From Courtrooms to Communities: A Mid-Year Impact Report

June 25, 2025 - 2:30pm

We’re halfway through the year, and the ACLU of Arkansas is moving at full speed. From court battles to community clinics, Pride celebrations to policy fights, we’ve been showing up where Arkansans need us — and we’re not slowing down.

Power in Knowledge: Expanding Know Your Rights

We kicked off 2025 by deepening our Know Your Rights outreach — translating urgent materials, expanding access, and showing up in communities across the state. We've now distributed over 12,000 printed Know Your Rights resources on topics ranging from immigration and protest rights to school bullying and observing and recording police — and millions more shared digitally. We've also shared multilingual videos on what to do during encounters with ICE, helping immigrants in Arkansas protect themselves and their families in moments that can be life-changing.

And in collaboration with the Mexican Consulate, Avanza Arkansas, and other local groups, we launched legal clinics to bring vital services like DACA renewals, powers of attorney, and citizenship applications to immigrant communities. These clinics continue statewide this summer.

From Little Rock to the Courts: Fighting Back Against Legislative Overreach

This legislative session brought a wave of attacks on Arkansans’ rights — from assaults on LGBTQ people and immigrants to new barriers for student expression and political participation. We mobilized with our partners, showed up at the Capitol, and launched our 2025 Legislative Action Hub to help Arkansans engage directly.

When politicians went too far, we took the fight to court:

  • In Stinson v. Fayetteville School District, we’re representing a multifaith group of Arkansas families to stop a new law that forces every public school classroom to display the Ten Commandments — a blatant violation of religious freedom and Supreme Court precedent.
     
  • In League of Women Voters v. Jester, we represent grassroots coalitions Protect AR Rights and For AR Kids to challenge a slate of new laws that make it harder — and riskier — to engage in the ballot initiative process. These laws criminalize advocacy, restrict who can collect signatures, and chill Arkansans’ First Amendment rights.

This is about protecting the people’s power — and we won’t let it be silenced.

The Fight for Trans Rights Continues

On June 18, the U.S. Supreme Court allowed Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming care for youth to stand in United States v. Skrmetti — a deeply painful setback. But here in Arkansas, the state’s similar ban remains blocked thanks to our case, Brandt v. Griffin, and gender-affirming care remains legal.

We brought Brandt because the state’s ban is discriminatory, dangerous, and medically unjustified. And no court ruling — not even from the Supreme Court — will stop us from fighting for the rights and dignity of trans youth. This isn’t the end. It’s a call to action.

That call was echoed at the Bentonville Film Festival, where we screened Heightened Scrutiny and hosted a powerful panel on gender-affirming care. We’re deeply grateful to Tien Estell (Intransitive), Joanna Brandt, and BW Walas for sharing their truth — and for reminding us that everyone has a role to play in this fight. Support trans-led organizations. Show up. Speak out. Vote. The future is ours to claim.

A Win for Trans Justice

In June, a federal court granted class certification in Orr v. Trump, advancing the rights of transgender, intersex, and nonbinary people seeking accurate sex markers on their passports. The ruling temporarily blocks the federal government from enforcing its discriminatory policy — but we are still waiting for guidance from the State Department. While we advise folks to hold off on new applications for now, this victory marks an important step toward dignity and autonomy for trans people nationwide.

Defending Democracy — From Arkansas to the Eighth Circuit

This month, we filed an amicus brief urging the full Eighth Circuit to reconsider a dangerous decision that gutted enforcement of the Voting Rights Act in Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians v. Howe. If upheld, the ruling would eliminate private citizens' ability to challenge discriminatory voting laws under Section 2 of the VRA — a right civil rights groups have used for decades to protect democracy in Arkansas and across the South.

Let’s be clear: If people can’t challenge racist voting laws, there is no democracy. We won’t let the courthouse doors slam shut on the voters who need them most.

Building Power, Together

None of this work happens in a vacuum — and none of it happens alone. This month, we joined our sister affiliate in Tennessee to show up for Mid-South Pride in Memphis, bringing our message of solidarity and resistance across state lines. Rain or shine, we march forward together — rooted in the communities we serve and powered by a vision of freedom for all.

We were also proud to join the NAACP Jacksonville’s Juneteenth celebration, celebrating Black liberation and resilience in the heart of our state.

And in March, we convened with our Southern siblings in Montgomery, Alabama for the annual ACLU Southern Collective gathering — grounding our work in the long arc of civil rights history and plotting a bold future for the South. From voting rights to criminal justice reform, we’re building lasting infrastructure, uplifting Black leadership, and investing in long-term power for our region.

Growing Our Movement

The fight for justice doesn’t end in the courtroom — it begins in our communities. Whether you've already rolled up your sleeves or just getting started, there’s a place for you in this movement.  

Sign up to volunteer and join Arkansans already taking action. Share our petition demanding No Troops Against Civilians and help us stop the dangerous use of military force against immigrant communities. 

And if you're able, make a donation to support the ACLU of Arkansas — every dollar fuels the fight for civil liberties and strengthens our collective power. The stakes are high, but so is our determination. 

Whether it’s handing out Know Your Rights cards at local churches, showing up at Pride events, monitoring elections, or organizing your neighbors — there’s a place for you in this fight. Let’s build the future Arkansas deserves, together.

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Thank you for sticking with us. We are deeply grateful to our community, our partners, and our supporters for helping us keep the light of civil liberties burning bright in Arkansas.