(FORTUNE Magazine) – An 82-year-old American brand is getting a makeover, complete with a new logo and a multimillion-dollar ad campaign to attract a younger demographic. None of which is particularly remarkable--except that the brand in question is the American Civil Liberties Union.

"We're treating it exactly the same way we'd treat a branded product," says Howard Benenson, principal of Benenson Janson, the L.A. agency that's coordinating the campaign (its consumer clients include Guess and Swatch). "The brand needed to be reinvigorated," he says. "You don't want to lose your loyal core, but you still have to broaden your base."

In the ACLU's case, that means focusing less on specific issues, which can seem dated, and more on the timeless values underlying the group's mission. TV and print ads pushing that message will debut next spring, and the timing may be right: ACLU membership is up 12%, to 300,000, since the post-Sept. 11 security crackdown (though the average member is still 57 years old). As for the new logo, featuring Lady Liberty, ACLU spokeswoman Emily Whitfield says it "tells people who we are: liberty's law firm." A catchy phrase--spoken like a true marketer. --Paul Lukas