By ACLU of Iowa Executive Director
Mark Stringer
The reelection of Donald Trump has created, again, a one-man constitutional crisis.
It also comes after the already disheartening development in Iowa last summer, when a new law made most abortions after six weeks illegal.
But we will not be deterred. After all, these are the types of difficult times that prompted the creation of the ACLU of Iowa in the first place, back in 1935.
Fortunately, thanks to our generous supporters—many of whom started donating after Trump’s first election—we are better equipped than ever to handle what comes.
Nationally, we are twice as large as we were in 2016. Here in Iowa we have more than doubled our staff overall and tripled the size of our legal team.
We are going to need that people power. The breadth of our work, both statewide and nationally, includes reproductive freedom, of course, but also racial justice, LGBTQ issues, gender equality, religious freedom, student rights, government and technology privacy issues, voting rights, disability rights, and our long-held focus on free speech and freedom of expression, which is the very foundation of our democracy.
It also includes the rights of immigrants—something President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to undermine.
That’s extremely relevant to us here in Iowa. Nearly 200,000 Iowans were born in a different country, about double the number in 2000. Yet many of these Iowans struggle for fair treatment, especially those who are not fully documented or whose immigration status is in flux or tied up in layers of bureaucracy.
Just as there are unique stories that have brought immigrants to Iowa, there are also dozens of different immigration statuses. It’s one reason the term “illegal” is so offensive. Not only does that term not recognize the individual, complex situation of each person; it is dehumanizing.
So I’m proud that we are suing to stop one of the worst, most far-reaching anti-immigrant laws ever passed in the state of Iowa, SF2340. This law, currently blocked by a federal court, conflicts with existing immigration laws by directing Iowa law enforcement to arrest even immigrants who have authorization to be here. This includes people granted asylum; those who were given visas to protect victims of crime, trafficking, or domestic violence; and many more, including mere children.
It’s vital litigation like this that underlines the importance of the work we do. It also makes me grateful for your support. The ACLU relies solely on private donations from people like you.
We all want a just and equitable Iowa in which everyone can live and thrive. And we won’t stop working for it.
