GOOD NEWS: SCOTUS upholds ruling that protects rights of people experiencing homelessness to ask for help to meet their basic needs. This reinforces a basic understanding that asking for assistance is constitutionally protected speech.
Read the SPLC statement: buff.ly/c5YKcRc
Maroon and pink background with a collaged grouping of a megaphone and a hand holding a sign with a talking mouth, meant to represent free speech. Texts says, "Update: Washington Supreme Court invalidates recall petition against a Stevenson councilmember Lucy Lauser."
In its ruling, the Court determined Lauser did not violate the law or her oath of office. The Washington Supreme Court held that nudity alone does not amount to the crime of “indecent exposure” and Lauser’s protest was constitutionally protected political expression. For a full summary of the case and ruling, read more at: https://www.aclu-wa.org/press-releases/aclu-wa-statement-on-wa-supreme-court-ruling-for-stevenson-councilmember-lucy-lauser/
"I’m very happy that the WA Supreme Court affirmed my constitutional rights to free speech & expression and dismissed this recall against me. As I've said from the beginning, my body is not obscene, and like any other woman, I have a right to be treated equally to a man. I will not allow the recall petition or the attention around it to shift focus away from the original purpose of my protest: to call out the ongoing abuse & discrimination against transgender people in this country." Lucy Lauser
This is a win for the right of free speech and expression. No one should be targeted or removed from public office for lawfully exercising their first amendment rights.
03.03.2026 01:24 — 👍 14 🔁 4 💬 1 📌 0
20 books to read by transgender women.
List of memoirs and biographies including "The Risk It Takes to Bloom" by Raquel Willis, "Man Enough to Be a Woman" by Jayne County, "Tomorrow Will Be Different" by Sarah McBride, and "Marsha" by Tourmaline.
List of fiction books including "Detransition, Baby" by Torrey Peters, "The Sapling Cage" by Margaret Killjoy, "Woodworking by Emily St. James, and "Bad Girls" by Camila Sosa Villada.
List of nonfiction books including "Transgender History" by Susan Stryker, "Tar Hollow Trans: Essays" by Stacy Jane Grover, "Whipping Girl" by Julia Serano, and "Gender Outlaws" by Kate Bornstein.
📚 It’s #NationalReadAcrossAmericaDay, & there’s no better time to uplift the voices of trans women!
At a time when we’re fighting against an onslaught of attacks on trans people's rights, it’s more important than ever to support this community.
Repost to show your support for trans women! 🏳️⚧️
Trans people won't be erased, no matter how hard politicians try.
01.03.2026 17:56 — 👍 1082 🔁 281 💬 15 📌 5
Only Congress has the constitutional power to authorize war.
Yet, the Trump administration is once again taking unilateral and reckless military action against Iran, putting both servicemembers and civilians in danger. This is unconstitutional.
Lala Zanell, activist and ACLU campaign manager speaks at a podium during a public rally, bundled in a lavender scarf and beanie. Her quote reads: “We cannot advocate for Black lives if we are not advocating for Black trans lives.” ACLU and “Black Futures Month” logos appear on the bottom corners of the image.
LaLa Zanell is a dedicated force in the fight for trans liberation. Before working at the ACLU, she fought for police reform, advocated for LGBTQIA2S+ New Yorkers who've experienced violence and defended transgender rights before the White House and Congress.
#BlackFuturesMonth
Ryan Coogler, wearing a dark sweater and patterned cap, speaks into a microphone during a panel talk. His quote reads: “With me, making a film is always about humanity.” Text identifies him as the writer and director of Black Panther and Sinners. The image includes ACLU and “Black Futures Month” branding.
Ryan Coogler is a highly acclaimed director, writer, and genre-defying filmmaker known for blockbuster films that explore Black identity and experiences.
Sinners, his latest film, received a record-breaking 16 Oscar nominations, more than any other film in Academy Award history.
#BlackFuturesMonth
🔴Let's go deeper: Read a reflection from ACLU-WA Executive Director michele storms on Black Futures Month in this moment and learn about ways to build your knowledge and take action.
“REFUSE TO RELENT” header. Message below reads "Right now, democracy is at risk for all of us, with the heaviest burdens on Black people, immigrants, Indigenous communities, communities of color, LGBTQIA2S+ and other historically marginalized communities. Protecting our democracy requires everyone to show up for justice however they can."
“BUILD YOUR KNOWLEDGE” header. Message below reads: "For more about current issues, events and the work being done to build Black Futures in communities around our state, read and engage with local media for and produced by people of color and historically marginalized communities, including The Black Lens, True Citizen, the Emerald, The Seattle Medium and the Nerd Farmer Podcast."
“TAKE ACTION” header. Message below reads "It is critical for people to show up by voting, writing lawmakers, observing the actions of government, engaging with their local community, donating (especially to grassroots groups), providing mutual aid, attending peaceful protests, learning their rights and sharing that information with neighbors, friends and family."
This Black Futures Month and beyond, we are committed to honoring the past by relentlessly working towards a future where – despite barriers, opposition and attempts to erase history – Black people are free, and therefore everyone is free.
24.02.2026 23:02 — 👍 2 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0
Quote from michele storms' letter: “As we continue to hold a dream for Black futures, and therefore all our futures, we must build our knowledge, take action, and refuse to relent until all are free.”
Many of us are rightfully looking to the Jim Crow and Civil Rights Era to understand the abuses we are seeing now.
Black movement leaders and organizers risked jail time, losing their jobs, and losing their lives to win freedoms that we all now cherish.
📢Tell the House: fix SB 6002 so that it truly protects the privacy of people in our state.
The Driver Privacy Act is a bill that could help regulate local use of license plate readers. But the current version of the bill does not go far enough to protect our privacy.
That’s why we’re calling on our representatives to strengthen and pass it.
Surveillance companies like Ring and Flock Safety rely on weak rules and deceptive marketing to operate in our communities.
But you are pushing back; it's time for lawmakers to match that energy.
It’s essential that we prepare to take action in November.
To learn more about how to get involved, visit the No Hate in Washington State website: nohateinwastate.org
CASE UPDATE: A court has dismissed our challenge to Initiative 2081: a deceptive and harmful law that threatened 2SLGBTQIA+ youth, homeless youth, youth of color, and students from other marginalized backgrounds — as well as their access to confidential health care and inclusive education.
19.02.2026 23:01 — 👍 1 🔁 1 💬 1 📌 0📸 Photo credit: Image courtesy of the family of Fred T. Korematsu, CC BY 2.0 <creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
19.02.2026 21:02 — 👍 1 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0
🔶Support the Defending Our Neighbors Fund - an initiative funding on-the-ground organizations that directly provide legal services for immigrant families.
🔗Please note: the link takes you to a third-party website, defendingourneighbors.org.
🔶 Follow Densho Project to learn about Japanese American history and its connection to promoting justice and equity today.
🔶 This Saturday at 1pm: Join Tsuru for Solidarity and La Resistencia for a solidarity rally at the NW Detention Center in Tacoma.
https://www.instagram.com/p/DUZWEYvkt08/?
To honor Fred Korematsu's legacy, and all the Japanese Americans who were unjustly incarcerated – and to support communities who are being targeted with similar tactics today – we must take action together.
Here are some ways to take action today and this weekend⬇️
This dark period in our history echoes today.
President Trump and his administration are targeting anyone they think might be immigrants, removing people from their communities, and harming people who show up for their neighbors – including the shooting and killing of Alex Pretti and Renee Good.
Quote by civil rights activist Fred Korematsu next to a black-and-white picture of Korematsu sitting and attorney Don Tamaki standing behind him. Quote reads: "Fears and prejudices directed against minority communities are too easy to evoke and exaggerate, often to serve the political agendas of those who promote those fears."
During WWII, the U.S. government forcibly took thousands of people of Japanese ancestry from their homes and exiled them to detention centers, and later concentration camps.
Fred Korematsu was arrested and convicted for refusing to go to the camps. He appealed all the way to the Supreme Court.
Part of the myth of Ring is that this is MY camera on MY door--but when you see a map and realize that there are a hundred in your neighborhood and they're all connected by a corporation that serves the police, the illusion dissolves.
19.02.2026 19:36 — 👍 325 🔁 119 💬 13 📌 4
BREAKING: We reached a settlement that requires the Trump administration to permanently maintain medical research that had been erased on a government website.
The government doesn't get to censor science.
Black graphic with a photo of a young Rev. Jesse Jackson in a suit speaking into a set of microphones with his fist in the air and white text reads "Hold your head high, stick your chest out. It gets dark sometimes, but morning comes. Keep hope alive." The quote is attributed to Reverend Jesse Jackson, civil rights activist
We mourn the loss of the Reverend Jesse Jackson, who played an extraordinarily consequential role not in only advancing our nation’s civil rights, but also strengthening our democracy.
17.02.2026 22:19 — 👍 608 🔁 138 💬 6 📌 5
The Trump administration is arguing that federal courts can't step in to stop unconstitutional immigration detention.
If that were true, Mohsen could have been detained for ten months on a charge that the government couldn't even substantiate before an immigration judge.
Hot pink graphic with small hearts. Image of a protestor holding an "ICE Out of Washington."
Blue and pink checkered graphic with a collage of a rose, scales, and a heart. Text reads "Hey babe, want to form a more perfect union?"
You had me at, "I know my rights."
14.02.2026 19:02 — 👍 14 🔁 3 💬 1 📌 1
The late Shirley Raines, in a glittery purple outfit, stands beside a quote on her role in offering self-care essentials to people living outside.
The late Shirley Raines poured herself into bringing compassion to unhoused communities in California and Nevada, giving hygiene products and food to as many people as possible day after day.
She showed millions the difference one can make by providing a neighbor with a meal, a makeover, and care.
These actions set a dangerous precedent that could have far reaching implications for all kinds of essential health care services – we have to act now.
Sign on to tell the administration: “Hands off our health care!”
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has proposed two major rules that would devastate access to health care for transgender people.
This is an attempt to shut down access to health care the administration finds objectionable.
