News & Commentary

During Summer 2015, the ACLU of Kansas is on a statewide tour talking about civil liberties in Kansas today. The tour is called Where Freedom Stands: Civil Liberties in Kansas Today.Recently, Executive Director Micah Kubic went to Hays, KS and was welcomed into an ACLU's member home to speak on the state of civil liberties in Kansas today.“We exist to defend constitutional rights and to protect and strengthen those rights,” he said. “Kansas is on the front line of every single civil liberties battle raging in the U.S.“We have our work cut out for us on all of those issues. But the good news is that we are being pretty successful on all of those issues given a political environment that is not always entirely friendly. Things are going very well. But the fight for our rights is a grinding daily struggle, and nowhere in the country is that more true than right here in Kansas.”Read the entire article at the Hays Daily News from June 20, 2015. 

In the fall of 2013, the University of Kansas expelled Navid Yeasin for bad conduct that took place off-campus during the summer of 2013.  As part of the grounds for expulsion, KU considered tweets Yeasin had posted about his ex-girlfriend.  KU also ordered Yeasin not to post anything on social media about his ex-girlfriend. Because KU's restrictions on the content of Yeasin's speech on social media raise serious First Amendment issues, the ACLU of Kansas has filed an amicus brief with the Kansas Court of Appeals in the case challenging the expulsion.ACLU Amicus Brief - Yeasin v. KU  

Great news!After organizations from across the state came together to oppose SB 175, Kansas House Speaker Ray Merrick announced yesterday that he does not plan to debate the bill, a bill that would force universities to use public funding to support discriminatory student organizations.The ACLU of Kansas, Equality of Kansas, National Organization for Women, Americans United, Mainstream Coalition, as well as student voices and faith leaders from across Kansas proved that this discrimination is not acceptable for the state of Kansas.Thank you for your support on this issue! Your voice matters.

Real Encounter Outreach a self-described “evangelistic outreach” group — with a character development message woven throughout held assemblies in the Topeka area school districts. Doug Bonney, legal director of the ACLU of Kansas reached out to the districts holding the assemblies to ensure religious content was withheld during school hours.

Doug Bonney, legal director of the ACLU of Kansas was recently interviewed by the Topeka Capital-Journal after  crude text messages between fraternity members came to light.

Legal Director Doug Bonney recently discovered the Crawford County Jail is prohibiting inmates from receiving newspapers, magazines and books from publishers.  A demand letter for information was sent to the jail on March 23, 2015.An absolute ban on periodical subscriptions, including newspapers and magazines, and on orders of books is unconstitutional. Although the right in not unlimited, inmates retain a First Amendment right to receive books and magazines.Read Doug's letter to the Crawford County Jail Sheriff's Office here.

For many, a college education is a necessary precursor to succeeding in the workforce. Under state law, any Kansas student who has attended a Kansas high school for three or more years and has earned a high school diploma or a general educational development (GED) certificate would qualify for in-state tuition at public universities.Kansas House Bill 2139 would repeal this successful law, and would dash the hopes of hundreds of Kansans by preventing them from paying the in-state tuition rate. Federal law provides states with an option to allow students to pay in-state tuition regardless of their immigration status. HB 2139 would work against the federal system and move Kansas in the wrong direction.HB 2139 was introduced during the 2015 Kansas legislative session and has currently not advanced in the legislative process.ACLU Testimony HB 2139 - In-State Tuition for Undocumented StudentsNews Coverage

SB 56, a new bill potentially gives license to criminally charge teachers or principals from discussing material such as Huckleberry Finn.  Executive Director of the ACLU of Kansas was recently interviewed by several local news sources regarding SB56.

Senate Bill 18 would require Kansas law enforcement officers to wear body cameras capable of videotaping interactions with the public. The Senate Corrections and Juvenile Justice Committee is currently hearing testimony.