At presidential appearances, the Secret Service establishes "free speech zones" - special locations for citizens to express their opinions. The result? The message may never be heard.

New laws at the federal and state levels severely restrict the ability of non-profit organizations to pursue the right to free speech.

Over four million Americans have lost the right the vote. That's one in fifty. The reason? Felony disenfranchisement.

Schools are an important place to learn about free speech and about participating in the political process. Free expression is part of that process.

You have an obligation to teach your children your value system at home and to encourage them to develop a strong sense of morals and ethics, but you don't have the right to have the taxpayers fund your particular religion.

The Fourth Amendment of the constitution prohibits unreasonable search and seizure. That means, you have a right to privacy. This right is protection against the excesses of government, including the police.

There is nothing in the United States constitution that directly says a citizen has a right to privacy. But, the Supreme Court has said that taken as a whole, the bill of rights implies a citizen's right to privacy - even in the bedroom.

The federal government has at least 1,049 laws regarding marriage. Many of which offer benefits to married couples. But if you are a homosexual couple, marriage and marriage benefits are not available.

The next time you plan on taking an airplane from the Portland Jet Port, be prepared. You might not be allowed on board. In fact, it could happen at any airport in the United States.

Women have a constitutional right to privacy. That right to privacy extends to their body... including their reproductive health.

The United States constitution requires that individuals be treated equally under the law. But, when law enforcement and government agencies target people because of their skin color, that's racial profiling and that's discrimination.

Imagine for a moment that you are driving from Bangor to Portland. Along the way, your car is pulled over. You've not done anything wrong. You're not under suspicion. But, an officer asks about your citizenship. In fact, this seems a lot like a border check but you aren't anywhere near a border.

The fact that if somebody is Black, they’re more likely to have grown up in a poor neighborhood, they're more likely to have gone to a poor school, they're more like to have parents who have less of an education, they're more likely to have grandparents that were forced to go to segregated schools... There is no level playing field.

Tonight when you come home, take a look around. The FBI may have been in your house on a "sneak and peek" investigation. Or the next time you check out a book from the library, keep in mind your reading list can be secretly made available to authorities -- but they can't say anything about it. That would be a crime, literally.

The United States government and the private sector are rapidly increasing their ability to monitor the average American. Some call it "the surveillance industrial complex." It's as though the government read George Orwell's 1984 and thought, "Yeah, that will do nicely."

Over two hundred years ago, we revolted against the British. We took up arms for many reasons, including excessive government power. For instance, British soldiers possessed a general warrant. They could search anywhere, anytime. Now, under the "sneak and peek" provisions of the USA Patriot Act, it seems we've forgotten our history.

From Afghanistan, to Iraq, to Guantanamo Bay Cuba, reports of torture conducted by U.S. soldiers stunned the world. The beatings, humiliation, rapes, and, in some cases, death, are disgusting and outrageous. The Bush administration says the culprits are rogue American soldiers. But, behind the scenes, the administration crafted a new definition of torture and re-wrote fifty years of law.

In 1991, the police beating of Rodney King made front-page news. He was hit with batons 56 times in 81 seconds. King's battering brought national attention to the problem of police brutality.

In the state of Maine if your are married or single, you can adopt a child. But a same-sex couple can not. Maine law prohibits the adoption of children by gay and lesbian couples. That is anti-family.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."