News & Commentary

In response to student-led protests at San Diego State University (SDSU), the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and other higher education institutions in our region, American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego & Imperial Counties (ACLU-SDIC) Executive Director Norma Chávez-Peterson.

The following is prepared testimony urging San Diego City Council to continue investing in programs that promote equitable and inclusive opportunities. It was delivered by Felicia Gomez, ACLU-SDIC immigrants’ rights senior policy advocate, on May 1, 2024.

An eviction moratorium is only one necessary solution in a larger conversation that needs to take place. We must ensure that residents impacted by the flood are provided with the support they need, both now and in the future.

The following is a prepared testimony urging the San Diego County Board of Supervisors to ensure an equitable, community-centered hiring process for the county’s next Chief Administrative Officer. It was delivered by ACLU-SDIC Executive Director Norma Chávez-Peterson on December 5, 2023.

Testimony given at the 2023 TRUTH Act Forum demanding the end of collaboration between the San Diego Sheriff’s Department and Department of Homeland Security. All San Diego County residents deserve to live without the fear that an encounter with law enforcement can lead to being deported and...

Access to legal counsel is a cornerstone of our justice system. ALL people deserve due process, regardless of who they are, where they were born or what they have experienced. However, under U.S. immigration policy, people seeking asylum or facing deportation are not provided court-appointed...

We are here to urge the Board of Supervisors to vote YES on the board letter introduced by Chair Vargas to allocate $3 million dollars to aid NGOs in providing critical humanitarian assistance to people seeking asylum who are being released into our region by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security

We are here to urge the Board of Supervisors to continue its investment in the county’s Immigrant Legal Defense Program (ILDP) by approving the $5 million 2023-24 county budget allocation for this program.

We are here today to urge the City Council to reject this draconian ordinance which fails to meet the needs of thousands of San Diegans experiencing homelessness, fails to address the real issues facing the city, and falls far short of our shared values for an inclusive community that respects...