Morris Leopold Ernst was an American lawyer and prominent attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). In public life, he defended and asserted the rights of Americans to privacy and freedom from censorship, playing a significant role in challenging and overcoming the banning of certain works of literature and in asserting the right of media employees to organize labor unions. He also promoted an anti-communist stance within the ACLU itself, and was a member of the President's Committee on Civil Rights.
Morris Ernst
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is an American nonprofit human rights organization founded in 1920. The organization strives "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." The ACLU works through litigation and lobbying and has more than 1,800,000 members as of July 2018, with an annual budget over $300 million. ACLU affiliates are active in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico. The ACLU provides legal assistance in cases where it considers civil liberties at risk. Legal support from the ACLU can take the form of direct legal representation or preparation of amicus curiae briefs expressing legal arguments when another law firm is already providing representation.
Howard Simon, executive director of the ACLU of Florida, joins in a protest of the Guantanamo Bay detentions with Amnesty International.
Crystal Eastman was one of the co-founders of the CLB, the predecessor to the ACLU.
Norman Thomas was one of the early leaders of the ACLU.
The ACLU defended H. L. Mencken when he was arrested for distributing banned literature.