ACLU was the first political group I joined, unless you count 4-H as a political group. I was a freshman at Ursinus College, and my pol. sci. prof., Dr. Zucker, touted this group that defended free speech and press for everyone. Impressed, I signed up.
There was a period in the Eighties when I dropped out over a dispute with my local chapter president, who was defending the right of prostitutes to solicit in our downtown San Jose neighborhood (that’s a story for another post), but I cooled down and rejoined after a few years.
During the 1988 election George Bush, recently in the White House hobnobbing with President Obama, used the ACLU membership of Michael Dukakis against him. He noted that Dukakis said he was a “card-carrying member of the ACLU.” Bush said this showed Dukakis was “out of the mainstream.” I know Bush is old and on a wheelchair, but I still can’t stand the guy.
The Pennsylvania ACLU is currently involved in two suits against the Corbett administration. One would overturn the state’s law against gay marriage. This is the law that Attorney-General Kathleen Kane will not defend; she says it is clearly unconstitutional in light of the recent Supreme Court decision.
The other lawsuit involves Pennsylvania’s voter ID law. You know, the one that would disenfranchise thousands of old people, urban minorities, and students.
I really do carry the membership card. It’s right next to my driver’s license in my wallet.
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