<P> In October 2004, the ACLU rejected $1.5 million from both the Ford Foundation and Rockefeller Foundation because the Foundations had adopted language from the USA PATRIOT Act in their donation agreements, including a clause stipulating that none of the money would go to "underwriting terrorism or other unacceptable activities ." The ACLU views this clause, both in Federal law and in the donors' agreements, as a threat to civil liberties, saying it is overly broad and ambiguous . </P> <P> Due to the nature of its legal work, the ACLU is often involved in litigation against governmental bodies, which are generally protected from adverse monetary judgments; a town, state or federal agency may be required to change its laws or behave differently, but not to pay monetary damages except by an explicit statutory waiver . In some cases, the law permits plaintiffs who successfully sue government agencies to collect money damages or other monetary relief . In particular, the Civil Rights Attorney's Fees Award Act of 1976 leaves the government liable in some civil rights cases . Fee awards under this civil rights statute are considered "equitable relief" rather than damages, and government entities are not immune from equitable relief . Under laws such as this, the ACLU and its state affiliates sometimes share in monetary judgments against government agencies . In 2006, the Public Expressions of Religion Protection Act sought to prevent monetary judgments in the particular case of violations of church - state separation . </P> <P> The ACLU has received court awarded fees from opponents, for example, the Georgia affiliate was awarded $150,000 in fees after suing a county demanding the removal of a Ten Commandments display from its courthouse; a second Ten Commandments case in the State, in a different county, led to a $74,462 judgment . The State of Tennessee was required to pay $50,000, the State of Alabama $175,000, and the State of Kentucky $121,500, in similar Ten Commandments cases . </P> <P> Most of the organization's workload is performed by its local affiliates . There is at least one affiliate organization in each state except Wyoming, as well as one in Washington, D.C. and in Puerto Rico . California has three affiliates . The affiliates operate autonomously from the national organization; each affiliate has its own staff, executive director, board of directors, and budget . Each affiliate consists of two non-profit corporations: a 501 (c) (3) corporation that does not perform lobbying, and a 501 (c) (4) corporation which is entitled to lobby . </P>

The american civil liberties union (aclu) was founded in response to what