This week marks 100 days since Donald Trump’s inauguration.
In that time, he has detained students and scholars for their constitutionally protected speech, sent hundreds of people to a prison in El Salvador known for torture without due process, attacked trans youths’ access to essential medical care, tried to revoke the Constitution’s birthright citizenship guarantee, and threatened to slash funding to our schools. President Trump is abusing the power of the federal government to silence opposition and enforce compliance through fear and censorship.
He’s been at this for 100 days now, but with over 100 years of experience tirelessly defending our civil liberties, the ACLU was built for this moment – and we’re responding in force.
Thanks to members like you, we’re taking on the Trump administration’s cruelty at every level – taking him to court with over 100 legal actions, fighting to stop bad legislation in Congress, and educating communities across the country on our rights. So, as we continue to challenge President Trump’s every attack on our freedoms, rights, and civil liberties, let’s review 100 days of our collective impact:
Read about some key moments below, or click here to view the full interactive timeline now.
- January: Trump is inaugurated and signs 37 executive orders during his first week, attacking the rights of babies born in this country, asylum seekers at the border, and trans and non-binary people. On day one, within two hours of his attack on birthright citizenship, the ACLU files our first lawsuit to stop him.
- February: Trump establishes the so-called Department of Government Efficiency and grants unprecedented access to Americans’ most sensitive information – including our medical, financial, and Social Security information. In response to this massive invasion of privacy, the ACLU files more than 40 Freedom of Information Act requests – while our community floods Congress’ inboxes with over a quarter million messages demanding oversight and accountability.
- March: The Trump administration secretly and illegally invokes the Alien Enemies Act during peacetime to conduct mass deportations of immigrants without due process. The ACLU sues immediately – and secured a temporary block on the deportations. But Trump does not comply; planes keep flying even after the court orders their return. The ACLU continues to fight against the gross misuse of this centuries-old wartime authority.
- March through April: ICE unlawfully arrests and detains Mahmoud Khalil, a recent Columbia graduate student, for his activism in support of Palestinian rights, and ships him a thousand miles away from his pregnant wife. Tufts University student Rümeysa Öztürk is snatched off the streets by ICE and shipped to a Louisiana detention center all because of an op-ed she co-authored in her school newspaper last year. Just two weeks ago, Columbia student and activist Mohsen Mahdawi is detained in retaliation for his pro-Palestine advocacy when he shows up to take his citizenship test. The ACLU and our affiliates join these students’ legal teams to ensure they are released and that all of our constitutional rights are protected.
The future belongs to all of us, and it’s up to all of us to continue doing whatever we can to protect the rights of people nationwide. The ACLU will never stop fighting, and we hope you won’t either.
Thank you for being with us during the last 100 days and for whatever comes next.
The ACLU Team
ACLU of Washington
P.O. Box 2728
Seattle, WA 98111-2728