Media Contact

Steve Kilar, 602-773-6007, media@acluaz.org

April 6, 2018

Art exhibition to commemorate organization’s 60th anniversary of fighting for civil liberties

PHOENIX—The ACLU of Arizona is calling on artists from across the state to submit artwork for a juried exhibition inspired by the mission of the ACLU. “In This Together: Sixty Years of Daring to Create a More Perfect Arizona” will reflect on six decades of protecting the constitutional rights of all people.

The call to artists and list of jurors can be found on the ACLU of Arizona’s website at: https://www.acluaz.org/InThisTogether.

“It’s about celebrating what we’ve accomplished together, and being forward-thinking and audacious about standing up for the values of fairness, equality, and liberty that we all believe in,” said ACLU of Arizona Executive Director Alessandra Soler. “Art is a mirror of the times. We want to hold up that mirror and confront injustice, not just through litigation and legislative advocacy, but though public awareness too. Sometimes art conveys what words can’t.”

The deadline to submit artwork for consideration is May 30, 2018. Forty artists will be selected for the exhibition, which is scheduled to open at ASU Gammage in October 2018. The exhibition will then travel statewide through October 2019.

A small group of civil libertarians started the ACLU of Arizona in 1959. Over the past sixty years, the ACLU of Arizona has worked in courts, the Legislature, and communities across the state to protect the constitutional rights of all people. In that time, the organization has taken on the toughest civil liberties battles and grown to more than 22,000 members. The organization's current strategic priorities are criminal justice reform, education equity, LGBTQ equality, and immigrants' rights.

Soler explained the meaning behind the exhibit name, "In This Together": “Our work isn’t about one person, one party or one issue. It’s about all of us, we the people, coming together and daring to create a more perfect Arizona. We’re in this together.”

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