The pro bono defenders of democracy are often forgotten when the times are friendly. But in an era when the Bush administration is treating the Bill of Rights as a "quaint" anachronism, state government is asleep at the switch, and human rights are an endangered species at home and abroad, the American Civil Liberties Union remains at the forefront of the unending struggle for civil liberties. Joining with chapters across the country, the ACLU of Texas is in the middle of the legal fight against warrantless wiretapping of private phone calls, and the Austin chapter maintains its projects against censorship in schools, opposing the oppressive and pointless drug wars, monitoring police and jail accountability, and opening up government documents to community scrutiny. As nonpartisan defenders of the little guy, in good times and bad, against public and private tyrannies of all kind, we applaud the ACLU for another year of fighting the toughest fights.
