Individual Rights
A Beginner's Guide to Community Needs and Resources in South Carolina
A guide that provides information that can be used by organizations in local communities throughout South Carolina about the community resources and organizations that are available not only statewide, but in also specific jurisdictions.
ACLU Death Penalty Information
The death penalty is the greatest denial of civil liberties. Read about why the ACLU is working towards a moratorium and how you can help. Topics include: (1) Innocent people are being sentenced to death, (2) Almost all people on death row could not afford to hire an attorney, (3) Race often plays a role in determining a capital sentence, (4) Where a death sentence is sought often determines whether a defendant is sentenced to death more than the circumstances of the crime, (5) Juvenile offenders (16 and 17 years old) are sentenced to death and executed in the U.S. even though kids are not given the same responsibilities of adults.
ACLU Religious Liberties Information
Use the resources on this page of the American Civil Liberties Union Web Site to learn more and take action to protect the rights guaranteed to all Americans by the Bill of Rights.
Additional Constitutional Protections: Voting, Privacy, Bearing Arms
This document provides a brief overview of certain additional rights under the US Constitution, answering the following questions: What constitutional rights are there besides those in the First Amendment? Is there a right to bear arms? Is there a right to privacy? Is there a right to vote? What do some of the amendments in the Bill of Rights say? The document is excerpted from An Introduction to Law in Georgia, Fourth Edition, published by the Carl Vinson Institute of Government, 1998 (updated 2004).
Affirmative Action
For federal contractors and subcontractors, affirmative action must be taken by covered employers to recruit and advance qualified minorities, women, persons with disabilities, and covered veterans. Affirmative actions include training programs, outreach efforts, and other positive steps. These procedures should be incorporated into the company’s written personnel policies. Employers with written affirmative action programs must implement them, keep them on file and update them annually.
Age Discrimination
This page provides answers to a number of questions about age discrimination in the workplace, including: 1. What is age discrimination? 2. Which federal law(s) cover older workers? 3. Who is covered by age discrimination laws? 4. Which employers are covered by the law? 5. Are all older workers protected under the law? 6. What forms of discrimination or unfair treatment are illegal? 7. What are valid reasons for an employer to fire an older worker?
AIDS/HIV+ Legal Resources for Gay and Lesbian Community
List of Cases and other legal information related to HIV and AIDS
Americans with Disabilities Act
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in employment, transportation, public accommodation, communications, and governmental activities. The ADA also establishes requirements for telecommunications relay services.
CDT's Guide to On-Line Privacy
This document provides detailed information about privacy rights through the Constitution, legislation and agency inititiatives, legislation before Congress, and resources for protecting your medical, financial, and other information.
Civil Rights and Drug Policy
The "War on Drugs" is not working. After decades of criminal prohibition and intensive law enforcement efforts to rid the country of illegal drugs, violent traffickers still endanger life in our cities and tons of cocaine, heroin, and marijuana still cross our borders unimpeded.
Civil Rights and HIV / AIDS
Ever since the emergence of AIDS in the early 1980s, our nation has been struggling to cope with this terrible disease. But the widespread fear stirred by the AIDS crisis has made the careful development of public policy difficult. There have been unwise calls for the curtailment of individual rights and liberties, and people with AIDS have often faced irrational discrimination -- job firings, exclusions from school, and denials of access to health care.
Civil Rights of the Poor
Poor people are one of the least powerful groups in the US and their civil liberties are therefore always in a precarious state. The ACLU has historically defended the rights of the poor against government arbitrariness and abuse. Today, that work continues.
Commission for Minority Affairs Home Page
The South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs was created to provide the citizenry with a single point of contact for information regarding the State's minority population.
Employment Discrimination
There are several federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination against people with disabilities. These laws apply to all state and local government employers and to private employers with 15 or more employees. In South Carolina, employers are also subject to the South Carolina Human Affairs Law, which provides employees with disabilities the same protections as the federal laws.