ACLU Supporter –

It's only week two of 2023 and already we have a number of important updates to report back.

We at the ACLU know there's a lot ahead that we can and must get done for the rights of us all this year, so please take these hard-fought wins as strength in this fight – it's progress that you made possible:

Last Friday – in voting rights and trans justice:

• A federal court ruled in our favor, striking down South Carolina's congressional maps for intentionally discriminating against Black voters. Dangerous voter suppression laws and disinformation campaigns continue to threaten our democracy – and it is long past time for the South Carolina legislature to adopt a map that allows us all to fairly participate in our democracy.
• On that same day, another federal court in Baltimore, ruled that the University of Maryland St. Joseph Medical Center violated the Affordable Care Act when it denied our client Jesse Hammons commonly-performed medical care simply because he is transgender. This is a win for Jesse and all transgender people being denied equal treatment – and we will continue to fight until every single one of us can live freely and authentically as ourselves.

In the final weeks before New Year's Eve – in women's rights and gender justice:

• Congress passed, and President Biden signed, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PWFA) and the PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act – two historic wins that came after years of unrelenting advocacy work by the ACLU, our People Power volunteers, coalition partners, and impacted people:
• 85% of women in the workforce will become pregnant, and most will work through their pregnancies. Yet many risked being fired when they requested minor job modifications that would safeguard a healthy pregnancy. PWFA will protect millions of workers facing pregnancy discrimination and ensure employers provide reasonable accommodations for pregnant employees.
• Meanwhile, the PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act expands protections for nursing workers. Millions of workers will be newly-protected under this bill that guarantees a break time and a private place to pump breast milk.

ACLU Supporter, already, the tension in the new Congress has been flooding headlines and this year's high-stakes state legislative sessions are gearing up across the country.

So just in case the possibility of a better future and a more just nation – the hope that our critical fight aims to achieve – was ever in question, we hope these latest wins give you heart in the work forward.

Because whether it's for trans justice or voter's rights or reproductive freedom or any civil liberty on the line, we know if we show up together, we'll win in the long haul.

And that is a fight worth fighting for in this new year – and always.

In solidarity,

The ACLU Team