News & Commentary

On Feb. 25, Siobhan Kirchstein received an official letter from the Kansas Division of Vehicles instructing her to surrender her driver’s license. She was one of hundreds of Kansans who received such letters when Senate Bill 244, a hastily passed piece of legislation, invalidated driver’s licenses on which the gender marker did not match the holder’s sex as assigned at birth.

The ACLU of Kansas immediately sued over the law; the evidentiary court hearing for a temporary injunction against the law is scheduled for September 29.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas claimed via email that law enforcement entities are using the HALO Act to discourage bystanders from documenting the activity of federal agents. The nonprofit organization also claimed the law raises safety concerns for Kansans who encounter agents.

On August 4, voters in Kansas and Missouri voted down ballot measures that would have opened the door for attacks on our democracy. In both states, politicians referred measures to the ballot to deceive voters and attempt to diminish the power of the people. But the people struck those efforts down by wide margins: 61% voted No in Kansas, and a striking 80% voted No in Missouri. The Kansas measure would have dismantled the state’s impartial Supreme Court and made it subject to partisan elections, while a measure in Missouri would have made it next to impossible for voters to use the citizen-initiated ballot process to protect their rights with citizen-led ballot initiatives.

“So much was on the line tonight: abortion rights, voting rights, public education, workers’ rights, and the fundamental freedoms guaranteed to every Kansan,” said Micah Kubic, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas. “The politicians behind this amendment wanted a court they could control — a court that would do their bidding instead of following the law and the constitution.

"The billionaire political donors and politicians behind this amendment tried to buy our Supreme Court," Kubic said. "They tried to turn our justices into politicians for sale, all so they could control the court’s rulings and take away our rights. But tonight, Kansas said NO."

The American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas, Planned Parenthood Great Plains Votes and Kansas Appleseed joined forces to form Kansas United for Impartial Courts in a campaign to oppose the constitutional amendment. They warned that the amendment would allow out-of-state billionaires to buy the court. “The billionaire political donors and politicians behind this amendment tried to buy our Supreme Court,” said Micah Kubic, executive director of the ACLU of Kansas. “They tried to turn our justices into politicians for sale, all so they could control the court’s rulings and take away our rights. But tonight, Kansas said no.”

According to the ACLU of Kansas, between 80,000 and 100,000 of these devices are now installed across the country. The assumption that "out here" means unobserved is dead.

Kubic, who is also executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Kansas, said an election would turn justices into politicians seeking dollars for campaigns. He expressed concern over the influence that campaign money could have in the court system. “Wisconsin is the best example because it is the most recent one of what this new landscape looks like,” he said.