PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Scott Emanuel Public Education Manager (314) 652-3114 ext 23
ACLU Responds to Valley Park Mayor’s Election Claims ST. LOUIS, April 6, 2008 -Valley Park Mayor Jeffrey Whittaker widely circulated campaign materials claiming that the ACLU backed his opponent for the upcoming April 8th election. Contrary to Whittaker’s claims, the ACLU is not involved in the electoral politics of the City of Valley Park or any other city in Missouri or anywhere in the United States. The ACLU is a non-partisan, public interest organization devoted exclusively to protecting the basic civil liberties of all Americans. Whittaker’s claim that we recruited or are involved in any way with his opponent is blatantly false. The ACLU of Eastern Missouri’s current work in Valley Park involves lawsuits over the city’s anti-immigrant ordinances. Those ordinances override federal law and the exclusive federal power over immigration, violate business and property owners' due process rights under the constitution, and violate the equal protection rights of Valley Park residents and workers by fostering discrimination against anyone who looks or sounds foreign. Those cases are currently on appeal. Brenda Jones Executive Director ACLU of Eastern Missouri ###
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