If you created an institution, an American institution, what would you want it to do?
You would want it to make the world around you a better place.
You would want it to defend the ideals that make America so unique.
And inspire others to join in that cause.
This is the story of that institution.
Here is the story of the Institute for Justice.
And its first twenty years.
The Institute for Justice was founded to stand up against those with the mindset that
this is a big country and somebody has to regulate it.
Our belief, IJ's belief, is that this is, indeed, a big country.
Big enough to give us each the freedom that is supposed to be our American birthright.
IJ litigates every day to vindicate that principle.
And the past twenty years have shown not only the need for the Institute for Justice
But the positive impact we have had on the lives of ordinary Americans.
I was just an ordinary homeowner until the government came in
to take our home through eminent domain.
My home.
The government tried to take our home
Not for a road, or a courthouse
But they wanted to give it to a private developer who wanted to build a mall.
To build a mall and upscale condos.
To build homes for someone else.
The government wanted to bulldoze my home so that someone else could live on my land.
All i wanted was a chance to earn an honest living as a van driver.
As a tour guide.
As a hair braider.
But the government said I could not.
The government calls us outlaws.
Law breakers.
Just because we demanded our right to economic liberty.
I would not allow my children to attend dangerous and failing public schools.
They desperately needed an alternative.
But we were in no position to defend the program that was passed.
We needed help.
I just wanted to put a sign out that said I was a business.
I wanted to express my views about politicians.
All I did was paint a mural on the wall.
And the government threatened to put me out of business.
I thought to myself, "How was I going to fight this?"
And then I got a call from IJ.
And there was IJ.
IJ was our cavalry.
The came riding in to save the day.
IJ gave definition to my struggle.
I was no longer fighting just for my business.
I was fighting for economic liberty for all entrepreneurs.
IJ, Carl, and I fought not only for our property rights.
We fought for the property rights of all Americans.
I would have been shut up and my business would have been shut down.
We needed someone in our corner.
Somebody to fight for school choice.
I am amazed at how IJ goes up against some of the biggest, baddest, well funded
opponents, including the government, itself, and still manages to win.
Think about who they've faced.
When your rights are at stake, you are glad that the legal gunslingers
from IJ are on your side.
IJ's legal gunslingers have spent the past twenty years trail blazing a
unique brand of advocacy
Arguing cases both in the courts of law and in the court of public opinion.
All across the nation.
IJ advocates have fought for freedom in courtrooms from coast to coast.
Including five cases before the US Supreme Court.
The Institute couples legal advocacy with strategic research and sophisticated grassroots activism
Drawing together people from across the philosophical spectrum
IJ's work transcends cliched and partisan divisions of left and right.
What IJ fights for are the cornerstones of the American Dream.
Going up against the toughest of competition and still winning seventy percent
Of their cases is not a bad track record.
And that's just what the Institute for Justice has achieved over these past twenty years.
From the urban east, to wild west, IJ left each community,
where it has fought, a little more free than they found it
And while none of the Institute for Justice's cases could happen without clients who are willing
to stand up for their rights, it is equally true that without the long term support of
principled donors, IJ could not do what it does on a daily basis.
IJ has grown from a five person startup, to a nationwide Force for Liberty.
With a thirteen million dollar budget and offices in seven states.
IJ represents the side of freedom
In the eternal fight between those who wish to create and those who wish to control.
If you support the Institute for Justice, you can consider yourself part of this organization.
You are an important part of an organization that is changing the world
And having fun doing it.
IJ made all the difference.
Without IJ, we never would have been able to fight.
Let alone win.
IJ saved my home.
IJ saved my business.
I am IJ.
IJ won for me the right to free speech.
I am IJ.
Because of IJ, my children received excellent educations.
I'm Seattle's bagel king because of IJ.
I am IJ.
I am
IJ.
And so are my children.
I am IJ.
I am.
I am IJ.
I
I am IJ.
I am
I am IJ.
Your donation to the Institute for Justice makes it possible for IJ's clients, and thousands like them,
to control their own destinies as free and responsible members of society.
Thank you for supporting IJ in the fight for freedom.