DC: Capitol Rally - ACLU Day of Action to Restore Law and Justice

DC

Washington

Where: Capitol Hill, further details TBA

Map to Event

Habeas corpus is not a fancy legal term. It's the freedom from being thrown in prison illegally, with no help and no end in sight.

From England's Magna Carta through recent Supreme Court decisions protecting Guantánamo detainees, the prohibition against unlawful imprisonment has remained fundamental to our system of laws and our basic values. No government should ever be given the power to call someone an enemy and lock them away indefinitely.

Today we face a new and unprecedented assault on habeas corpus, due process and our most basic American values: The Military Commissions Act of 2006, which eliminates habeas rights for some people gives the president absolute power to designate enemy combatants, and weakens the rules preventing evidence gained through torture.

We all know the difference between fairness and persecution, and it is up to each of us to tell Congress to correct its mistake and restore habeas, and all of our Constitutional rights.

If we don’t act immediately to fix the Military Commissions Act, basic protections like habeas corpus could be lost forever, and our country will become unrecognizable.

We can restore habeas and get our rights back - if we act together, our voices will reach Congress and they will stand up for the values we elected them to defend.

Join us on June 26, in Washington, D.C., as we gather together at the Capitol and across the nation, meet with lawmakers, and rally to demand the restoration of our constitutional rights!

As part of our Day of Action, we’ll deliver petitions to Congress from people all over the country who are demanding a return to our fundamental values of freedom and fairness. We need 100,000 signatures. The petition seeks to:

1. Restore habeas corpus and due process.
2. Pass the Restoring the Constitution Act of 2007.
3. End torture and abuse in secret prisons.
4. Stop extraordinary rendition: secretly kidnapping people and sending them to countries that torture.
5. Close the detention center at Guantánamo Bay and give those held there access to justice.
6. Investigate wrongdoing and ensure those who broke the law are held accountable.
7. Restore American values and the rule of law.

Please add your name now if you haven't already.

And after you sign, ask 5 friends to sign the petition as well.