D.C. Home Rule

The people who live in Washington, D.C. are just like people who live in any other state – veterans, nurses, teachers, neighbors. But because D.C. is not legally recognized as a state, the president and Congress have extraordinary power to micromanage our local affairs if they choose to use this undemocratic power.  The D.C. Home Rule Act of 1973 passed as a compromise between D.C. residents who wanted full democratic rights and members of Congress who wanted to maintain some power over D.C. and its historically Black population.   The law allowed D.C. residents to elect a local government to oversee the day-to-day functioning of the District, while Congress maintained power over local laws, the local budget, and other matters.  We are seeing the consequences of this limited compromise.  The Trump Administration's unprecedented siege shows just how dangerous it is for D.C. to continue to be denied statehood, and it shows how people’s tax dollars from around the country are used to target the nation’s capital. The ACLU works to protect everyone’s rights and liberties in our nation’s capital while advocating for D.C. Statehood. When we protect D.C., we protect democracy.