We are the New York state affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), fighting for the rights of all New Yorkers.
5,009 followers 178 following 548 posts
view profile on Bluesky
Today we were in court challenging Trump’s illegal policy of authorizing ICE agents to arrest people in courthouses. Weaponizing mandatory immigration proceedings isn't just cruel - it's unlawful. With @aclu.org and @maketheroadny.bsky.social, we won't stop fighting.
Our communities deserve to be safe and free from military intimidation. Today, a federal court rightly rejected the Trump administration's deployment of troops in Los Angeles.
We're in court today to challenge Trump’s illegal policy of authorizing ICE agents to arrest people in courthouses. Mandatory immigration proceedings should not be manipulated to be yet another weapon of the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda - it's cruel, unfair, and unlawful.
School is back in session. In New York, everyone between the ages of five to 21 years old has the right to a free K-12 public education, no matter their immigration status. Make sure you know your rights (or your child's rights) in school: www.nyclu.org/resources/kn...
A reminder than there is no reproductive justice without economic justice. #LaborDay
Your free speech rights don't stop at the school door. Know your rights:
NEW: A federal judge has blocked the Trump admin’s cruel policy of fast tracking mass deportations for blatantly disregarding due process. Along with @aclu.org, we're proud to fight - and win - to take down one of the pillars of Trump's mass deportation campaign.
Sending armed federal agents and military troops into our communities is unjustified and dangerous.
Remember: In New York, everyone between the ages of 5-21 has the right to free K-12 public education, no matter their immigration status.
BREAKING: The Texas House just voted to expand the state’s extreme abortion ban by criminalizing anyone who makes, prescribes, or transports abortion medication — even out-of-state. Texas already has poor reproductive health care, and this will make it worse.
NEW: A federal judge ordered an Arkansas school district to take down Ten Commandments displays in its classrooms following our lawsuit.
For every dollar earned by white, non-Hispanic men working full time and year-round in 2023, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander women only were paid 65 cents. Today is #NHPIWomensEqualPayDay – it's time to close the wage gap with fair pay and supportive policies.
"As threats mount nationwide, NY must do all it can to protect our personal medical decisions and to ensure we can get the care we need. Gov. Hochul has repeatedly promised to protect NYers’ access to abortion & repro care, and now she must demonstrate her commitment," writes @dlnyclu.bsky.social.
Protecting community safety is paramount. Especially in schools. But ramping up invasive surveillance tech, creating shadowy police units, and cracking down on protest is not the answer.
Targeting immigrant communities for deportation is ICE’s priority, not New York’s. Add your name to call on New York State reps to pass New York for All, which will prohibit state resources from being weaponized to support Trump's campaign of mass deportations:
Donna Lieberman of @nyclu.org is absolutely right. It's vital that @governor.ny.gov sign these critical bills to protect New Yorkers' reproductive freedom, including the NY Health Information Privacy Act that I carry w/@lindabrosenthal.bsky.social. www.timesunion.com/opinion/arti...
Solitary confinement is torture.
Good. No one should have to endure the dehumanizing conditions we’ve challenged in 26 Federal Plaza. We'll keep fighting to stop ICE’s unconstitutional detention practices.
"We're in a crisis situation. People are dying, and we have the receipts to prove why they're dying, and we have ways to stop them from dying, and no one's doing anything about it," said Jerome Wright of @haltsolitary.bsky.social. Solitary by another name is still solitary - and it is torture.
We're in court today fighting for the immediate release of Mario Guevara, a journalist who was arrested by police for covering a protest and then detained by ICE. The First Amendment is clear: The government can’t punish journalists for keeping the public informed.
The criminalization of homeless people will not help end homelessness - it just worsens the problem.
Federal law generally prohibits schools from releasing students's personal info without parental consent. ICE officers can only access a student's confidential information if they have a signed judicial warrant or a subpoena. Here's what else you should know before the first day of school:
🗣️ New york did not eliminate cash bail 🗣️ Bail reform has not led to increases in crime or recidivism 🗣️ Pretrial detention increases likelihood of rearrest Trump Targets Bail Reform in Latest Threat to New York’s Federal Funding nysfocus.com/2025/08/26/t...
Justice should not depend on the size of your bank account.
DISGUSTING: The Trump administration has opened the country’s largest immigration detention camp at Fort Bliss in Texas.
We'll say it again: Bathroom bans hurt our families and communities.
This weekend, volunteers w/ the NYCLU knocked on more than 500 (!) doors to let Rep. Lawler's constituents know that he voted for Trump's Big Bill, which guts Medicaid, defunds Planned Parenthood, and injects >$170 billion to enhance ICE raids in our communities. Join us: act.aclu.org/a/medicaid
NEW: Conway School District put the Ten Commandments in classrooms — even after a federal judge ruled Arkansas’s law “obviously unconstitutional.” We’ve asked the court to add Conway to our lawsuit. Public schools aren’t Sunday Schools. www.acluarkansas.org/en/news/fami...
Bail reform works. It has kept thousands of New Yorkers from being jailed just for being too poor to pay for their release, and the data is clear that it hasn't compromised public safety. Today's order is about furthering fictions that support Trump's power grabs — not about safety.
Days after reuniting with his family, the Trump administration has once again detained Kilmar Ábrego García and now plans to deport him to Uganda — a country he has zero connection to — as retaliation for not accepting the government's plea deal. This vindictive cruelty must end.
“Mayor Adams, just like President Trump, is spreading misinformation that NY isn’t safe because of bail reform — which couldn’t be further from the truth,” said Bernadette Rabuy, NYCLU policy counsel. “Adams has been touting how crime is down. Lawmakers like Mayor Adams can't have it both ways.”
You have rights if questioned by local, state, or federal law enforcement. Stay informed:
Schools should be safe places for learning and growth, not danger zones where one wrong move could put a child in police custody. To truly achieve school safety, the city must remove the NYPD from our classrooms entirely and stop creating more opportunities to put children in handcuffs.
As ICE continues its relentless campaign of arrests at immigration court, immigrants face an inescapable catch-22: They can show up to their court date and risk getting snatched by ICE. Or they can miss their hearing, which could result in a judge issuing an order for their removal.
Our Constitutional rights to due process and legal representation apply to ALL of us - no matter our immigration status.
New York’s laws and federal law broadly protect LGBTQ+ people from discrimination, even after Trump issued executive orders targeting trans people. Know your rights:
This is part of the same old playbook of politicians who think they can arrest and coerce people out of drug and alcohol addiction. Forced treatment can greatly increase the risk of a fatal overdose, and contrary to what the Mayor might think, it will not deliver greater public safety.
📣 BREAKING: In a win for transparency + academic fairness, a state judge ruled that @cuny.edu cannot withhold investment records. Public universities have a legal obligation to uphold transparency and treat all its students, faculty, and community members equally, no matter their viewpoint.
No one should live in fear of masked agents showing up at their home, workplace, or court appointment who refuse to answer basic questions about who they are. Tell Congress to take action now:
"Right here in Rockland County, ICE agents are breaking into people’s homes, targeting kids at school, and ambushing families at mandated immigration hearings. This is an unprecedented human rights crisis,” said NYCLU senior organizer Ignacio Acevedo at a rally to protest ICE detainments in NY-17.
The Trump admin's rapid expansion of immigration detention is unprecedented in its size and cruelty. ICE is holding >60,000 people in detention every day—up from 7,000 two decades ago. ^And it's bankrolled by Republicans' "Big Beautiful, Bill" and your tax dollars.
ICE has torn this family in three, sending a 7-year old and her mother to a Texas detention center, an older brother to Newark, and other family members still in New York. This is deeply traumatizing - and that's the point. No one should be treated with this kind of cruelty.
I'm urging a court to order the federal government to follow the law and end its inhumane conditions for immigrants detained at 26 Federal Plaza. No one should be held in horrendous conditions for days on end — it is illegal and it must stop.
The Trump administration has begun weaponizing courthouses and turned them into another tool for mass deportations. ICE agents have caused scenes of chaos and heartbreak as they handcuff and detain immigrants who are trying to play by the rules of America’s convoluted immigration laws.
Our communities should not be forced to live in fear of masked agents who refuse to answer basic questions about who they are.
✊Today, we rallied with clinicians & immigration advocates at 26 Fed Plaza to demand an end to the denial of medical care for people in ICE detention centers. Mounting reports point to violations of medical standards: ❌Unsanitary conditions ❌Medical neglect ❌Delayed treatment ❌Preventable deaths.
The reason tech companies like Meta are so against the NY Health Information Privacy Act is because they benefit from the ability to collect and sell this deeply intimate information without informing users or seeking their consent. Tell the Governor to protect our health data:
No one should fear that sensitive, deeply private information about their menstruation is being shared and exploited by tech companies. New Yorkers – not bad actors – should have control over our intimate health data.
DOCCS is continuing to illegally subject people to prolonged solitary confinement. Solitary confinement is torture, and it is disproportionately wielded against Black and Brown people. We are asking the court to take action and force DOCCS to follow the law.
We all have the right to: ✔️ Tell people their legal rights ✔️ Take photos of anything in plain view, including law enforcement activity ✔️ Share information about what officers are doing and where they're operating www.aclu.org/know-your-ri...
We're in federal court today challenging the Trump administration's treatment of immigrants detained at "Alligator Alcatraz." People in this facility are kept in inhumane conditions, without access to legal counsel or the ability to seek release. This is not just cruel; it’s unconstitutional.
On our latest episode of Rights This Way, we sit down with Chase Strangio, the @aclu.org lawyer who argued against the anti-trans Tennessee law in U.S. v. Skrmetti. He explains the flawed logic behind the conservative majority’s decision, what it means, and what its nationwide implications are.
New polling shows NY voters want to invest in addressing the root causes of crime – *not* more police and punishment. We need real solutions, like improving access to mental health care, affordable housing, addiction treatment, and other supports. NY lawmakers should take note.
ICE agents are illegally arresting people at their immigration court hearings + detaining many of them at holding facilities like 26 Federal Plaza. The conditions are horrific: no beds, showers, little-to-no-food + virtually no access to legal counsel or medical help. We’ll see you in court, ICE.
Deploying the National Guard to American cities is a blatant and egregious abuse of power. Take action now 👇
Forcing NYers struggling w/ substance use into treatment can increase the risk of fatal overdoses + raises serious civil liberties concerns. If Mayor Adams really wants to address substance use disorders, he needs to invest in voluntary, evidence-based, low-barrier treatment options – not coercion.
The NYPD's so-called "quality of life" teams are reminiscent of Giuliani-era policing that resulted in more police harassment and profiling of poor people and people of color. New Yorkers don't want broken windows policing under another name
“ The conditions of confinement violate not only basic human rights,” said NYCLU Executive Director Donna Lieberman, “but they violate ICE's own rules and policies.” This is a practice that has been going on and will continue to go on under this administration - so we're taking ICE to court.
The Trump administration is ambushing people who arrive at immigration courts expecting to present their case and return home to their families — instead, ICE is arresting them as they leave the courthouse. It's not just unconscionable - it's unlawful, and we're suing.
Good. Trump deploying the National Guard to NYC would be a blatant abuse of power. Engineering falsehoods that New York City is in turmoil and sending in military troops is fascism in action.
Surveillance cameras are no longer just recording our comings and goings — they're using AI to decide whether we should be reported to law enforcement. An algorithm can't be trusted to determine who is a threat. www.aclu.org/news/nationa...
NY: Make those calls and demand a special session to protect our immigrant communities. NY elected a need to pass #NY4All NOW!
The "choice" between self-deportation, or being separated from your child, is no choice at all. The Trump administration's cruelty towards immigrants is upending communities and traumatizing families. No one should be treated like this.
ICE cannot subject people to inhumane treatment and deny them their Constitutional rights to due process and legal representation. With @aclu.org and @maketheroadny.bsky.social, the fight continues.
🚨🚨 NEW: A district court has granted a temporary restraining order prohibiting ICE from detaining immigrants in abusive conditions at 26 Federal Plaza.
🗣️Say it with us: We can’t arrest our way out of homelessness.
We’ve seen before how federal control of the D.C. National Guard and police can lead to abuse, intimidation, and civil rights violations. This abuse of emergency powers and attack on our rights is a threat to our nation’s democracy.
The number of unsheltered New Yorkers actually increased last year – and every year since Adams took office. We need affordable housing for extremely low income NYers and increased access to mobile mental health treatment teams, which have long waitlists.
No one should live in fear of masked, armed agents on our streets. Congress must pass the VISIBLE Act, which will require federal agents to wear visible ID showing the agency they work for and a name or badge number, and would ban non-medical face coverings.
President Trump's deployment of the National Guard to DC and takeover of the local police department is baseless and an abuse of power. The people of DC shouldn't be forced to live in occupied, militarized communities.
26 Federal Plaza is an inhumane disaster. People trapped inside report spoiled food, overcrowding, inadequate medical care, and no access to legal counsel. No one should endure such abuse — let alone immigrants who haven’t been charged with any crimes. ICE must be held accountable - so we're suing.
Understanding your rights can help you stay calm and advocate for yourself if approached by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or police. 🧵
ICE says that it currently detains 57,000 people – but the reality is that there are at least 26,000 MORE people detained for immigration reasons hidden off the agency's books:
To support trans people, and their right to access gender-affirming care in New York, there is more Gov. Hochul must do. There are three bills awaiting her signature that would help ensure gender-affirming care remains available and accessible in New York. Add your name to urger her to sign:
BREAKING: We're suing the Trump administration over lack of access to legal counsel and unsafe conditions for immigrants held at 26 Federal Plaza. These cruel, unlawful practices violate immigrants’ rights to due process and basic human dignity — and ICE must be held accountable.
In 2018, we uncovered that ICE had a 'no-release policy' — despite a Court explicitly ordering them not to — to keep thousands of people locked away and separated from their families. This order, won w/ the Bronx Defenders, requires ICE to develop a “compliance plan” to hold them accountable.
BREAKING: A federal judge has ordered ICE to comply with a prior settlement requiring immigration agents to enforce New Yorkers’ right to release instead of needlessly detaining people. ICE is not above the law, and immigrants have rights that must be upheld and respected.
On this episode, we hear from Mahmoud Khalil, a lawful permanent resident who was kidnapped by the Trump administration and held in detention because of his advocacy for Palestinian rights. Listen now wherever you get your podcasts:
State Senator Julia Salazar (@salazarsenate.bsky.social) said in a statement that the roughly $20 price tag necessary to purchase a fan “is more than most incarcerated people can afford,” and that permits for fan access can take weeks to approve.
Gov. Abbott is trying to remove elected lawmakers while leaving the 18th Congressional District seat vacant for months. He isn’t protecting democracy — he’s consolidating power. In a democracy, it’s the will of the voters, not the will of the governor, that should decide who represents us. #txlege
Despite the rapidly growing databases of electronic health information, our current health privacy protections leave much of our information vulnerable to exploitation. Our health is deeply personal. It’s in all of our interests to work to restore control over the privacy of our health data:
No matter your immigration status, you have rights when you interact with immigration agents or the police.
“MDC Brooklyn has a long and shameful history of inhumane conditions, and now they are holding immigrants behind closed doors with no accountability," said @velazquez.house.gov “They locked us in today. If they came for us like this…they will come for you and your families next.”
“From the day a judge decrees that the gov must stop the arrests inside courts, they must comply immediately.” We recently joined the @aclu.org, @ecbawm.com & @nyclu.org in suing ICE for its unlawful policy allowing immigration agents to arrest people showing up to court hearings. Learn more.⤵️
But we have the right to read and learn about ourselves and our communities, free from censorship.
Book bans deny us our right to learn about our identities and read about different perspectives.
Arresting people at immigration hearings will only “discourage people from attending court or from feeling safe in court, where folks are simply seeking to access the process that is accorded to them,” said Bobby Hodgson of the @nyclu.org bit.ly/4oncy3S
On the 60th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, remember: If voting wasn’t powerful, extremist lawmakers wouldn’t try so hard to keep us from doing it.
MDC Brooklyn already has a reputation for spoiled food, extreme temperatures, lack of medical care, and unchecked violence. No one should endure such abuse, let alone immigrants who haven't been accused of any crimes, awaiting their day in court.
BREAKING: Today, three members of New York's Congressional delegation were denied entry to Brooklyn's Metropolitan Detention Center (MDC) where immigrant detainees are being held, despite their constitutional oversight authority. This denial raises grave questions of what MDC is trying to hide.
Ambushing people who are just following the law by attending their court appointments has created an atmosphere of terror. But this isn't just cruel - it's unlawful. So on behalf of our plaintiffs @africansus.bsky.social and The Door, we're suing ICE.
📣 New data shows that half of ICE arrests in NYC since Trump took office are at courthouses. This means that mandatory immigration proceedings — where noncitizens are entitled to pursue safety and relief — have been transformed into yet another weapon of the Trump admin's mass deportation agenda.
For years, the SRG has been deployed to suppress New Yorkers’ right to protest, using their militarized equipment and tactics to attack protesters with impunity. No more. New Yorkers deserve better than a violent police force eager to violate their rights. The SRG must be disbanded.
“This is not right. We need to pass New York for All. We came to this country in search of better opportunities and a better quality of life,” said our member, Abigail at last week's rally. Learn how #NY4All could help keep TPS families together.👇
Nationwide, book bans are on the rise: In just a year they tripled from 3,362 to 10,046. NY schools are no exception. Last July, a Suffolk Co. school district disposed of 14 titles - including The Bluest Eye, Fahrenheit 451, and Black Boy - without explanation. We're keeping an eye on the district.
The NYPD's SRG is a notoriously violent unit with a bloated budget, biased training, and a well-documented pattern of brutalizing New Yorkers exercising their right to protest. The CURB Act would end the SRG’s deployment at protests and ban the unit’s most aggressive tactics. Take action now:
We’re taking the Trump-Vance administration to court. ACT has joined a federal class-action lawsuit with @nyclu.org and The Door, to stop ICE from targeting immigrants in courthouses, which is a direct attack on due process.
Oliver Mata Velazquez is a 19-year old asylum seeker. When he showed up for his mandatory immigration court hearing in Buffalo in June, ICE agents illegally snatched him. The NYCLU, Prisoners’ Legal Services of New York, and @rfkhumanrights.bsky.social sued. And we won his release.
We thank Assemblymember Davila for her renewed commitment to our immigrant communities & for working to advance the passage of the New York for All act.#NY4All
For 35 years, the Americans with Disabilities Act has been a critical tool to protect voters with disabilities. Our job now is to ensure we fight to fulfill its full promises over the next 35 years and beyond.