At our 2017 Annual Meeting, we were proud to recognize the significant contributions to civil rights and civil liberties of The Coalition for Compassion and Action, Xavier Long, Kristin Fasy, Rosie Piller, and Nancy Sobel.

The Coalition for Compassion and Action, a grassroots activist organization focused on protecting the rights of people who are poor and vulnerable and opposing criminalization of homelessness in Colorado Springs,  was awarded the 2017 Civil Rights in Action Award.
Since its founding in 2016, the Coalition for Compassion and Action has mobilized hundreds of volunteers, connected individuals and families with services, and had a significant impact on policy debates at the Colorado Springs City Council.


Xavier Long, who bravely spoke out for reform of youth corrections, was honored with the 2017 Youth in Action Award.  Xavier endured violence and mistreatment while incarcerated. He told his story in a web video, testified before the legislature, and lobbied lawmakers for culture-changing legislation to protect other kids in youth facilities.


Kristin Fasy, Rosie Piller, and Nancy Sobel were recognized as 2017 Arlette Baer Volunteers of the Year.
Kristin Fasy devoted hundreds of hours to conducting legal research into health standards and procedures in the Colorado Department of Corrections.  She read through prisoner letters, visited inmates, listened to their stories, and organized the information for our legal department. She sees the humanity in every person she has spoken with and strives to make sure they’re treated with dignity and compassion.
Rosie Piller developed easy-to-understand visual presentations for our volunteer speakers' bureau.  Her work has been viewed by thousands of people across Colorado - people who have benefited from the countless hours that she put into them.  She's tackled complicated issues - Know Your Rights, Voting Rights, ACLU History, and made them simple to teach and understand. She’s meticulous, persistent and dedicated to the work of the ACLU, and her contribution has been immeasurable.
Nancy Sobel volunteered for three years in our intake department.  She read hundreds of letters – some of them heartbreaking – and made sure every person received consideration and a reply. Nancy re-organized our intake database to make it easier to spot patterns of abuse and follow up on them.  She was consistent, reliable and enthusiastic, and we’re extremely grateful for all of her hard work and support.
 

The post-mortem on this year's legislative session has been mostly positive. Lawmakers are being applauded for their willingness to place good policy-making above partisan politics. Governor Hickenlooper referred to the 2017 session as "the most productive" since he took office in 2011.
Legislators made big news for finding common ground on some of the state's most critical issues, like construction defects reform and addressing the hospital provider fee. Lawmakers also found common ground - most of the time - on legislation affecting civil rights and civil liberties.
For almost three years now, the ACLU has been working with the Division of Youth Corrections attempting to reverse the punitive culture that has been pervasive within the Division. Earlier in the year, the ACLU, along with other child advocates, released Bound and Broken, a report documenting the harsh and punitive nature of DYC practices. DYC has for years relied heavily on the use of solitary confinement, a full-body straitjacket called the WRAP, pain compliance techniques, knee strikes, leg irons and handcuffs to control kids. This punitive culture endangers both staff and kids. As the state legislature has given DYC more and more money over the years, violence has increased. More money alone is clearly not the answer.
Relying on the facts presented in Bound and Broken and other evidence revealed through investigative journalism, Representatives Pete Lee (D-Colorado Springs) and Lois Landgraff (R-Fountain) sponsored HB 1329 -- legislation that mandates DYC retain an outside consultant to evaluate all Division facilities and make recommendations to bring DYC in line with best practices.  It also requires the Division to work with an independent consultant to develop a pilot program that relies on non-punitive approaches to caring for kids. The bill also changes the name from the Division of Youth Corrections to the Division of Youth Services and establishes the mission as rehabilitative rather than punitive.
The bill received unanimous support in the House. In the Senate, after some legislative procedural acrobatics, it passed with bipartisan support in a 21-14 vote. It was sponsored by Senators Daniel Kagan (D-Cherry Hills) and Don Coram (R-Durango). The legislation really had only one vocal opponent - Senator Kent Lambert (R-Colorado Springs) and thankfully, his voice was overwhelmed by the majority of those seeking much needed reform.
The ACLU continued its work on municipal courts and correcting harsh penalties that largely affect poor people and particularly people of color in the criminal justice system, and these efforts received great bipartisan support. After extensive research, the ACLU discovered that many people incarcerated on minor municipal offenses – including park hours violations and open container – were held in jail for days and even weeks on end just waiting to see a judge. These individuals were stuck in jail only because they were too poor to post bond.  HB 1338 begins to address this problem by requiring that municipal inmates who are not brought before a judge within 48 hours or 72 hours over a weekend, will be automatically released from jail on their own recognizance. This bill garnered unanimous support from both chambers. The bill was sponsored by Representative Jeff Bridges (D-Cherry Creek) and Senator Vickie Marble (R-Broomfield).
HB 1168, another bill supported by ACLU of Colorado, decriminalizes “Driving Under Revocation” when one's license was revoked because of an unpaid traffic ticket. Currently, the Department of Motor Vehicles revokes on average 205,000 driver's license each year. Many of these revocations occur for extremely minor infractions simply because people cannot afford to pay their fines, creating a vicious cycle that punishes people for their poverty. Under HB 1168, jail time is no longer a penalty when a person drives with a license that was revoked simply because they failed to pay. Although the ACLU would have preferred to see revocations for inability to pay eliminated altogether, rendering driving in this scenario to a civil offense is a step in the right direction. We thank Representative Matt Gray (D-Adams County) and Senator Bob Gardner (R-Colorado Springs) for sponsoring this legislation, which passed both chambers with strong bipartisan support.
Other ACLU-supported bills which passed with bipartisan support included Campus Free Speech and Asset Forfeiture Reform. Lawmakers also came together to support legislation that requires insurers to cover a 12-month supply of contraception for women. This legislation has been defeated in the past, but this session, it found bipartisan sponsorship and votes in both chambers. Also of great significance, the Republican-controlled Senate voted down a bill that would have mandated ultrasounds and a waiting period for women seeking an abortion. The bill – titled Women's Right to Accurate Health Care - was voted down 19-16.
These victories didn't prevent several legislative attempts to limit women's access to reproductive care. The House alone saw five bills that would have done just that. One such bill, predicated on "junk science," would have required doctors to inform women about an "abortion reversal" pill. Another bill would have enacted personhood, subjecting anyone performing an abortion to the criminal charge of first degree murder, the potential penalty for which is the death penalty. Personhood has been resoundingly defeated by Colorado voters multiple times.
Partisan politics also persisted in the area of LGBT rights, immigrant rights and a key area of criminal justice reform. For the second year in a row, the Senate State Affairs committee voted down bills that would have limited the use of conversion therapy and made it easier for one to change their gender marker on their birth certificate. Both bills were defeated on a party line vote.
The legislature also refused to advance legislation that intended to benefit our immigrant and refugee communities. And a Senate committee rejected a bill that would have repealed the death penalty. We thank Minority Leader Senator Lucia Guzman for her persistence and passion on this issue.
Much can be and was accomplished in 120 days. ACLU's policy work, of course, continues beyond the legislative session. The policy team will continue to persist in advancing civil liberties and resist attempts to take us backward. Sine die.

Airline Prohibits Breast Pumping on Duty, Despite 10-Hour Shifts

DENVER — The American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Colorado, and the law firm Holwell Shuster & Goldberg LLP today filed discrimination charges with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on behalf of two female Frontier Airlines flight attendants who claim that the company has discriminated against them and other female flight attendants by failing to provide accommodations related to pregnancy and breastfeeding.
The flight attendants, Jo Roby, who has worked for Frontier for 13 years, and Stacy Rewitzer, who has worked for the airline since 2006, assert that despite their desire to return to work, they were forced onto unpaid leave after having their babies. When the two women sought accommodations that would enable them to pump breast milk, they were told that no accommodations were possible and were forbidden from pumping while on duty — although they typically work shifts over 10 hours long with back-to-back flights. Rewitzer also faced disciplinary action and risk of termination as a result of Frontier’s policy that penalizes pregnancy-related illness and absences.
“I am bringing these charges not just for me and my daughter, but also for future flight attendants and their families,” said Roby. “No one should have to choose between being the mom she wants to be and pursuing the career she loves.”
The formal complaints filed today come on the one-year anniversary of similar discrimination charges filed previously by the ACLU and Holwell Shuster & Goldberg LLP on behalf of four female Frontier pilots, Brandy Beck, Shannon Kiedrowski, Erin Zielinski, and Randi Freyer, in May 2016.
“I love my job as a flight attendant for Frontier Airlines and shouldn’t have to choose between my job or my health and breastfeeding my child,” said Rewitzer. “I’m proud to stand with the pilots who stood up to Frontier before us.”
The EEOC charges point to the lack of maternity leave at Frontier for flight attendants, who are limited to whatever unpaid time they have saved up under the Family Medical Leave Act, and accrued sick or vacation days. As a result, many flight attendants return to work when their babies are still nursing. Yet Frontier fails to make any accommodations for flight attendants who are breastfeeding to pump breast milk when they return to work.
Women who are away from their babies need to express breast milk using a breast pump on roughly the same schedule as the baby’s feeding schedule, or serious medical complications can result. Because flight attendants’ schedules often involve long flights and shifts of up to 10 hours with no break time, they need to have a designated place where they can pump both on the aircraft and at airports.
“Frontier’s policies are discriminatory at a structural level and need to be changed,” said Galen Sherwin, senior staff attorney with the ACLU Women’s Rights Project. “How is it that a job that is majority female still fails to take into account pregnancy and breastfeeding? It’s time for Frontier to start addressing the needs of pregnant and breastfeeding workers — both inside and outside the flight deck.”
The charges assert that Frontier’s policies violate federal and state laws against discrimination based on sex, pregnancy, childbirth and disability in employment, including Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Colorado Antidiscrimination Act, and Colorado’s Pregnant Workers Fairness Act. They also allege violations of the Colorado Workplace Accommodations for Nursing Mothers Act.
One of the pilots at Frontier, Freyer, who is still breastfeeding, also submitted additional allegations today in connection with the charges filed last year detailing her continued difficulties since returning to work. Frontier has denied Freyer’s request for schedule modifications to avoid longer flights, and as a result, she has had to go long stretches without pumping. Although Frontier finally gave her a list of places to pump at some airports after she and the three other pilots filed their discrimination complaints last year, almost all of the locations Fryer has attempted to use have been inadequate — either because they are too far from the gate for her to reach in the time between flights, because she has been unable to access them, or in some cases, because the location is not private or lacks a necessary electrical outlet.  Moreover, Frontier’s list does not even include a location for several of the airports that Frontier pilots fly to.
“In order to be competitive and attract and retain the most qualified workforce, businesses need to create an environment in which both male and female employees can thrive,” said Lani Perlman of Holwell Shuster & Goldberg LLP. “Unfortunately, it sometimes takes brave women like our clients speaking out in order to bring about necessary changes. We hope this case brings the employees at Frontier closer to achieving that goal.”
The flight attendants’ charges ask the EEOC to require Frontier to take several steps to make it easier for pregnant flight attendants and flight attendants who are breastfeeding, including:

• Providing clean and convenient accommodations for pumping while on duty, including on board during flight when necessary, during training, and at airports
• Allowing temporary alternative ground assignments
• Providing relief from the current strict attendance policy that penalizes flight attendants who miss work due to pregnancy
• Offering meaningful parental leave for new parents.

Prior to filing these charges, the ACLU and Holwell Shuster & Goldberg LLP sent a letter to Frontier requesting that Frontier implement policy changes to adequately accommodate pregnant and breast-feeding flight attendants, but Frontier has not done so.
Today’s complaint is at: https://www.aclu.org/cases/frontier-airlines-eeoc-complaint

For more on the flight attendants’ experiences: https://www.aclu.org/cases/frontier-airlines-eeoc-complaint