News & Commentary

Originally published in the Albuquerque Journal.

Policing in this country evolved from slave patrols. It has never been a neutral institution.

As you take to the streets to demand racial justice, know your rights.

The staff at the ACLU of New Mexico are in solidarity with those marching for racial justice and demanding and end to police brutality. Black lives matter. 

Over the last week, ACLU staff across the country have worked as legal observers; educated protesters about their rights; been arrested, tear-gassed and hit with rubber bullets; challenged curfews; organized town halls; talked to victims of police abuse; donated money to Black Lives Matter, local bail funds and other groups; and strategized about transformational change.The ACLU is busier than ever — let’s not forget this is happening amidst a pandemic and during the Trump administration — but we don’t hesitate to prioritize this work at this time because we have witnessed this reality of police violence all too often.The ACLU’s advocacy against police violence began in the 1920s, shortly after our founding, and has continued for the next 100 years. In 1931, we spearheaded the issuance of a government report, “ Lawlessness in Law Enforcement .” In 1965, in response to the Watts Rebellion , we opened our first storefront office to directly document police abuse. In 1991, following the police beatings of Rodney King, we launched a fight against racial profiling, resulting in litigation and a vibrant nationwide advocacy effort. In 2015, we published “Picking up the Pieces,” a report documenting biased policing in Minneapolis. ACLU reports from New York , Chicago , Newark , Philadelphia , Boston , Detroit , and Nebraska have all documented police departments that reserve their most aggressive enforcement for people of color generally — and Black people in particular.Despite the tireless work done by so many in the ACLU to address police violence in communities of color, there’s a fundamental truth that we must confront: It has not worked. Black people continue to be murdered and brutalized by police with near impunity. More of the same won’t fix this problem.As we look to the future, the ACLU unites behind the profound fight that groups like Movement for Black Lives have been leading: the fight for a completely reimagined vision of the role, presence, and responsibilities of police in America.The fight will be complex, but in practice what we want can be clearly stated: We need to fundamentally change the role of police in our society, and that role has to be smaller, more circumscribed, and less funded with taxpayer dollars. Money saved from reducing the size and scope of police departments must be reinvested into community-based services that are better suited to respond to actual community needs. Doing so will foster improved safety and health outcomes, and present opportunities in Black communities, where decades of underinvestment in everything except police has helped fuel a mass incarceration crisis.

Memorial Day weekend 2019, Dametrio Maldonado was travelling down westbound I-40 with his daughter, Ellen, on the way to volunteer at the Acoma Pueblo Annual Seed Run. As their family did every year, they would join with the other members of their Kiva to mark the path runners would soon take around the base of the historic 367 foot sandstone bluff, Sky City Mesa, where the Acoma Pueblo people have lived since 1150 A.D.—the oldest continuously inhabited community in North America. The annual seed run, which draws runners from around New Mexico and beyond, helps raise funds towards helping the Acoma people preserve and maintain their customs and traditions, as well as funding school supplies for Acoma students.

Overcrowding, inadequate access to soap, and substandard healthcare in detention facilities create the perfect storm for coronavirus spread.

Elisha Lucero had long suffered from persistent and intense migraine headaches, but it wasn’t until her car wreck she learned the true cause.

The death of Elisha Lucero at the hands of BCSO deputies in 2019 was both tragic and preventable. Lucero, 28, was killed on July 21, 2019 when Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) deputies shot her 21 times. BCSO deputies were responding to a 911 call from family members who were concerned about her mental health and safety.