As we near the end of the year, we are bringing you an episode of reflection. A lot has happened in the world, in our country and in our work at the ACLU.

While we have weathered devastating losses like the overturn of Roe v. Wade this past summer, there are still meaningful victories we can celebrate this year and build on in the coming year. We’ve successfully fought back in courts all across the country on behalf of abortion access, racist and homophobic education gag orders, immigrant rights, voting rights and so much more.

So today we are regrouping with the ACLU’s National Legal Director, David Cole, to talk through where we can find hope this year and also where we can continue to press forward.

2022 Wins With David Cole

At Liberty is a weekly podcast from the ACLU that explores the biggest civil rights and civil liberties issues of the day. A production of ACLU, Inc.

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What would American democracy look like in the hands of teenage girls? That is the question at the center of "Girls State," a new Apple TV+ documentary and the nationwide civic leadership program that it's named after. As participants, high school students are competitively selected into an immersive experiment in which they must build a mock government from the ground up, complete with municipal roles, branches, a governor, and a Supreme Court.

The film takes us inside Missouri Girls State 2022, where hundreds of girls from across the state gather at Lindenwood University to reimagine what it means to govern and devise a better democracy. As citizens of Girls State, these young women take on fierce elections and the toughest political questions of today, on top of the trials of teenage-hood. Amid political polarization and set on the heels of the leaked Dobbs draft decision, the girls of "Girls State" challenge themselves and each other as they build pathways to the future that they want and make plans for how they're going to run it.

Joining us today to talk about their Girls State experience and their plans to change the world are some of the girls from the film, Cecilia Bartin, Nisha Murali, and Tochi Ihekona.

Let Teen Girls Run the Government

On this episode, "At Liberty" producer Vanessa Handy speaks with young adult and middle-grade literature author, Jason Reynolds. Though he writes for young audiences, Jason doesn't shy away from serious themes or challenges, with many of his books dealing with death, mourning, racism, police brutality, and gun violence. Jason writes the stuff of real life, and this has made him a superstar among young readers and adults alike. 

He has penned numerous bestselling and award-winning books like “Look Both Ways: A Tale Told In Ten Blocks,” “Ghost,” “As Brave as You,” “Long Way Down,” and “All American Boys” with Brendan Kiely. He also used his gifts to promote literacy as the national ambassador for young people's literature from 2020 to 2022. Today, he joins us to discuss carrying on the tradition of Black storytelling and how we can all inspire young people to love literature.

Jason Reynolds Is Creating a Literary Archive for the Next Generation

May is Asian American Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander Month and we’re celebrating with a guest that is sure to make you laugh hard. You might even recognize her infectious laugh from her viral videos on TikTok.

Drew Afualo is one of today’s most popular feminist content creators. Her no-BS approach to roasting misogynistic men on the internet has been met with folks flocking to her social pages to feel seen, heard and to rally around squelching hate, bigotry and misogyny. Her mission to stand up for the most marginalized among us is why she’s one of Time Magazine’s Next Generation Leaders, and that’s not all. This March, the Coalition of Asian Pacifics in Entertainment honored Drew with the Tastemaker Award. She’s a content creator, women’s rights advocate, podcast host, and author of the forthcoming book “LOUD: Accept Nothing Less Than the Life You Deserve.”

Drew joins us today to discuss her journey to TikTok, Samoan identity, and the way comedy and culture have built a meaningful community online primed not just for likes, but also for action. Simply put: Drew is using her voice and in the process, helping all of us find our own.

Drew Afualo Wants You to Be Meaner To Misogynists

On April 17, students at Columbia University set up an encampment to show support for Palestinians and demand the university divest from its business related to or within Israel as a means of anti-war protest. In the weeks since its inception, the protest movement has spread, with encampments set up on over 100 college and university campuses worldwide.

But as these protests continue, we’ve watched university leadership and campus and local law enforcement meet these demonstrations with a disturbing response. In the last several weeks, over 2,000 people have been arrested or detained on campuses across the country. Students and faculty have faced arrest, criminal charges, suspensions, and excessive use of force from police. This comes alongside the ongoing threats to and in some cases, the complete suspension of chapters of pro-Palestinian organizations like Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace on campuses nationwide.

Universities have long been a site of protest, particularly anti-war protest, and a safe space for students, faculty, and staff to freely express themselves in the exchange of ideas. As these protests continue, our ACLU affiliates are keeping a pulse on campus demonstrations, advocating for students’ rights, and keeping universities accountable when they act with disproportionate and inequitable discipline. So on this episode of At Liberty, we’re bringing you dispatches from affiliate staff: Veronica Salama, staff attorney at the New York Civil Liberties Union, Carol Rose, executive director of the ACLU of Massachusetts, and Ramis Wadood, staff attorney at the ACLU of Michigan. You’ll also hear from Jenn Rolnick Borchetta, Deputy Project Director on Policing in the Criminal Law Reform Project at ACLU National. They’ll share what they’re seeing on the ground and the legal concern and action being taken at this time. Together, we can pave a way forward that protects activism at our nation’s academic institutions and beyond.

To learn more about the ACLU's response to the rise in anti-war student protests and the increased police presence on college campuses nationwide, check out these resources:

https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/aclu-urges-college-and-university-leaders-to-protect-free-speech-and-academic-freedom
https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/protesters-rights
https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/students-rights
https://www.nyclu.org/resources/know-your-rights/know-your-rights-students-higher-education-first-amendment#resources

Are you concerned that your civil rights have been violated at a protest? Visit the website of your ACLU affiliate to access forms to file a complaint: https://www.aclu.org/affiliates

Special Edition: What We're Seeing at Campus Anti-War Protests

With the rise of anti-war protests and encampments taking place on college campuses across the country, we are sharing an episode from a couple of years ago that addresses some questions related to free speech in an education setting. In this episode, our resident free speech expert Ben Wizner answers listener questions. You’ll hear us talk about the different first amendment protections at K-12 schools and universities, which vary between public and privately funded institutions.

We are monitoring the student-led protests in support of Palestine and the subsequent use of force ordered by local authorities across the country and will bring you an episode next week with dispatches from our affiliates who have taken legal action or who have demonstrated legal concern. Until then, we hope this episode gives you some sense of student speech rights and why we are so committed to protecting these rights at the ACLU.

2022 Wins With David Cole

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