Leading Freedom (and Fundraising) Forward

"A major goal of the campaign was to substantially increase the ACLU's grassroots presence and effectiveness across the country by significantly increasing the programmatic and institutional capacity of its state affiliates," says Laurie Beacham, director of media relations for the ACLU. "The Strategic Affiliate Initiative, the centerpiece of the campaign, was based on a strategic decision to invest in states where civil liberties were most under assault and where opportunities outweighed the local resources — Florida, Texas, New Mexico, Montana, Mississippi, Michigan, eastern Missouri, Tennessee and Arizona.