Brief of the New Civil Liberties Alliance as Amicus Curiae in Support of the Petitioners
The question presented in this case is whether the holding of NAACP v. Alabama ex rel. Patterson will be applied to modern state attorneys-general who compel disclosure of supporter lists of unpopular organizations without articulating a substantial state interest in obtaining the information. That is, does this hard-won, bedrock civil rights era precedent still protect the vital relationship between the freedom to associate and privacy in one’s associations?