The ACLU of Michigan files lawsuits that impact people’s rights by setting a legal precedent, or affecting the policies and actions of public officials. Our current Fall 2024 Legal Docket details our legal cases and actions taken in 2023-2024.
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Feb 23, 2015
“Prayer Station” in Warren City Hall
Religious Liberty
Since 2009, a church group has been using space in the public atrium of Warren’s city hall to operate a “prayer station.” Volunteers at the prayer station distribute religious literature, discuss their...
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Feb 10, 2015
Christian Prayer at Public School Graduation Ceremony
Student Rights
In 2014, the ACLU of Michigan received several complaints that the graduation ceremony at a public high school in Zeeland featured Christian prayers approved by school officials. We wrote a letter to the...
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Feb 6, 2015
Legislating Behind Closed Doors
Voting Rights
Senior Judge and Detroit legend Damon Keith once wrote, “Democracy dies behind closed doors.”
In an event that is believed to be unprecedented in Michigan history, public access to the Capitol...
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Jan 15, 2015
300 Families for Marriage Equality
Religious Liberty
In a victory for marriage equality, a federal judge ruled on January 15, 2015 that the state of Michigan must recognize the legal marriages of 300 same-sex couples who were wed in...
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Jan 1, 2015
Defending Michigan Marriages
The Nancy Katz & Margo Dichtelmiller LGBTQ+ Project
On March 21, 2014, Judge Bernard Friedman entered a final judgment in DeBoer v. Snyder (see above paragraph), declaring Michigan’s ban on marriage for same-sex couples unconstitutional and enjoining the...
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Dec 18, 2014
The Right To Predict the Future
Free Speech
Kalamazoo has an old ordinance that makes it illegal to engage in the business of “phrenology, palmistry, or the telling of fortunes.” In December 2014 Kalamazoo police officers threatened to enforce this...