Hedy Weinberg, Tennessee ACLU Executive Director, to step down from post
After nearly four decades as executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee, Hedy Weinberg announced Friday she is stepping down from the position.
“What a tremendous impact Hedy has had on the state of Tennessee and how much she will be missed,” ACLU of Tennessee Board Chair Paula Williams said. “Under her vision and steady leadership, this organization has grown into a strategic, strong, multi-faceted powerhouse that never backs down from a challenge and always moves us ahead in the fight for justice and equity.”
Named ACLU of Tennessee executive director in 1984, Weinberg was tasked with relocating the state headquarters to Nashville after the organization’s board voted to focus more on legislative work.
The organization grew from two to 12 staff under her leadership and added several departments, expanded its geographic footprint, grew in financial strength, and expanded its base to over 80,000 subscribers and followers, and more than 11,000 members.
During her tenure, Weinberg’s accomplishments include:
h Leading the opposition to the privatization of the Tennessee prison system, in partnership with AFSCME (1985).
h Spearheading the successful defeat of legislation to chill the teaching of evolution in public schools (1993).
h Challenging the state abortion statute and establishing a Tennessee constitutional right to privacy (2000).
h Launching an anti-racial profiling campaign that resulted in data collection by law enforcement agencies (2001).
h Filing a series of successful lawsuits to stop religious activities in public schools and remove the Ten Commandments posted in local courthouses (2002-2020).
In recent years, she successfully challenged a law undermining voter registration (2019); helped block Tennessee’s sweeping abortion ban and medically unsound “abortion reversal” laws (2020); launched a community engagement, storytelling and public education campaign on rural bail practices (2021) and challenged laws excluding transgender athletes from school teams and requiring businesses to post anti-trans restroom signs (2021).
Most recently, this year, she established a statewide transgender justice education and advocacy initiative.
Weinberg is expected to step down at the end of June.
The board of directors plans a nationwide search for Weinberg’s successor.
Natalie Neysa Alund is based in Nashville at The Tennessean and covers breaking news across the South for the USA TODAY Network.
Reach her at nalund@tennessean.com and follow her on Twitter @nataliealund.