Abstract
Private Attorneys. General: Group Action in the Fight for Civil Liberties
Highlights
Thirteen Committees of the Union,' selected by the Board to deal with specialized problems like academic freedom or censorship, are the chief formulators of policy since the Board usually accepts their recommendations.[9 8,000] contributing members donate about $52,000 in annual dues, 10 and special funds add between five and $15,000 annually to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)'s coffers." None of these contributions is deductible from individual tax returns because of the Internal Revenue Bureau's ruling that a substantial portion of the Union's activities is devoted to influencing legislation. 12
1949] GROUP ACTION IN FIGHT FOR CIVIL LIBERTIES 5S9 first large civil rights organization to implement, at least in part, that method of attack most clearly defined by the American Jewish Congress as the "law and social action" approach to civil rights
Petitions and polls have resulted from the CLSA-instituted suit against a private insurance company which bars Negroes from its largest housing project."' If won, the case will have far-reaching implications in prohibiting racial discrimination in projects built under the urban redevelopment laws in twenty-four states.' 2'
Summary
The NAACP and the CLSA entered the civil liberties field as part of their efforts in behalf of minority groups. The attempt here will be to analyze the methods of the three organizations, their effect on civil liberties law, and their ability to enter into the more complex civil liberties issues currently facing minority groups and the American people as a whole. 3. The ACLU's prestige as a non-partisan defender of civil rights has enabled it to command free legal talent and extensive publicity through which it has exercised an influence far out of proportion to its small membership and limited expenditures. 3. The Chicago Civil Liberties Committee of the Union withdrew from national ACLU affliation in April, 1945, and became the chief force behind efforts to convict one of Gerald L. In a field in which public pressure to restrict the activities of an unpopular minority can often become intense, it has been especially effective, for an organization to enter the fight not as a minority group trying to defend itself but rather as a non-partisan organization, interested in the ideals of free expression and thought
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