The board and staff of the ACLU of Maine mourn the passing of Justice Louis Scolnik, co-founder and first president of the Maine chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, now the ACLU of Maine.
For over 70 years, Justice Scolnik’s unwavering commitment to protecting civil liberties and civil rights helped transform Maine’s legal landscape and made Maine a place where those of all backgrounds and perspectives are welcomed and supported.
Born in Lewiston in 1923, Justice Scolnik attended Bates College and Georgetown Law. After serving for 16 years as the only cooperating attorney in Maine for the national ACLU, Justice Scolnik joined 20 others in forming the Maine affiliate of the ACLU in 1968. Among the organization's earliest victories were cases involving prisoners’ rights, sex discrimination, religion in public schools, and a high school teacher in Belfast who was fired for discussing issues of gender and sexuality as part of a lesson on “Romeo and Juliet."
Before his appointment to the Maine Superior Court in 1974 and the Maine Supreme Judicial Court in 1983, Scolnik was active in the local branch of the NAACP, and also served, in the mid-1960s, as chairman of the Maine Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. On the commission he fought to end housing discrimination, including against Black service members stationed at Dow Air Force Base in Bangor who were being blocked from renting or buying adequate housing. He retired from the Maine Supreme Judicial Court in 1988 and lived most recently in Andover, Massachusetts.
In 1989, the ACLU of Maine established the Justice Louis Scolnik Award, honoring members of the legal community who have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to the protection of civil liberties. For years, Justice Scolnik regularly attended the event, where many fondly remember him playing saxophone. In addition to his professional achievements, Justice Scolnik was an accomplished and enthusiastic jazz performer and a dedicated husband, father, grandfather, and community member.
We are deeply grateful for the tremendous gifts Justice Scolnik gave to our state, our community, and our organization; it is a privilege to continue our work in his honor and memory.
