4 ms·

I supported them for a long time as well, but they've waded very far from their original waters. These days the ACLU is incredibly politically biased, and the i

I supported them for a long time as well, but they've waded very far from their original waters. These days the ACLU is incredibly politically biased, and the issues they focus on are often non-issues or low-priority ones. I am disappointed to see them, for example, file lawsuits against schools that are trying to ensure that only biological women participate in sports divisions for women, so that those sports are competitive and fair. The ACLU's social media accounts are a mess as well. Their postings come off as unhinged and sue-happy, and the fan base of commenters has become so one-sided, that I think the ACLU simply caters to that vocal audience now. Maybe the change is not solely attributable to that - there might also be a new generational wave of inside actors that simply operate the ACLU in a more ideological manner. I agree that some of their work is still great. But unfortunately it's been enough of a change that upon weighing the good and bad, I had to finally pull the plug on my recurring donations too.

tw000001 6y ago
>These days the ACLU is incredibly politically biased I was going to post the same in anticipation of the partisan downvotes that you're receiving. Without going into specifics, this sums it up nicely: >It’s not that the left shouldn’t have opportunities to speak up against the president’s agenda -- of course it should. But the ACLU shouldn’t be its political bullhorn. The organization’s legal independence gave it special standing. By falling in line with dozens of other left-leaning advocacy groups, the ACLU risks diminishing its focus on civil liberties litigation and abandoning its reputation for being above partisanship One issue in particular is the ACLU's interpretation of the second amendment, which they do not fight for with the same fervor as the first. 1.https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2018/02/08/the_aclus_regrettable_turn_to_partisan_politics_136220.html https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2018/02/08/the_ac...
- jmpman 6y ago
  Their lack of support for the second amendment is the only reason I don’t support them. It proves that they’re politically slanted and it truly for my civil rights. Unfortunately the NRA has drifted from their core issue to bashing non-conservative candidates. I also can’t support them.
  - dagnabbit 6y ago
    Or they don't buy into an extremist interpretation of the second amendment which ignores the 'well-regulated militia' portion of the amendment. That interpretation was fringe until fairly recently; it took a lot of propaganda from gun manufacturers to convince people like you that their radical view was somehow standard.
tikwidd 6y ago
>I am disappointed to see them, for example, file lawsuits against schools that are trying to ensure that only biological women participate in sports divisions for women Trans women are women. These schools are denying this with this idea, so it seems like a good use of the ACLU's resources to me. Morality aside, I don't know about the legal aspects of defending that principle in the US, but presumably the ACLU have some ground. >, so that those sports are competitive and fair. [drifting off the OP topic, but...] shouldn't school sports be about inclusion? what is your ideal of fairness here? For me, the pursuit and rewarding of certain idealised body types selected by narrow athletic criteria reminiscent of pageantry has never been 'fair' for anybody.. School sports ought to focus on inclusive physical self-improvement, help kids develop cooperative skills, resolve conflicts and work together for a common goal, that sort of thing.
- the_new_guy 6y ago
  > Trans women are women Trans women are women from a gender perspective, and not from a biological perspective. Unfortunately, the biological perspective is what the separations of men's and women's sports a thing, because of inherent biological sexual differences (primarily testosterone). I mean, if they want to get around the issue, then let's go all in - disband men's/women's sports and just have sports. Then anyone can play with anyone. That's never going to happen though, for political, cultural, and safety reasons, so we're stuck with a situation where gender is bumping up against biological sex hard.
  - d6e 6y ago
    > Trans women are women from a gender perspective, and not from a biological perspective. From a biological perspective, trans-people lie in-between male and female. Transwomen are at an increased risk of breast cancer than cis-men while a lower risk prostate cancer. Transwomen (after years of estradiol) have significantly less muscle mass than cis-men, while, transmen have much more muscle mass than cis-women. All of the differences biologically are the result of sex hormones and the time at which they're introduced (pre-natal or puberty) and the time of exposure. That said, I don't think it's wise for trans-women to play in serious sports. If they win, they won't get the credit, they'll be told it's because they're trans. If they lose, well, then no one cares and it doesn't make the headlines. It's unfair and unjust, but honestly, sports have never been fair or just. Especially the Olympics, they're a selection ritual for celebrating people who are genetically optimized for some specific task. I don't understand why it exists except for out of tradition.
8note 6y ago
Isn't their purpose to be politically biased? Just because you share the bias doesn't make it unbiased

tw000001 6y ago

>These days the ACLU is incredibly politically biased I was going to post the same in anticipation of the partisan downvotes that you're receiving. Without going into specifics, this sums it up nicely: >It’s not that the left shouldn’t have opportunities to speak up against the president’s agenda -- of course it should. But the ACLU shouldn’t be its political bullhorn. The organization’s legal independence gave it special standing. By falling in line with dozens of other left-leaning advocacy groups, the ACLU risks diminishing its focus on civil liberties litigation and abandoning its reputation for being above partisanship One issue in particular is the ACLU's interpretation of the second amendment, which they do not fight for with the same fervor as the first. 1.https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2018/02/08/the_aclus_regrettable_turn_to_partisan_politics_136220.html https://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2018/02/08/the_ac...

jmpman 6y ago
Their lack of support for the second amendment is the only reason I don’t support them. It proves that they’re politically slanted and it truly for my civil rights. Unfortunately the NRA has drifted from their core issue to bashing non-conservative candidates. I also can’t support them.
- dagnabbit 6y ago
  Or they don't buy into an extremist interpretation of the second amendment which ignores the 'well-regulated militia' portion of the amendment. That interpretation was fringe until fairly recently; it took a lot of propaganda from gun manufacturers to convince people like you that their radical view was somehow standard.

tikwidd 6y ago

>I am disappointed to see them, for example, file lawsuits against schools that are trying to ensure that only biological women participate in sports divisions for women Trans women are women. These schools are denying this with this idea, so it seems like a good use of the ACLU's resources to me. Morality aside, I don't know about the legal aspects of defending that principle in the US, but presumably the ACLU have some ground. >, so that those sports are competitive and fair. [drifting off the OP topic, but...] shouldn't school sports be about inclusion? what is your ideal of fairness here? For me, the pursuit and rewarding of certain idealised body types selected by narrow athletic criteria reminiscent of pageantry has never been 'fair' for anybody.. School sports ought to focus on inclusive physical self-improvement, help kids develop cooperative skills, resolve conflicts and work together for a common goal, that sort of thing.

the_new_guy 6y ago
> Trans women are women Trans women are women from a gender perspective, and not from a biological perspective. Unfortunately, the biological perspective is what the separations of men's and women's sports a thing, because of inherent biological sexual differences (primarily testosterone). I mean, if they want to get around the issue, then let's go all in - disband men's/women's sports and just have sports. Then anyone can play with anyone. That's never going to happen though, for political, cultural, and safety reasons, so we're stuck with a situation where gender is bumping up against biological sex hard.
- d6e 6y ago
  > Trans women are women from a gender perspective, and not from a biological perspective. From a biological perspective, trans-people lie in-between male and female. Transwomen are at an increased risk of breast cancer than cis-men while a lower risk prostate cancer. Transwomen (after years of estradiol) have significantly less muscle mass than cis-men, while, transmen have much more muscle mass than cis-women. All of the differences biologically are the result of sex hormones and the time at which they're introduced (pre-natal or puberty) and the time of exposure. That said, I don't think it's wise for trans-women to play in serious sports. If they win, they won't get the credit, they'll be told it's because they're trans. If they lose, well, then no one cares and it doesn't make the headlines. It's unfair and unjust, but honestly, sports have never been fair or just. Especially the Olympics, they're a selection ritual for celebrating people who are genetically optimized for some specific task. I don't understand why it exists except for out of tradition.

8note 6y ago

Isn't their purpose to be politically biased? Just because you share the bias doesn't make it unbiased