Editing American Civil Liberties Union (section)

====Skokie case====
{{main|National Socialist Party of America v. Village of Skokie}}
In 1977, the [[National Socialist Party of America]], led by [[Frank Collin]], applied to the town of [[Skokie, Illinois]], for a permit to hold a demonstration in the town park. Skokie at the time had a majority population of Jews, totaling 40,000 of 70,000 citizens, some of whom were survivors of [[Nazi concentration camp]]s. Skokie refused to grant the NSPA a permit and passed ordinances against hate speech and military wear, in addition to requiring an insurance bond. Skokie's Village Council ordered [[village attorney]], Harvey Schwartz, to seek an injunction to stop the demonstration. The ACLU assisted Collin and appealed to federal court, eventually prevailing in [[National Socialist Party of America v. Village of Skokie|NSPA v. Village of Skokie]].<ref>Ed McManus, "Nazi March: What's It All About?", ''Illinois Issues'', v.13, Nov. 1978 (available at [http://www.lib.niu.edu/ipo/1978/ii781111.html Illinois Periodicals Online] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060908083411/http://www.lib.niu.edu/ipo/1978/ii781111.html |date=September 8, 2006 }}).<br />The federal appeal case was ''Smith v. Collin'' 447 F. Supp. 676. See also Supreme Court: ''Smith v. Collin'', 439 US 916 (1978), and ''National Socialist Party v. Skokie'', 432 US 43 (1977).</ref>

The Skokie case was heavily publicized across America, partially because Jewish groups such as the [[Jewish Defense League]] and [[Anti Defamation League]] strenuously objected to the demonstration, leading many members of the ACLU to cancel their memberships.<ref name=Skokie/> The Illinois affiliate of the ACLU lost about 25% of its membership and nearly one-third of its budget.<ref>30,000 ACLU members resigned in protest.</ref><ref>Philippa Strum, ''When the Nazis Came to Skokie: Freedom for Speech We Hate'' (University Press of Kansas) ([http://www.kansaspress.ku.edu/strwhe.html University of Kansas Press publisher's catalog description] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070827110841/http://www.kansaspress.ku.edu/strwhe.html |date=August 27, 2007 }}).</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://cdm.digitalpast.org/cgi-bin/showfile.exe?CISOROOT=/skokiepo001&CISOPTR=36|title=Membership woes hurt ACLU while others gain|access-date=October 7, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927081913/http://cdm.digitalpast.org/cgi-bin/showfile.exe?CISOROOT=%2Fskokiepo001&CISOPTR=36|archive-date=September 27, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://cdm.digitalpast.org/cgi-bin/showfile.exe?CISOROOT=/skokiepo001&CISOPTR=0|title=2d suit to block Nazis from Skokie march fails|access-date=October 7, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927081811/http://cdm.digitalpast.org/cgi-bin/showfile.exe?CISOROOT=%2Fskokiepo001&CISOPTR=0|archive-date=September 27, 2007|url-status=dead}}</ref> The financial strain from the controversy led to layoffs at local chapters.<ref>{{cite magazine|title=The High Cost of Free Speech: A.C.L.U. dilemma: defending "hateful and heinous" ideas |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |date=June 28, 1978 |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,916244-1,00.html |access-date=May 18, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090624045022/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0%2C9171%2C916244-1%2C00.html |archive-date=June 24, 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref> After the membership crisis died down, the ACLU sent out a fund-raising appeal which explained their rationale for the Skokie case and raised over $500,000 (${{formatnum:{{Inflation|US|500000|1977}}}} in {{Inflation-year|US}} dollars).{{inflation-fn|US}}<ref>Walker, p. 239.</ref>