News & Commentary

There is a national pattern of police using excessive, and sometimes fatal, force against people of color, often during routine encounters. Frequently, the police officers, and the departments they work for, are not held accountable for their actions.

“He protected the best tradition of Americanism.” -Cary Robertson on Louis Lusky, November 1956. Before he became known as a pioneer in civil rights law, and before his more than 20 years teaching at Columbia Law School, Louisville native Louis Lusky was working on some of the Kentucky Civil Liberty Union’s (now ACLU of Kentucky) earliest cases. In 1954, Louisvillian

Julia Allen, William F. Billingsley, Norbert Blume, Joseph Freeland, Patrick Kirwan, Louis Kesselman, Arthur Kling, Louis Lusky, Rev. Wilfred Myll, Maie Perley, Maurice Rabb, M.D., Georgia Schneider, Lee Thomas, Jr., Edgar A. Zingman “I had forgotten how forceful [members of the ACLU-KY] were. I cannot mention them all nor can I describe the intensity of their fidelity to the goal of the KCLU."– F.W. Woolsey, ACLU Historian, 1995 The ACLU of Kentucky (originally the Kentucky Civil Liberties Union or KCLU) was formed in the wake of the Red Scare in the United Sta

“I have tried to stand up for what I believe in.” – Lee B. Thomas, Jr. Lee B. Thomas, Jr. has garnered a lot of accolades, awards, and attention for his expertise as a CEO, first with the American Saw and Tool Company and Vermont American Corporation, and currently with Universal Woods. Thomas has also been recognized for his work toward peace and social justice, including induction in 2010 in the Kentucky Civil Rights Hall of

This is the first in a series of profiles marking the 60th anniversary of the ACLU of Kentucky's founding.  From November 2014 through December 2015 we will highlight the story of one member, client, case, board or staff member that has been an integral part of our organization's rich history.