News & Commentary

The American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas and several Wichita organizations are urging the Sedgwick County Court System to change its bail practices, saying the current system unfairly impacts people living in poverty.

Dr. Kubic leads the ACLU of Kansas, a nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting and defending the constitutional rights and civil liberties of all Kansans. The organization works through the courts, the state legislature, and local communities to challenge threats to individual freedoms and to expand protections for those most at risk of discrimination or exclusion.

This week, we spoke with the ACLU of Kansas, which is closely monitoring the situation. The organization said that those fired by private companies over their comments may not have much recourse, but firings from Kansas schools are a different story, as they are an arm of the government, and the constitution is at play.

In early July, the ACLU of Kansas called for the “immediate release” of the body camera footage from the June 22 shooting. The release, the nonprofit said, would allow for transparency and accountability.

A new ACLU study reveals how cash bail policies in Sedgwick County disproportionately impact low-income families, fueling a contentious statewide and national conversation about crime, justice, and economic inequality.

The Kansas ACLU is calling for the release of inmates facing nonviolent charges without having to pay bail.

In a recent study, the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas asks people to imagine a Wichita-area husband and wife raising a daughter who are living paycheck to paycheck.

“We believe that democracy is strongest and most effective when more people can participate,” said Micah Kubic, the executive director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas. “When we get rid of barriers to participation by any group we believe that democracy is at its strongest, and that your ability to participate should not be based on your ability to surmount those barriers on your own.”

Treating the map like a ball of Silly Putty meant to be stretched and pulled apart was an obvious and “deliberate attempt to silence the political voices of Democratic and minority Kansans,” Sharon Brett, legal director for the ACLU of Kansas, said amidst a failed 2022 lawsuit challenging the new maps.