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For Immediate Release
December, 05 2012, 02:03pm EDT
Contact:
Robyn Shepherd, ACLU national, (917) 302-7189 or (212) 549-2666; media@aclu.org
Christopher Ott, ACLU of Massachusetts, (617) 482-3170 x322, cott@aclum.org
Religious Restrictions on Government-Funded Trafficking Victims' Program Challenged in Federal Appeals Court
ACLU Challenged Distribution of Funds by HHS to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
WASHINGTON
The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Massachusetts told a federal appeals court today that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) must be prohibited from imposing religiously based restrictions on reproductive health services for victims of human trafficking.
In March, a federal district court ruled that a religious institution does not have the right to use federal money to impose its beliefs on others.
The ACLU challenged HHS' distribution of program funds authorized by the Trafficking Victims Protection Act to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). USCCB subcontracted with organizations that provide services to trafficking victims but prohibited subcontractors from using any federal funds to provide or refer for contraception, condoms and abortion care solely because of USCCB's religious beliefs. Since many trafficking victims have been raped by traffickers and are forced into prostitution, these services are vital.
"Organizations that receive funding from the government cannot withhold critical services from victims in dire need because of their religious beliefs," said Brigitte Amiri, senior staff attorney with the ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project. "Religion should not be used as an excuse to discriminate against survivors who have endured horrific circumstances and are trying to rebuild their lives."
The Attorney General of Massachusetts and several organizations, including those that work with trafficking victims, filed briefs in support of the ACLU.
"The law requires that victims of human trafficking have access to a full range of necessary health services," said Sarah Wunsch, staff attorney with the ACLU of Massachusetts. "Freedom of religion does not mean that federal dollars should be used to impose someone's beliefs on others in vulnerable circumstances."
More information on this case can be found at:
www.aclu.org/hiv-aids-religion-belief-reproductive-freedom/aclu-massach...
The American Civil Liberties Union was founded in 1920 and is our nation's guardian of liberty. The ACLU works in the courts, legislatures and communities to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to all people in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States.
(212) 549-2666LATEST NEWS
Slotkin Says She’s Under Federal Investigation After ‘Don’t Follow Unlawful Orders’ Video
"DOJ policy forbids investigations based solely on First Amendment protected activity," said one legal expert.
Jan 14, 2026
The Democratic senator who organized a video warning members of the military against obeying illegal orders given by President Donald Trump said that she is being investigated by federal prosecutors.
In an interview with the New York Times published Tuesday, Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) said that the office of Jeanine Pirro, the US attorney for the District of Columbia, had sent an email to the Senate’s sergeant-at-arms requesting to speak with either Slotkin or her private counsel.
Slotkin called the investigation being conducted by Pirro's office an attempt at intimidating her from speaking out against the Trump administration.
"Facts matter little, but the threat matters quite a bit," said Slotkin, a former CIA intelligence analyst and official at the US Department of Defense. "The threat of legal action; the threat to your family; the threat to your staff; the threat to you."
The Times report noted that it's unclear what potential crime Slotkin is being investigated for, and a spokesperson for Pirro's office declined to confirm the existence of the probe.
However, Slotkin has been under fire from Trump and his allies for several weeks after she organized a video with fellow Democratic lawmakers in which they reminded US military service members that they should not obey any illegal orders given by the president.
"We want to speak directly to members of the military and the intelligence community," Slotkin wrote in a November social media post promoting the Democrats' video. "The American people need you to stand up for our laws and our Constitution. Don’t give up the ship."
Trump reacted to the video with rage, accusing Slotkin and other Democrats who appeared in the video of engaging in "SEDITIOUS BEHAVIOR, punishable by DEATH!"
In a social media post Thursday, Michigan Law School professor Barb McQuade argued that any investigation into Slotkin centering on the video about unlawful orders would be flatly unlawful.
"DOJ policy forbids investigations based solely on First Amendment protected activity," McQuade explained.
Slotkin is not the only Trump nemesis facing legal pressure, as it was revealed on Sunday that Pirro's office has also opened a criminal probe into Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, who has been frequently targeted by Trump for his refusal to obey the president's demands to more aggressively cut US interest rates.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday that Trump last week berated dozens of US attorneys, including Pirro, and accused them of being "weak" and too slow in launching criminal probes of his political enemies.
"Among his grievances with prosecutors, Trump complained that the Justice Department hadn’t yet brought a case against one of his most prominent Democratic adversaries, Sen. Adam Schiff of California," the Journal reported.
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Just 4% of Americans Support Trump Seizing Greenland by Military Force
“Greenland does not want to be owned by the United States," said the territory's prime minister. "Greenland does not want to be governed by the United States. Greenland does not want to be part of the United States.”
Jan 14, 2026
A survey released Wednesday shows that just 4% of US voters think it would be a "good idea" for President Donald Trump to seize Greenland by military force, data that came ahead of a closely watched White House meeting between Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and the foreign ministers of Greenland and Denmark.
More broadly, according to the new Reuters/Ipsos poll, only 17% of Americans approve of Trump's push for the US to acquire Greenland by any means.
The White House has said it is considering a "range of options" to seize Denmark, from buying the mineral-rich island to acquiring it through military force. Just one in 10 Republican voters and virtually no Democrats said they believe it's a good idea for the Trump administration to forcibly take Greenland, which is currently an autonomous territory of Denmark.
Greenland residents have overwhelmingly voiced opposition to US control.
In an early morning Truth Social post ahead of Wednesday's White House meeting, Trump declared that the US "needs Greenland for the purpose of National Security"—a view that military experts have rejected.
"It is vital for the Golden Dome that we are building," Trump added, referring to his proposed missile defense boondoggle. "NATO should be leading the way for us to get it. IF WE DON’T, RUSSIA OR CHINA WILL, AND THAT IS NOT GOING TO HAPPEN!"
Trump's latest Greenland rant came a day after the territory's prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, said during a press conference that "we are now facing a geopolitical crisis, and if we have to choose between the United States and Denmark here and now, we choose Denmark."
"One thing must be clear to everyone,” said Nielsen. “Greenland does not want to be owned by the United States. Greenland does not want to be governed by the United States. Greenland does not want to be part of the United States.”
Wednesday's White House meeting was scheduled at the request of Danish and Greenlandic officials, who said they are seeking to head off a potential disaster spurred by Trump's increasingly belligerent rhetoric.
In the face of Trump's threats, Denmark has reportedly begun mobilizing military equipment and advanced troops to Greenland.
"Our reason for seeking the meeting we have now been given was to move this whole discussion into a meeting room where we can look each other in the eye and talk about these things," Lars Løkke Rasmussen, Denmark's foreign minister, said Tuesday.
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Progressive Caucus Vows to 'Oppose All Funding' for ICE Without 'Systematic Reforms'
"We want this terror to stop," said Rep. Ilhan Omar, deputy chair of the CPC.
Jan 14, 2026
The leadership of the nearly 100-member Congressional Progressive Caucus said Tuesday that it will "oppose all funding" for US immigration enforcement in any upcoming government appropriations bills without substantial reforms, a position laid out as federal agents unleashed by President Donald Trump continued to terrorize communities across the country.
Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), deputy chair of the CPC, said during a press conference alongside other caucus members that "demanding accountability is not radical." Omar represents the district where 37-year-old Renee Good was shot and killed by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent Jonathan Ross last week.
"Calling for systematic reforms is not extreme," Omar continued. "This is the bare minimum required to restore safety and justice back to our communities."
Omar, a frequent target of Trump's bigotry, said the CPC's official position is to "oppose all funding for immigration enforcement in any appropriation bills until meaningful reforms are enacted to end militarized policing practices."
"We cannot and we should not continue to fund agencies that operate with impunity, that escalate violence, and that undermine the very freedoms this country claims to uphold," the congresswoman said. "ICE has no place in terrorizing Minneapolis or any American community."
The CPC's press conference marked an intensification of a fight over Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding that erupted in the wake of Good's killing in Minneapolis last week. ICE, which is part of DHS, currently has a larger budget than that of a dozen national militaries, thanks to a massive infusion of funding approved by congressional Republicans and Donald Trump last summer.
NBC News reported Tuesday that "Democratic opposition has already frozen a DHS measure that was slated to be added to an appropriations package getting a Senate vote this week."
"Congress may have to fall back on a stopgap bill to prevent a funding lapse for DHS," the outlet added. "That’s where things get trickier for Democrats. If House Republicans pass a continuing resolution on their own, which would keep DHS running on autopilot, Senate Democrats would again have to choose between accepting it and forcing a partial shutdown."
Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), the top Democratic appropriator in the House, said Tuesday that she does "not support increasing funding for ICE" and is "looking at policy riders in the homeland security funding bill to rein in ICE."
"ICE is terrorizing our communities, and I have called on masked, armed ICE agents to leave our towns," DeLauro added.
An Economist/YouGov poll released this week found that, for the first time, more Americans support abolishing ICE entirely (46%) than oppose it (43%). Democratic support for abolishing ICE is currently at 77%, according to the survey.
In an appearance on MS NOW, Omar said that "we want this terror to stop."
"People are angry. People are frustrated. They're confused. They don't understand why this chaos is necessary," said Omar. "And they certainly do not want this level of militarized ICE and border agents just roaming the streets, harassing and terrorizing their neighbors."
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