Liberty (advocacy group) facts for kids
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| Formation | 22 February 1934 |
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| Type | Political pressure group |
| Legal status | Trust |
| Focus | Human rights |
| Headquarters | London, England |
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Director
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Akiko Hart |
| Website | |
Liberty is an organization in the United Kingdom that works to protect people's rights and freedoms. Its formal name is the National Council for Civil Liberties (NCCL). Liberty is an advocacy group, which means it speaks up for people and tries to change unfair laws.
The group works in courts, in the UK Parliament, and in communities to promote human rights. Liberty wants to create a "rights culture" in Britain, where everyone understands and respects each other's rights. The NCCL was started in 1934 by Ronald Kidd and Sylvia Crowther-Smith.
Recently, Liberty has focused on challenging the Investigatory Powers Act 2016, a law about government surveillance. It also campaigns against policies that allow people seeking to live in the UK to be held in detention for an unknown amount of time.
In 2019, Liberty started Liberty Investigates, a team of journalists who report on human rights issues in the UK.
Contents
History of Liberty
How Liberty Began
The National Council for Civil Liberties (NCCL) was founded in 1934. Its first meeting was held at the church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields in London. The founders, including writer E. M. Forster and scientist H. G. Wells, said they were worried about the "alarming tendency to encroachment on the liberty of the citizen."
One of their first campaigns was against a proposed law called the Incitement to Disaffection Bill. This law would have made it a crime to own anti-war pamphlets. The NCCL managed to get the law weakened before it was passed. The group also campaigned against censorship in films and supported striking miners.
World War II and After
During World War II, the NCCL supported the government's power to imprison people without a trial in some cases. This was a controversial decision, and some members left the group in protest.
After the war, the NCCL campaigned for better rights for soldiers. They also worked on cases where people were wrongly convicted of crimes, helping to get them freed.
In the 1950s, the NCCL pushed for changes to the mental health system. At the time, people who were not mentally ill, such as unmarried mothers, could be locked away in asylums. The campaign led to the release of about 2,000 people and a new law, the Mental Health Act 1959.
Becoming Liberty
In 1989, the NCCL changed its public name to "Liberty." In 2001, Shami Chakrabarti joined the organization and became its director in 2003. She became well-known for campaigning against new anti-terrorism laws after the 11 September 2001 attacks. Many people saw these laws as a threat to people's freedoms.
Since 2015, Liberty has led a campaign to protect the Human Rights Act. This act protects basic rights for everyone in the UK. In 2016, Martha Spurrier became the new director, and in 2024, Akiko Hart took over the role.
Important Campaigns
Fighting for Equality
In the 1960s, Liberty expanded its work. It campaigned against racial discrimination and helped pass the Race Relations Act 1965. This law made it illegal to refuse service to people in pubs and hotels because of their race.
The group also fought for women's rights. At the time, only people who owned property could serve on a jury, which meant very few women could. Liberty successfully campaigned to change this law.
Protecting Personal Information
In 1975, Liberty discovered that a company was selling millions of private credit files. The group bought the files and destroyed them to protect people's privacy. This led to a campaign for new laws to give people more control over their personal data.
Helping People in Need
During the miners' strike in the 1980s, Liberty supported miners who were stopped by police from protesting.
In the 1990s, Liberty helped free the Birmingham Six. These were six men who had been in prison for 16 years for bombings they did not commit.
In 2004, Liberty defended Katharine Gun, a translator who revealed that the US government had asked Britain to help with illegal surveillance at the United Nations. The charges against her were dropped.
Modern Campaigns
Protecting Privacy
Liberty has worked hard to protect people's privacy from government surveillance. After Edward Snowden revealed that governments were collecting huge amounts of data, Liberty took the UK government to court. In 2018, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that the UK's bulk data collection had violated people's right to privacy.
Liberty also challenged the Investigatory Powers Act 2016, sometimes called the "Snooper's Charter." The group argued that the law gave the government too much power to spy on citizens.
Defending Human Rights
Liberty has been a leading voice in the campaign to "Save our Human Rights Act." The group argues that repealing the act would weaken protections for everyone in the UK.
The organization has also supported the families of young soldiers who died at the Deepcut army barracks. Using the Human Rights Act, Liberty helped the families get new investigations into the deaths.
Standing Up for Fair Treatment
Liberty campaigns against the government's "hostile environment" policies. These policies make it very difficult for immigrants to live and work in the UK. The group also fights for a 28-day time limit on how long someone can be held in an immigration detention center.
The group also challenges the police's use of facial recognition technology. Liberty argues that this technology is often inaccurate and an invasion of privacy.
How Liberty is Organized
Liberty is made up of three parts:
- Liberty – an unincorporated association: This is the membership part of the organization that anyone can join.
- Liberty – the company: This is a non-profit company that employs staff to run campaigns.
- The Civil Liberties Trust: This is a registered charity that is separate from Liberty. It funds research, legal cases, and public information about human rights.
See also
In Spanish: National Council for Civil Liberties para niños
- American Civil Liberties Union, an American equivalent
- Civil libertarianism
- Convention on Modern Liberty
- On Liberty (Chakrabarti book)
