest, and more – rights that are not guaranteed in many places.  As a communications intern, I got a vivid reminder of this when I recently helped staff an ACLU of Washington table at Hispanic Seafair.

On the heels of Seattle Weekly reporter Nina Shapiro’s in-depth examination of the Border Patrol’s aggressive tactics on the Olympic Peninsula (“Twilight for Immigrants”) comes a revelation that sheds light on the troubling situation. In a follow-up story, Shapiro reports about a Border Patrol whistleblower who has come forward to assert that BP agents don’t have meaningful work to do far from our northern border. 

  Compliance with the state’s public disclosure law is important to ensuring that government is open and accountable. King County just got a strong reminder of this and is paying a $125,000 settlement to a couple who alleged that officials wrongfully withheld public records. The Seattle Times tells the story behind the settlement.    

From her career as an athlete came some important lessons: “Don’t fear a challenge, welcome it.” “The game ain’t over till it’s over – there are many quarters, many innings, and you have to play every one hard.” “You’ll never know the true joy of victory unless you have known defeat. Be humble in both.” Maj. Margaret Witt found these maxims from the world of sports stood her in good stead during her years of service in the military – and during her long legal battle with the government over her dismissal from the military under the now-repealed “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.  

A dynamite cover story in the latest Seattle Weekly – “Twilight for Immigrants” by Nina Shapiro – details the havoc being wreaked on lives and a community’s fabric by the U.S. Border Patrol’s heavy-handed tactics on Olympic Peninsula. The article is full of disturbing incidents which challenge the Border Patrol’s bland assertion that it does not engage in racial profiling.

Congratulations to our drug reform allies in New York for passing the nation’s fourth 911 Good Samaritan Law. The law aims to save lives by encouraging people to call for emergency services when they witness overdoses. New York becomes the largest state to enact such a much-needed measure.

Last May we were stunned to see video of a Seattle police officer yelling racial slurs at a Latino man lying prone on the ground and kicking him in the head while another officer stomped on his legs.  This incident was one of many that led the ACLU and 34 other organizations to ask the Department of Justice to investigate the Seattle Police Department for racially biased policing. 

Having studied political science in college, I have learned much about the process of drafting, introducing, and passing bills. But it is one thing to read about it in textbooks and listen to lectures. It is certainly another to be an active participant in the process. I had exactly that opportunity in my internship with the ACLU of Washington.

An arbitrator this week revoked a law that strengthened Spokane’s police ombudsman powers to investigate allegations of officer misconduct independently of the police. Spokane’s Police Guild had challenged the new powers as a change in working conditions that must be negotiated with the Guild as part of its contract with the city, and the arbitrator agreed.  

On July 11, the Richland School Board voted 4-1 to bring Sherman Alexie’s young adult novel The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian back to all its high school classrooms. This welcome action reversed the board’s vote in June to exclude the novel from all high school classrooms after it was piloted for the 9th-grade curriculum.