When you support the ACLU of Louisiana, you join a movement of people fighting for a more just and equitable Louisiana for everyone.
Since 1956, the ACLU of Louisiana has been the state’s guardian of liberty, taking on the toughest fights for civil liberties and equal justice. Today, our Executive Director Alanah Odoms is the first Black woman to lead the ACLU of Louisiana in its 65-year history. Under her leadership, our organization has worked to carry on our legacy of defending the Constitution and Bill of Rights, with the new charge to refract that work through the lens of racial justice.
Every gift, no matter the size, makes an impact on the ACLU of Louisiana’s ability to protect lives and safeguard democracy. Here are just a few of our landmark initiatives, which our donors make possible:
- Justice Lab: Putting Racist Policing on Trial: Louisiana has the highest ratio of police officers-to-residents of any state in the country and an epidemic of police violence that disproportionately impacts communities of color. Through Justice Lab, we have partnered with law firms and legal clinics to investigate hundreds of cases of police misconduct in our state, and hold police accountable through a first-of-its-kind litigation, storytelling and advocacy effort. It’s time to end the era of police impunity once and for all.
- Reforming Pretrial Incarceration. Our landmark Justice Can’t Wait report shined a spotlight on Louisiana’s pretrial justice system, which incarcerates 15,000 people on any given day on the mere accusation of a crime, at an annual cost of $290 million to taxpayers. Most people held in parish jails in Louisiana are accused of low-level offenses, and are being held for no other reason than their inability to afford bail. This year we will be working in the Legislature to combat this harmful practice and reduce the number of people who languish in jail awaiting trial.
- Protecting Immigrants' Rights. During the Trump administration, Louisiana became the epicenter of its mass detention agenda, with thousands of immigrants and asylum-seekers warehoused in brutal conditions in remote private prisons. We’ve sued to challenge the unlawful detention of immigrants, and worked to expose the horrific conditions in these facilities. In 2021, the ACLU of Louisiana will continue to advocate on behalf of immigrant communities through both litigation and advocacy.
Across the state, donors are joining our rallying cry for racial justice with historic investment in our Black-led organization. Your support of the ACLU’s in the courts, legislature, and in communities will continue to empower our work for a more just and equitable future for everyone. Thank you for standing with us.
