News & Commentary

I had a childhood like many others. I had a loving mom and dad, an older brother who teased me and a couple of dogs running around the yard. We would read chapter books aloud which likely fostered my love of literature. Some of the happiest memories of my childhood take place on a New Jersey beach, surrounded by aunts, uncles and cousins with the various fried treats sold along the boardwalk and the waves crashing on the sand.

Religious freedom is one of our most treasured liberties, a fundamental and defining feature of our national character.

With International Women’s Day on the horizon, we want to recognize just a few of the amazing women who have been a part of the ACLU of Nebraska the past 50 years.

This week, the Nebraska Legislature is considering legislation to help close the pay gap in Nebraska. Without this crucial legislation, Nebraska women would have to wait until 2066 for the pay gap to close.

This isn’t the setup for a bad joke. This is the law for a young woman in Nebraska.

In 1995, Ruby Scott was 15 years old and unexpectedly pregnant. She did what most young women do in that situation – she talked with her parents. Before the family had taken Ruby to a doctor, her boyfriend’s parents had the State of Nebraska remove Ruby from her home to prevent her from having an abortion.

GayLynn Brummett and her husband, Jay, wanted to be parents. They got married in 1989 and one year later learned that GayLynn was living with HIV. They decided that the best way to grow their family was to become foster parents. They had their first child placed with them in 1991 and in 1992, a young boy was placed with them. After the boy's parents relinquished parental rights, the Brummett's decided they wanted to give this young boy a forever home.

In 1988, a student in Nebraska was denied the opportunity to play sports.

This piece was penned with Bri McLarty of Nebraskans for Civic Reform.