ACLU

I've become a monthly-donating member of the American Civil Liberties Union. Apparently the organization is in big trouble because of the various financial crises. They had a bunch of money invested that's all gone negative or that's all gone now (Madoff) and they're laying off people. It will make it that much harder for them to do what is really critical work when you've got a Congress and an Executive all of the same party. AND Republicans never really go away (they're like Voldamorf) so you always need the ACLU. Consider making a donation?

The American Civil Liberties Union, impacted by the unfolding economic crisis, laid off ten percent of its national workforce this week. Thirty-six staffers lost their jobs, including five in the Washington, D.C. legislative office, a source familiar with the firings told the Huffington Post.

A source in the ACLU’s Washington office confirmed that there had been layoffs, but couldn’t confirm the details. The ACLU has two separate Washington offices: a local branch that works on District of Columbia issues and an arm of the national ACLU, which works on legislative issues. The layoffs impacted the legislative office—though the District office is not necessarily immune to a budget shortfall.

The loss of the staffers means a likely reduction in influence for the civil liberties organization just as Democrats begin to push a legislative agenda as ambitious as any since the mid-sixties. Liberal advocacy organizations have been hit hard across the board by the economic downturn, as donations have fallen off and returns from investments have gone negative.

via John Cole.