By Meghan Thompson
For The Diamondback
A recent spike in ACLU donations will help the group’s Maryland chapter work toward protecting people in this state impacted by President Trump’s policies.
The American Civil Liberties Union received more than $24 million in online donations this past weekend – six times more than what they raise in a typical year, CNN reported. The flood of contributions came at the same time the ACLU successfully challenged sections of Trump’s immigration ban in court.
“Thank you all for your support!” the group tweeted Tuesday. “These lawsuits are expensive, so keep the donations coming!”
The ACLU of Maryland does not yet know how much of that money will be directed toward their chapter, but they will put the funds toward projects impacting Maryland residents, said communications director Meredith Curtis.
This state’s chapter is supporting a bill currently being considered by the Howard County Council that would forbid county employees from discriminating based on a person’s immigration status.
“This is an important time to support things like sanctuary cities and support local bills that say police can’t act as [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] agents,” Curtis said.
Their other 2017 legislative priorities include reforming Maryland’s Public Information Act, boosting funding of public education and fighting for the public’s right to body camera footage.
“If there are efforts to undermine LGBT students especially, we will be very interested in taking action on those things,” Curtis said, “and in a larger sense we will be paying attention to any effort to make it more difficult for people to vote.”
Freshman government and politics major Ty Buffington said it’s important to donate to the ACLU during the Trump administration. The group has about 13,000 members in Maryland, according to its website.
“The American Civil Liberties Union is a very important organization in U.S. politics, especially with Donald Trump in the White House,” said Buffington, a member of this university’s Our Revolution chapter. “The ACLU fights to protect your freedom every day and has always been on the right side of history … it is clear that the ACLU will be on the forefront of the resistance to Donald Trump’s corporate agenda.”
Since Trump’s inauguration, numerous other organizations have seen an uptick in donations, including Planned Parenthood and the Anti-Defamation League.
“There has been such an outpour of human presence to show and stand up against attempts to violate people’s fundamental human rights,” Curtis said. “This is something we have not seen in a long time.”
