Join the Fight

Read the ACLU-D.C.'s Latest Stop-and-Frisk Report

ACLU-DC Resources for Abortion in D.C.

Update After Alleged Violations of Students' First Amendment Rights

Five ways the First Amendment protects your speech – and three ways it does not

D.C. has long been a critical venue for people to express their views, as a place with 700,000 local residents and as the site of the federal government. Here's what to know about our First Amendment rights in...

D.C. Has a Police Abuse Problem

Police abuse in the District causes significant harm, costs millions of dollars, and undermines the whole justice system. It’s clearly time for District leaders to invest in police accountability solutions.

How to Vote in the June 4 D.C. Primary Election

Here is everything you need to know to vote in the primary. D.C. voter registration, polling locations, early voting, mail-in and drop-off ballots.

Latest Press Releases

September 17, 2024

ACLU-D.C. Responds to MPD Statement About Stop and Frisk Data

"District leaders need to rethink how stop-and-frisk practices impact community trust and public safety. It's time to adopt a policing approach that effectively serves all residents.”

September 16, 2024

New ACLU Report on D.C. Stop-and-Frisk Data Reveals Racial Disparities Consistent with Racial Bias

“Instead of leaning into harmful and ineffective policing, the District should build a public safety system that protects us from bias, increases trust in government, and keeps all our communities safe.”

September 10, 2024

Lawsuit Challenging Armed Police Response to Mental Health Emergencies in Washington, D.C. to Proceed

“This ruling moves us one step closer to bringing essential, life-saving emergency mental health care to D.C. communities."

In the Courts

One of the main ways ACLU-D.C. works to protect civil liberties and civil rights is through litigation. We litigate in the federal courts and in the local courts, and at every level: from D.C. Superior Court to the Supreme Court of the United States. Sometimes we’re able to solve a problem by just writing a letter.

Bread for the City v. District of Columbia – Challenging Discrimination in Mental Health Emergency Response Services

When people in D.C. call 911 for a mental health emergency, it’s generally a Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) officer who responds. The District’s reliance on police as its default first responders for mental health emergencies is not only unfair and unsafe but also unlawful.

Bread for the City v. District of Columbia – Challenging Discrimination in Mental Health Emergency Response Services

All court cases