It was around 10 p.m. on election night when our ACLU of Missouri team started e-mailing one another. We knew that that every issue we work on and every fight we take up was on the line.
The next day was tough – for our team, for our colleagues at our national offices and in our affiliates in every state across the country. It was tough for millions of Americans everywhere – DREAM’ers, women, Muslim-Americans, immigrants, LGBTQ folks, religious minorities, and communities of color. The fear, the anxiety, the sense of being attacked were palpable.
But our team knew we had to refocus on: “What’s next?”
As if their response weren’t inspiring enough, what happened next truly gives me hope because so many of you reached out with the same question: “What’s next?”
Since the election, we have been overwhelmed by the support we’ve received from across the country -- and from right here in Missouri. Countless numbers of you joined us as members, made generous contributions and signed up to volunteer.
Here is exactly where your support is going, and how we will use it to help protect the rights of every Missourian:
- Continuing our fight for fair and accountable policing and comprehensive criminal justice reform.
- Standing up for the almost 230,000 immigrants in Missouri, including the DREAMers seeking a college education in our state.
- Fighting any and all efforts to take back hard-earned victories for LGBTQ equality.
- Safeguarding the rights of our Muslim citizens to practice their religion freely and openly, without having to register in a national database.
- Combating efforts to further restrict or criminalize a woman’s right to choose.
Without a doubt, there is work to do. We’re a small staff in Missouri with a big job. Your support goes directly to making sure we’re able to be in courtrooms and communities across our state providing advocacy, legal, and public education services to those in need,free of charge.
The arc of the universe may well bend toward justice. But there’s no reason we shouldn’t do everything in our power to help it along. Please, if you haven’t already, become a member and commit to fighting alongside us.
Sincerely,
Jeffrey A. Mittman
Executive Director
ACLU of Missouri