ACLU Nebraska Legal Program - Racial Discrimination
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Most complaints of racial discrimination we handle involve police misconduct.
Click here to read more about those cases involving racial discrimination and
the police.
ACLU Joins Former Black Panther in Asking for New Trial
Edward Poindexter has been in prison since 1970 for a crime he
may not have committed. ACLU Nebraska's amicus brief in his case
was submitted to the Douglas County District Court today, asking
the judge to consider whether Poindexter was a victim of the FBI
program COINTELPRO. COINTELPRO was an unconstitutional effort
to target dissident minority voices, including those of black
leaders in both the civil rights movement and in the more
controversial Black Panther movement. ACLU Nebraska has urged
the court to recall the intense racial discrimination present in
the time surrounding the events of Poindexter's conviction and to
view the prosecution's case with some skepticism as a result. Download the brief here:
Poindexter amicus brief
(May 4, 2007)
Lubna Hussein is a Muslim woman, originally from Egypt. In the summer of 2003, she went to an Omaha public pool
with her three young daughters and a friend. The pool employees refused to allow Lubna in, claiming her modest
clothing and Muslim head scarf were not permitted. Lubna and her daughters saw other people in the pool area who were
wearing street clothing, but they still were refused entry. Lubna returned on a second occasion and tried to explain
her religious beliefs required her to wear her scarf and clothing--she explained she only wanted to watch her children
swim, not swim herself. Again, though other people--who were white--were in the pool area in regular clothes, Lubna
was denied entry. We filed suit in the spring of 2004, charging the city of Omaha with racial discrimination as well
as religious and gender discrimination. The case was settled in February,
2005, with a change in the pool dress code policies to allow anyone with
religious clothing to enter pool facilities in the future.
Read the Lawsuit Filing Press Release in Adobe PDF Format.
(June, 2004)
Read the Lawsuit
Settlement Press Release in Adobe PDF Format. (February, 2005)
