Sophia White

April 14, 2015

OConnor v. Jones-Lee Plaintiff Witness Fact Sheet: ACLU Spokesperson
My name is Louise Melling, and I am a Deputy Legal Director of the American Civil Liberties
Union and the Director of its Center for Liberty. I have held this position since 2010, and before
that I was the Director of the Reproductive Freedom Project for the ACLU for seven years,
overseeing nationwide litigation, communications research, public education campaigns, and
advocacy efforts in the state legislatures. I received a Juris Doctor (J.D.) from Yale Law School
and I work with the issues of reproductive freedom, womens rights, lesbian gay bisexual and
transgender rights, and freedom of religion and belief. I have appeared in federal and state courts
around the country to challenge laws that restrict certain individual rights.
I am a viable witness to this case because I am an advocate for defending individuals who
have been discriminated against upon the basis of their sexual orientation. I am vocal and
passionate about expressing my views that acts of discrimination, like in this case, undercut core
American values of fairness and equality. I have researched the Indiana RFRA and written a
response to the misguided attitude that gay and transgender people should simply accept
discrimination. I have also researched court cases from the past that carry similar issues such as
Elane Photography v. Vanessa Willock and Employment Division v. Smith. I fully support the
Jones-Lees in their protest to being denied service and their press for equality. In this case, I will
be able to argue for the Jones-Lees by citing legal evidence and by providing background
knowledge and perspective gained from my experience in the ACLU. I hope to be able to
contribute to the benefit of the case and help achieve justice for the Jones-Lees.