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ACLU Board Executive Committee
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version of this letter
October 3, 2006
Dear ACLU Friends and Colleagues:
We, members of the Executive Committee and
General Counsel of the ACLU, write in response
to the recent New York Times article regarding
the formation of a campaign to "save the ACLU".
While we respect the contributions that a number
of the supporters of this group have made over
the years, we believe that their actions are
seriously misguided. The ACLU does not need
saving. It is strong, vibrant and healthy. While
internal disagreements are inevitable in an
organization with 50 affiliates and a national
board of 83 diverse individuals, the ACLU has
made remarkable achievements under the
leadership of Anthony Romero, Nadine Strossen
and our extraordinary staff. Since 2001 the
membership has nearly doubled to over 550,000.
The endowment has grown by 82%, to over $68
million. Last year alone the number of members
who made a planned gift more than doubled
generating over $45 million for future programs.
This is a 420% increase in just three years. And
the number of national staff positions has
increased by 104% to 379, allowing us to advance
our mission at a critical time in our nation’s
history.
Our program is vigorous and robust. We have been
in the forefront of litigating against the Bush
Administration's efforts to restrict our
fundamental rights to privacy, due process and
freedom of association in the name of the “war
on terror.” We have actively worked against
legislation to erode the separation of powers
and further increase the power of the President,
while at the same time dealing with continuing
efforts to restrict religious freedom and the
rights of women and LGBT. The Communications
Department has developed effective strategies to
reach new constituencies, including the next
generation of civil libertarians. These efforts
include the "Safe and Free" campaign, the “I Am
Not an American” ad campaign and the Freedom
Files on Court TV.
Under Anthony Romero’s leadership our program
has been strengthened and expanded. National
support for affiliates has increased
dramatically. We have created a new Affiliate
Support Department and the goal of a full time
staff attorney in every affiliate is close to
realization. We have new programs on Religious
Freedom, Science and Civil Liberties and Racial
Justice. The Death Penalty Project has been
restructured and reinvigorated. We have had two
successful membership conferences with a third
scheduled in just two weeks. These are
accomplishments that the entire ACLU family can
be proud of. They would not have been possible
without the leadership that has resulted in the
extraordinary growth in program and funding that
we have been able to achieve in the last five
years.
While there has been criticism of Anthony, the
Executive Committee and the Board's handling of
certain issues, what has been overlooked is that
our governance process has in fact worked.
Actions and issues that have generated criticism
and dissent were brought to the National Board,
vigorously debated, and resolved in accord with
the democratic principles of discussion, debate,
and a vote. The misleading accounts of the
committee report on the rights and
responsibilities of board members ignore that
the report came from a diverse board committee
and not the staff, that it was intended as
guidance and not rules, and that it was
vigorously debated and the controversial
provisions roundly criticized by the Board. As a
result of the Board debate, and not outside
pressure, the committee withdrew those portions
of the report.
Contrary to the assertions of some, the Board
has never considered or even discussed removing
dissenting board members. The extensive press
coverage that the Board's internal discussions
have received demonstrates that Board members
have not felt restrained in expressing their
dissenting views.
As to the goals of the "save the aclu" group,
our governance structure provides a
straightforward method for change. If the
affiliates are unhappy with their
representatives to the national board they can
replace them. Likewise, the at-large members
must stand for election and can be voted off.
The executive committee is elected by the board
and half the members can be replaced each year.
In fact, there has been substantial turnover in
the membership of the Executive Committee over
the last five years. It is hardly an entrenched
clique.
This is not to suggest that there are no
internal issues that need to be addressed or
that every issue has been handled perfectly.
Board function and governance issues, including
the role of the Executive Committee in relation
to the Board and staff, need to be addressed and
discussed in a calm and deliberative manner. In
that regard we have created and filled two new
staff positions, Corporate Counsel and Deputy
Executive Director, in an effort to improve
internal governance. The bottom line is that the
ACLU does not need to be "saved". Our rights and
freedoms need to be saved, and we are committed
wholeheartedly and without reservation to that
task. We welcome the opportunity to speak with
any ACLU member, donor, staff member or
affiliate board member regarding these issues.
Frank Askin
Vivian Berger
Milton Estes
Meg Gale
Sally Grant
Susan Herman
Roz Litman
Sam Paz
Mike Pheneger
Rob Remar
Preetmohan Singh
Nadine Strossen
Richard Zacks
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