Under new leadership, the Brown American Civil Liberties Union is back on campus. The chapter was left leaderless at the end of last semester, but now is run by President Ian Eppler '13 and Vice President Holly Hunt '13.
With a recent history of shifting leadership and small membership, "this year it is almost completely new," Eppler said. The group will hold weekly meetings and hopes to expand to include contrasting student voices, community speakers and film screenings as a sort of "weekly event," Eppler said.
Eventually these weekly meetings could expand into "larger lectures with nationally known speakers or youth speakers to bring perspective on civil liberties constructed broadly," Eppler said. Like many ACLU organizations across the nation, the Brown ACLU chapter hopes to do advocacy work for the Providence community and on a national scale, according to Eppler.
In the most recent weekly meeting, the group focused on a recent raid of the popular Fish Company, where officers arrested students with fake IDs and drinking underage, according to a Nov. 6 Providence Journal article. At the recent meeting, members discussed the legality of questioning students and entering the establishment.
The members also expressed the need to educate Brown students about laws regarding liquor and fake identification. The Brown ACLU could produce "guides to laws that affect Brown students" said Eppler.
In the past, the group has addressed the issue of co-ed housing, Eppler said. Rooms used to be designated as male or female prior to the lottery, even if no other student had picked it. The Brown ACLU was involved in changing that process, Eppler said.
The Brown ACLU was also involved with advocacy around post-Patriot Act civil liberties issues, Eppler said.
Since its inception, the group has maintained a relationship with the Rhode Island ACLU. As president, Eppler holds a seat on the organization's board, and the state organization often helps fund and co-sponsor events held on campus.
With the new leadership of the Brown ACLU, the Rhode Island chapter hopes to maintain "a positive and active relationship" with the group on campus, said Steven Brown, its executive director. The Brown chapter has great strength to advocate and educate because "it covers a broad range on campus," Brown said.
The Brown ACLU holds meetings every Monday at 8 p.m. in Wilson 302.
