A road sign showing the Rio Arriba county line with Lybrook elementary just beyond it.

Locked Out: When School Boards Exclude Native Representation

At a small school district in northwestern New Mexico, many Navajo parents cannot run for local school board or vote in the school district’s elections where their children go to school. 

Latest Press Release


People Incarcerated in Doña Ana County Jail Sue Over Violent Paramilitary Tactics and Inhumane Treatment 

Six people who were held at the Doña Ana County Detention Center (DACDC) filed a lawsuit today seeking to end the jail's practice of conducting violent, unwarranted paramilitary training operations on incarcerated people.
Body camera footage from March 8, 2025, when such training operations took place at DACDC. Various officers, masked and armed, are seen running into the quiet cells in the middle of the night.

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Stay informed on civil rights issues. Discover our latest actions and updates in the Press Release section.

A photo of Rita Padilla-Gutiérrez standing in front of her sign that reads: "Trump, racist, rapist, not my president"

More Than a Yard Sign: Fighting for Free Speech in Tomé, New Mexico

When Rita Padilla-Gutiérrez posted anti-Trump signs in her yard, Valencia County threatened her with criminal prosecution at the urging of a pro-Trump county commissioner.

By Rita-Padilla Gutiérrez

Dark blue collage image of GuJuan, featuring a recent photo of him along with a childhood picture in various color filters

Beyond the Concrete Box: Gujuan Fusilier’s Story

This blog is the third of a series based on interviews with three men currently held in the Penitentiary of New Mexico who are part of a class action lawsuit challenging the inhumane and unconstitutional conditions of New Mexico’s long-term solitary confinement unit.

By Lalita Moskowitz

Stylized image of plantiffs in front of a dark green background, a silhouette of a man sitting down on pavement looking distressed is centered in the photo stylized in green.

Beyond the Concrete Box: Human Stories from Solitary

This blog is the first of a series based on interviews with Mah-konce Hudson, GuJuan Fusilier, and O'Shay Toney, who are currently held in the Penitentiary of New Mexico.

By Lalita Moskowitz

Reopening ICE facility in Torrance County boosted CoreCivic revenues by nearly $19 million

The facility's reopening raised CoreCivic revenues by millions in 2020, but a failed annual inspection this year found severe understaffing, unsanitary food and other problems.

By Elsa Goossen

A screenshot of surveillance video taken shortly before men detained at the Torrance County were pepper sprayed for engaging in a peaceful hunger strike protesting conditions at the facility. Surveillance and lapel video was obtained by NMILC and ACLU fro

My Life Was Derailed By a Traffic Ticket

A minor infraction cost me my driver’s license, my job, thousands of dollars, and over a decade entangled with a system that punishes poverty.

By ACLU National

Traffic violation on a windshield.

ICE found multiple contract violations at troubled Otero County detention center shortly before extending a lucrative private contract

The Otero County Processing Center was cited for violations including an inadequate staffing plan, inadequate food service staffing, abuse of the “Voluntary Work Program,” lack of a safety plan, and more.

By Leonardo Castañeda

Otero County Processing Center Photo

Everywhere Is The New Local

Rabbi Jeffrey and his wife Mindy have long been committed to giving back to their community. In the midst of a global pandemic, an ugly election, and an insurrection, that commitment only intensified. They set out to travel the United States in an RV they named Seymour to listen and learn...

Rabbi Jeffrey and Mindy

Border militarization separates families and erodes civil liberties

It’s past time we eliminate interior border checkpoints and drastically reduce the number of Border Patrol agents in the region.

By Maria Coronado

Warning no trespassing. Restricted area keep out. Authorized personnel only. U.S. Customs and Border protection sign.

A privately-run ICE detention center got a pay increase, guaranteed minimum during pandemic detention declines

The private prison company running Otero County's immigration detention center got a new agreement guaranteeing nearly $2 million a month after threatening to cancel its contract over low detention numbers.

By Leonardo Castañeda

Prison Hallway

Otero County claims ICE facility can't be closed due to bond debt. Experts disagree.

An Otero County official said closing a controversial ICE facility would leave taxpayers responsible for tens of millions in bond debt, but an expert review of financial documents paint a markedly different picture.

By Leonardo Castañeda

Otero County Processing Center Photo

Medication Denied

A woman was denied life-saving medicine by the New Mexico Corrections Department, so we sued.

By Katie Hoeppner

Medication Denied - Photo of a stethoscope

More of the Same: Private Prison Corporations and Immigration Detention Under the Biden Administration

The Biden administration is filling private prison beds emptied out by its own Executive Order with immigrant detainees.

By ACLU National

Empty cell at Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Prison.