Freedom Fighter

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."
- First Amendment to United States Constitution

This one sentence has done more to shape the lives of Americans than any other in history of the United States. It holds the five personal freedoms given to every U.S. Citizen, resident, visitor - Freedom of Religion, Freedom of Speech, Freedom of the Press, Right to Assemble and Right to Petition. It has been followed, challenged, cherished and chided. The First Amendment is one the first of ten amendments created in 1789 at the first Continental Congress by James Madison, then ratified in 1791, creating the Bill of Rights. These amendments limit the powers of the federal government protecting the rights of all citizens, residents and visitors on United States territory.

Jake has been an vocal advocate and enthusiastic supporter of The First Amendment and The Bill of Rights with his association and support of the American Civil Liberties Union. (ACLU)

The Foner/Gyllenhaals have been members of the ACLU for decades and have instilled their passion and support for preservation of civil liberties to their children. They were honored as a family with the Torch of Liberty Award in 2003. "The Torch of Liberty Award was created to acknowledge the contributions made by individuals from the media and arts & entertainment industry whose creative and sometimes daring work affirms the democratic principles that underlie the promise of 'liberty and justice for all,'".

Jake has supported the ACLU on his own in other ways. Some of those include the posing for the ACLU ad campaign "I'm Not an American Who?", participating in the 2004 ACLU Freedom concert, and his continuing support to ACLU Southern California Chapter with donating the opportunity of having lunch with him to the highest bidder, on many of his movies.