The American Civil Liberties Union will determine if their aggressive defense of the First Amendment hurts their fight for social justice, racial equality and women’s rights. A leaked memo says that the ACLU will look at examine each free speech case before undertaking it to assess “factors such as the (present and historical) context of the proposed speech; the potential effect on marginalized communities; the extent to which the speech may assist in advancing the goals of white supremacists or others whose views are contrary to our values; and the structural and power inequalities in the community in which the speech will occur.” (Reason, June 21, 2018, by Robby Soave)
After the Charlottesville rally in 2017, the ACLU began to question if they wanted to support groups such as the white nationalists who went into the rally with the intent to commit violent acts. The ACLU says it still backs the First Amendment and peaceful protest. The ACLU is attempting to provide counsel to individual branches in balancing civil rights against free speech rights. (Axios, June 21, 2018, by Michael Sykes)