[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 163 (Tuesday, November 15, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1463]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       IN TRIBUTE TO CHRIS AHMUTY

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. GWEN MOORE

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, November 15, 2016

  Ms. MOORE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Chris Ahmuty who is 
retiring from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Wisconsin on 
December 31, 2016. He has served the organization since 1982 and for 24 
of those 34 years of service has been the Executive Director of the 
ACLU of Wisconsin.
  Mr. Ahmuty has spent much of his career making an extraordinary 
impact on civil liberties and civil rights in Wisconsin. Over the 
decades he has led the organization as a tireless advocate for issues 
such as LGBT rights, voting rights, reproductive freedom, transit 
equity, environmental justice, free speech, and public access to the 
state Capitol. Chris Ahmuty is especially proud of the organization's 
success in racial discrimination cases, marriage equality, and youth 
leadership development. He remains a man in a hurry, ready to push back 
against those who would deny fundamental liberties; he truly believes 
that whenever society and the laws that govern society become more 
inclusive, everyone gains.
  Chris Ahmuty was born in New York City and grew up in Derby, New 
York. His mother, a schoolteacher, died of cancer when he was just 15. 
His father, a sales manager, died when Ahmuty was in graduate school. 
Chris Ahmuty's grandfather Frederic P. Lee, a lawyer involved in 
drafting New Deal-era policies, deeply influenced Ahmuty's political 
and social justice positions. Mr. Ahmuty came to Wisconsin to attend 
graduate school at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, earning a 
master's degree in history, and made Wisconsin his new home.
  At the helm of the ACLU, Chris Ahmuty has worked on many initiatives. 
Some of the most notable activities include the numerous lawsuits 
challenging government abuse of power, special attention to the rights 
of society's most vulnerable, and expansion of the affiliate's 
programs, especially youth development. He works daily to uphold the 
ACLU mission to protect and defend civil liberties in a nonpartisan 
manner. Mr. Ahmuty's ability to keep calm, whether in victory or 
defeat, has served him well through his long tenure with the ACLU.
  I am grateful to have had the opportunity to know and work with Chris 
Ahmuty for many years on issues such as voting rights, prison reform 
and incarceration issues, and rights of the poor. I will join with 
friends and his partner, Bob Schlack, to congratulate him at the ACLU 
Annual Bill of Rights Celebration where he will be honored with a 
Lifetime Achievement Award on November 19, 2016. During these decades 
of service to the ACLU, Chris has led the organization through 
troubling times for civil liberties in Wisconsin and our nation. I wish 
him much success as he transitions into a different phase of his life.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud to honor Chris Ahmuty and I am proud to call 
him friend. The citizens of the Fourth Congressional District and the 
State of Wisconsin are privileged to have someone of his ability and 
dedicated service working on their behalf for so many years. Chris, I 
thank you for all that you have done. I am honored for these reasons to 
pay tribute to Chris Ahmuty.

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