Home : Women's Rights : Pregnancy/Parenting

NYCLU and Fossil, Inc. Settle Discrimination Claim Brought by Breastfeeding Woman (07/03/2007)
NEW YORK - The New York Civil Liberties Union today announced the settlement of a discrimination claim against Fossil, Inc., arising from an incident in which a woman was harassed for attempting to breastfeed her infant son while on a buying trip in the company's Manhattan showroom. New York's civil rights law provides that a mother has a right to breastfeed her baby "in any location, public or private, where the mother is otherwise authorized to be."

Toys “R” Us Violates Law by Barring Breastfeeding in Store, NYCLU Warns (09/14/2006)
NEW YORK -- The New York Civil Liberties Union today warned the Toys “R” Us company that it violated civil rights law by telling a mother that she could not breastfeed her infant in a store.

ACLU of Maryland Declares Victory as High Court Unanimously Rules Pregnancy Prosecutions Are Illegal (08/03/2006)
BALTIMORE, MD – The American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland applauded today’s decision by the Maryland Court of Appeals unanimously ruling that the reckless endangerment statute does not apply to women who take drugs while pregnant.

NYCLU Defends Pregnant School Teacher Fired By School (11/21/2005)
NEW YORK -- The New York Civil Liberties Union today charged a private Catholic school with discriminating against an unmarried Catholic schoolteacher by firing her because she became pregnant.

ACLU and Northwest Women's Law Center Back Washington Woman's Right To Divorce (03/10/2005)
SPOKANE, WA--The American Civil Liberties Union of Washington, the ACLU Women's Rights Project, and the Northwest Women's Law Center today filed a friend-of-the-court brief supporting the right of a Spokane woman to obtain a divorce from her abusive husband who was convicted of assaulting her. The woman was denied a petition for divorce by Spokane County because she is pregnant.

New Mexico v. Martinez (03/09/2007)

New Mexico v. Martinez (03/09/2007)

ACLU Brief in Department of Human Resources, et al v. Hibbs (05/27/2003)

Thibodeau v. Design Group One Architects (02/11/2002)

Thibodeau v. Design Group One Architects (02/11/2002)

ACLU Coalition Letter to Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt (07/22/2008)
The undersigned medical, public health, religious, advocacy, and research groups committed to women's health strongly oppose the Department of Health and Human Services’ draft regulations that could significantly limit women’s access to basic reproductive health services, including some of the most common forms of birth control. If implemented, these regulations may preempt state laws that protect women’s access to health care and undermine the nation’s fragile network of safety net providers that serve low income women. We strongly urge the Department to immediately abandon its effort to bring about these ill-conceived and harmful policy changes.

Coalition Sign-On Letter to the House Requesting Funding Priority for Title X National Family Planning Public Health Program in FY 2005 (03/17/2004)

Coalition Sign-On Letter to Secretary Tommy Thompson of the Department of Health and Human Services Expressing Dismay at the Women's Health 2004 Daybook's Failure to Provide Information on Pregnancy Prevention and Contraceptive Services (01/09/2004)

Letter to the House Urging Support for the Sanchez Amendment to the FY 2003 Defense Authorization Bill (05/08/2002)

ACLU Comments on State Children's Health Program: Eligibility for Prenatal Care for Unborn Children (05/06/2002)

ACLU Victory in Lochren v. Suffolk County (06/05/2006)
Lochren v. Suffolk County is a legal case that six female police officers have brought against their employer, the Suffolk County Police Department, to challenge department policies that discriminate against women officers by denying them limited duty during their pregnancies. While the case represents only six women, it confronts issues that women in non-traditional employment face across the country.

ACLU Letter to VMI (07/03/2001)

In the Child's Best Interests: Defending Fair and Sensible Adoption Policies (04/30/1998)

"Safe Surrender" or "Infant Abandonment" Legislation (01/22/2003)

Overview of Lesbian and Gay Parenting, Adoption and Foster Care (04/06/1999)

Coercive and Punitive Governmental Responses to Women's Conduct During Pregnancy (09/30/1997)
Arresting the Pregnancy Police

Child Exclusion Policies in Welfare Reform (04/01/1997)
Promoting Reproductive Freedom for Low-Income Women

New Mexico v. Martinez (03/09/2007)
The Women's Rights Project, Reproductive Freedom Project, and ACLU of New Mexico joined in an amicus effort before the New Mexico Supreme Court to help challenge the arrest and prosecution of Cynthia Martinez, a mother who continued her pregnancy to term in spite of her struggle with drug addiction.