Judge Alito: Bad for Civil Rights, Bad for Fairness, Bad for America

With the Senate hearing on Judge Samuel Alito's appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court about to begin, People for the American Way has released its comprehensive report on his legal background, The Record and Legal Philosophy of Samuel Alito: "No One to the Right of Sam Alito on this Court" (PDF). You should also check out Alito's America, a site put together by the American Progress Action Fund and Campus Progress for information about the disheartening record of this nominee to the highest court in the land.

DNC Chair Howard Dean is calling for at least one million to sign a petition being organized by the Democratic Party as well as a coaltion of organizations calling themselves IndependentCourt.org, recommending that the Senate reject Alito. So far, more than 750,000 signatures have been obtained. Sign up NOW to be a part of it. Excerpt:

Our courts are the last line of defense against abuses of power ... and every judicial nominee must demonstrate that they will honor their most important responsibility: protecting our rights and freedoms.

Samuel Alito will not.

During the course of his judicial career, Samuel Alito has compiled a record of looking the other way when abuses of power threaten our basic freedoms. He has deferred to unscrupulous prosecutors who constructed all-white juries to try black defendants. He repeatedly failed to protect our right to privacy. He was even the lone judge voting to uphold the illegal strip-search of a 10-year old girl.

You're urged to sign the petition now and stay tuned for further action alerts as the hearing process begins. Other groups opposing Alito's appointment include:

ADA Watch / National Coalition for Disability Rights
Alliance for Justice
American Association of People with Disabilities
American Association of University Women
American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees
Americans for Democratic Action
Americans United for Separation of Church and State
Asian American Justice Center
Association of Programs for Rural Independent Living
Black Women’s Health Imperative
Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence
Change to Win Coalition
Communications Consortium Media Center
Communications Workers of America
Congressional Black Caucus
Earthjustice
Feminist Majority
Friends of the Earth
Greenpeace USA
Human Rights Campaign
Judge David L. Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law
Lambda Legal
Leadership Conference on Civil Rights
Legal Momentum
Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund
MoveOn
NARAL Pro-Choice America
National Abortion Federation
National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund
National Association for Rights Protection and Advocacy
National Center for Lesbian Rights
National Council of Jewish Women
National Council of Women’s Organizations
National Council on Independent Living
National Environmental Trust
National Fair Housing Alliance
National Family Planning and Reproductive Health Association
National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Foundation
National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health
National Lawyers Guild
National Organization for Women
National Partnership for Women & Families
National Senior Citizens Law Center
National Women’s Law Center
Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays
People For the American Way
Planned Parenthood Federation of America
Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice
SEIU
The Sexuality Information and Education Council of the U.S.
The Shalom Center
Sierra Club
Union for Reform Judaism
Unitarian Universalist Association
US Action
Violence Policy Center
World Association of People With Disabilities