Revival of the Atlasian Civil Liberties Caucus

[Ebowed]

Would anyone be interested in joining a revived version of the ACLC group?  Our general focus would be championing social freedoms and civil liberties and supporting likeminded candidates.

[Ebowed]

Proposed Platform

Religion

Establishment of Religion
We believe that the government must maintain the strict separation of church and state.  The government should neither endorse nor inhibit religion.  Instead, by maintaining a neutral, secular stance, the government can equally and impartially protect all religious views.

School Prayer
We support the right of students to pray in public schools if it is their inclination to do so.  We strongly oppose any attempts by public schools to hold official group prayers, set aside time designed for every student to pray, or write prayers for students to recite.

Pledge of Allegiance
The ACLC supports the current federal policy of not having a Pledge of Allegiance.  We believe that having a Pledge of Allegiance is tantamount to mandatory patriotism and recitation of religious and nationalist beliefs.


Speech

Freedom of Speech
The ACLC holds that the ability to express one's views without retaliation from the government is a hallmark of a free society.  We believe that freedom of speech and of expression is vital, and that the government should not endeavor to hamper it.

Flag Desecration
The ACLC is strongly opposed to any attempts to target specific types of unpopular speech or expression, including so-called "hate speech" and "flag desecration."  We feel that even the most controversial opinions are constitutionally protected, and should not be banned or restricted by the government.

Freedom of the Press
We deem that a free press is vital in a republic such as Atlasia, as it serves to keep the government in check.  Efforts to censor the media are contrary to the letter and the spirit of the Constitution.  Therefore, the ACLC opposes governmental regulation of media content.

Freedom of Assembly
The ACLC holds that the right to peaceably assemble is important.  We feel that no organization should be denied the right to protest simply because its opinions differ from those of a majority of the society.  Furthermore, we oppose "free speech zones," which violate the right to assemble peaceably.


Reproductive and Sexual Autonomy

Contraception and Pregnancy Termination
The ACLC supports the right of a woman to use contraception and to procure an abortion, if she so chooses.  We feel that the government should not attempt to impose its moral values on the People by banning contraceptives or abortions; instead, the decision should be left to the woman.

Restrictions on Reproductive Rights
We do not support unnecessary obstacles on a woman's right to choose, including requiring the notification or consent of a woman's parent or spouse before a woman may undergo an abortion.  We support leaving the option of a late-term abortion available for women whose circumstances may require it.

Sexual Freedom
The ACLC believes that the state does not belong in the bedrooms of the People.  We believe that the government should not prohibit sexual relations between consenting adults.

Equal Rights for Gays and Lesbians
The ACLC supports equal rights for gays and lesbians, including protection from workplace and employment discrimination, the right to serve in the military openly, the right to adopt children, and full marriage and union rights that are equal with those of heterosexual couples.

Pornography
The ACLC holds that pornography, depicting consenting persons over the age of 18, should not be banned or restricted.  We do not support a minimum age for being able to view or buy pornography.


Justice

Surveillance
The ACLC opposes any effort to turn Atlasia into a surveillance society.  We feel that the government should use wiretaps and other surveillance tools only with a warrant issued upon probable cause signed by a judge.  We feel that the arbitrary and capricious monitoring of citizens is incompatible with a free and democratic society.

Enemy Combatants
The ACLC opposes holding individuals as "enemy combatants."  We feel that incarcerating such individuals without charge and without the effective assistance of counsel contravenes the Constitution and violates a fundamental principle of justice: "innocent until proven guilty."

Right to Counsel
The ACLC holds that every defendant is entitled to the aid of counsel.  If a defendant cannot afford a lawyer, the ACLC believes that the government should provide one for him or her.  We believe that the police should not attempt to deny a suspect the aid of counsel by failing to issue the Miranda warning or by otherwise concealing the suspect's rights.

Voting Rights
We oppose restricting the right to vote on the basis of one's previous or current criminal record, including those whose status is or was at one point that of a convicted felon.

Capital Punishment
The ACLC opposes the use of the death penalty in all cases.  We recognize that the use of capital punishment is a characteristic generally shared by less advanced and civilized countries, and is associated with racial bias, unequal application of the law, lack of regard for repentance, being unnecessarily costly, and always leaves open the possibility of an innocent person being put to death at the hands of the state.


Other Essential Rights and Liberties

Monetary Freedom
The ACLC supports the legality of gambling and prostitution throughout Atlasia.

Drug and Alcohol Freedom
The ACLC opposes maintaining a drinking age.  The ACLC also supports the full legalization of marijuana, for both medicinal and recreational use.

Racial Freedom
We oppose the use of racial profiling in order to determine suspects in various crime situations, as a violation of the right to equality regardless of race.

Right to Die
We support the legalization of physician assisted suicide and consensual euthanasia and believe the right to end one's life in a dignified manner if one so wishes is an essential right.

Involuntary Service
The ACLC opposes conscripting people in times of war in order to build a stronger military.  We view the draft as nothing less than involuntary servitude and believe that civil rights should not be at risk of restriction because Atlasia is at war.

Scientific Freedom
We oppose banning or restricting viable scientific and medical research on topics such as embryonic stem cell cloning or HIV/AIDS prevention on the basis of religious objection.

HIV/AIDS
We oppose unnecessary discrimination against HIV positive persons, as well as any attempts to remove their civil liberties.  We support the legalization of hypodermic needles for over-the-counter sale and support removing restrictions on needle exchange programs.

Immigrants' Rights
We oppose deporting people because of their immigration status.  We support amnesty for illegal immigrants as well as a path to citizenship.

[Ebowed]

Wow, did not know this would turn into a left-wing extremist group (with the exception of guns) (sound familiar?)

What part of the platform would you characterize as "left-wing extremist"?

Members: (not including people who said it was likely or would consider it)
Ebowed
TCash101
Dr Cynic
Colin Wixted
Jesus

[Ebowed]

The arbitrary and capricious monitoring of not-always-law-abiding citizens too is incompatible with a free and democratic society

So noted & amended.

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Wtf?

Removed "and class."

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Again, What's playing  around with human cells got to do with "AIDS prevention"?

Two separate topics, and I don't think my wording is faulty here.  I was referring to Bush admin attempts to cut funding for grants on AIDS research by homophobes in his admin.

[Ebowed]

Bump.

Does anyone else have suggestions for the platform, or nominations for a chairman and possible other positions?

[Ebowed]

Well, I think all we need right now are Chairman and Vice Chairman positions.  Normally I'd post some bylaws or something but I'd prefer to keep things relatively laid back so basically the Chairman will be in charge of running conventions (where we endorse candidates and debate suggestions on the platform) and the Vice Chairman will take over in the Chairman's absence.  Both of them can consult each other to create a candidate scorecard to grade candidates' suitability on civil liberties issues.

I also think it would be beneficial to hold an event of some sort where we interview Presidential and VP candidates to see where they stand on issues important to us.

That being said, with Dr Cynic's suggestion in mind, I would nominate TCash101 to serve as Vice Chairman.

[Ebowed]

Bump.  Candidates for Senate/Governor are encouraged to post here to let our members know about their commitment to social freedoms.

The platform has been changed a bit, as well, to cater to older concerns about its content.