After an especially active session, the South Dakota Legislature is officially over.
From defeating four discriminatory anti-transgender bills to stopping the repeal of presumptive probation, the ACLU of South Dakota had some important victories during the legislative session this year. But there were some disappointments, too, like the passing of the anti-protest bill that threatens the right of South Dakotans to peacefully protest and has the potential to chill free speech.
But what really happened behind-the-scenes in Pierre? How do bills get defeated? How does the legislative session actually work?
ACLU of South Dakota Policy Director Libby Skarin, Reps. Erin Healy and Kelly Sullivan and community advocates will come together to talk about their time in Pierre during Session Confessions, an evening of no-holds-barred conversation designed to give real answers to real questions.
IF YOU GO
What: Session Confessions
WHEN: 6 p.m., April 11
WHERE: Josiah’s Coffeehouse, 104 W. 12th St., Sioux Falls
FOR INFORMATION: Go to www.aclusd.org
About the ACLU of South Dakota
Based in Sioux Falls, the South Dakota chapter of the ACLU is a non-partisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation and enhancement of civil liberties and civil rights. The ACLU of South Dakota is the largest civil rights organization in the state and one of the fastest growing chapters of the ACLU nationwide. The ACLU believes freedoms of press, speech, assembly, and religion, and the rights to due process, equal protection and privacy, are fundamental to a free people. In addition, the ACLU seeks to advance constitutional protections for groups traditionally denied their rights, including people of color, women, and the LGBT communities. The ACLU of South Dakota carries out its work through selective litigation, lobbying at the state and local level, and through public education and awareness of what the Bill of Rights means for the people of South Dakota.
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