Many of us have heard of the ACLU, but how many can actually say they have a clue as to what it is? The American Civil Liberties Union was founded by founded by Roger Baldwin, Crystal Eastman, Albert DeSilver in 1920 and is a nonprofit and nonpartisan organization. Their primary goal is to protect the rights of the American Public if that needs a little clarification, their website states the ACLU's mission is to preserve the protections and guarantees of (and I quote) "Your First Amendment rights to freedom of speech, association and assembly, Freedom of the press, and freedom of religion supported by the strict separation of church and state. Your right to equal protection under the law - equal treatment regardless of race, sex, religion or national origin. Your right to due process - fair treatment by the government whenever the loss of your liberty or property is at stake. Your right to privacy - freedom from unwarranted government intrusion into your personal and private affairs." (End of quote)

Still for all their efforts, thanks to the various news organizations and government spin doctors, there are so many differing opinions as to their effectiveness running around that most people don’t know what to believe. I'm one of those people. I believe in what the ACLU stands for at its core, which is that as Americans, we all have rights that are in danger of being denied. (And for the record, illegal immigrants are only subject to Human Rights and are not protected by the Bill of Rights - end of that particular discussion). The problem the ACLU faces is that, like all things that are created for good, eventually someone will find a way to turn it sour.

For example, Affirmative Action was a fantastic idea when it was first introduced because of the climate our country was in at the time. It allowed deserving minorities an equal opportunity to find jobs they might not have been able to get because of their race. However, nowadays everyone has a chance to excel, and Affirmative Action has been bastardized into giving more than equal rights to those who might otherwise be more qualified for a job. Keep in mind this is a generalization and it does not happen in all cases, but it does happen more than is right. ACLU has also gone the same route. Where in most cases they are completely right in representing someone whose rights have been denied, there are some cases where their arguments were very one-sided. Take the idea of prayer in school. Regardless of my religious beliefs, telling a child that he cannot pray in school goes totally against their rights. Why can't they pray? Because it offends others who are not religious or are of other religions. Without starting a huge flame war here, you have two opposing sides, both of whom have rights. How do you choose whose rights can overpower another's? You can't.

Anyhow, you get the picture. If you don't, I might recommend you take a look at a new DVD that is being released this month. "The ACLU Freedom Files" is a 2-disc set containing a 10-part series of documentaries. Each of these documentaries tackles a different issue, from Religious Freedom to Racial Profiling, and tracks various cases of real people who fought back when their rights were threatened. To be honest, it’s a very well put together series, and I enjoyed hearing these stories of underdogs fighting and beating the system.

In one case, a high school valedictorian was asked to include some quotes in her school yearbook. When she chose a Bible verse, her comments were omitted and she launched a very successful campaign against the school board. Or how about Daniel Joyce and Mohammed Afreedi, who immigrated to America and started their own business? They were arrested and imprisoned during a post 9-11 sweep of medical labs. They were later released once it was determined they posed no threat, but they both had to face anger from their community and eventually had to close their business. Then there is Alondra Jones, who was a high school student in California. When she tired of the poor conditions and outdated books at her school, she spearheaded a lawsuit that culminated with millions of dollars being allocated to improve the situation. And the list goes on.

As individuals, we all have differing opinions. We may not all agree on whose rights were or weren't violated while watching this series. But even though DVD is obviously one-sided towards the more positive success stories of the ACLU, the most important reason to watch it is to spark conversation. And in this increasingly anti-social world where places like Myspace take the place of human interaction, real conversation is something we get little of.

The DVD set also includes a few extra features in the form of interviews with Anthony Romero (the ACLU Director) as well as interviews with the series' executive producer Robert Greenwald, Director Jeremy Kagan and writer Anneke Campbell.

Episodes:
Religious Freedom
Voting Rights
Gay & Lesbian Rights
Women's Rights
Youth Speak
Drug Wars
Beyond the Patriot Act
The Supreme Court
Dissent
Racial Profiling

Directed by: Jeremy Kagan
Extras: Additional Material from Comedians Lewis Black, Margaret Cho, Judy Gold and Warren Hutcherson, Interview with ACLU Director Anthony Romero, Interview with Executive Producer Robert Greenwald, Director Jeremy Kagan Discussing Each episode, Interview with Series Writer Anneke Campbell
Studio: Disinformation Company
Release Date: 9/5/2006
Region 1
MPAA Rating: NR
Website
Website

We'll give The ACLU Freedom Files a B.