The Association for the Advancement of Civil Rights (AACR) was a political party in Gibraltar.
History
The AACR was established in 1942 by Joshua Hassan and Albert Risso, and sought to protect the interests of families evacuated during World War II. At the time, most of the Gibraltar population had been evacuated and only a small number of Gibraltarians remained on The Rock. Consequently, the colony was crowded with British soldiers, sailors and airmen. They received wide support from the Governor, General Mason-MacFarlane (later a Labour MP in the United Kingdom), who allowed them to fulfil the representative role that the Committee of the Exchange and the Commercial Library used to fill. The Governor also left the AACR with the responsibility of managing the leave scheme that allowed the Gibraltarians who remained on the Rock to visit their families in Britain. They also took a leading role in the repatriation of the Gibraltarian evacuees.
thumb|left|200px|[[Joshua Hassan, longest running leader of the AACR and Chief Minister of Gibraltar for 18 years.]]
In 1945 the AACR became a political party, advocating improved pay and working conditions and the introduction of a democratic constitution. The party won successive elections in 1953 and 1956. The 1959 elections saw it win only three of the seven seats, but with the other four held by independents, it was able to continue in government.
Like all other major Gibraltar political parties, it opposed transfer of sovereignty over Gibraltar from the United Kingdom to Spain.
Gibraltar Award
On 10 December 2007 the Self Determination for Gibraltar Group awarded the founding fathers of the AACR with the Gibraltar Award in recognition of their contribution to the political development, democratisation and emancipation of Gibraltar. The award was presented to Adolfo Canepa, the last AACR Chief Minister to hold office, in John Mackintosh Square on the 59th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.