“Maintaining the Balance–A Closer Look at the USA Patriot Act:Protecting National Security and Civil Liberties”

The USA Patriot Act will be the subject of a Town Hall at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 12, at Cal State Fullerton in the Titan Student Union’s Portola Pavilion.

“Maintaining the Balance: A Closer Look at the USA Patriot Act: Protecting National Security and Civil Liberties,” will inaugurate the university’s “Issues that Divide” series of town halls, which will explore topics in the sciences, religion, ethics and immigration, among others.

“Recent polls indicate that Americans appear to be deeply divided about a wide range of both domestic and foreign policy issues,” noted Robert Emry, emeritus professor of speech communication and co-director of the university’s Center for Community Dialogue. “In fact, some commentators have used the phrase ‘a 50-50 nation’ to describe the strong feelings Americans display across a wide spectrum. Some of the division is captured in citizens’ reaction to the USA Patriot Act,” said Emry of the Bush administration policy that expands the government’s authority to collect personal and private information about Americans and foreign visitors.

Michelle Gile, Orange County reporter for KCAL9-TV and KCBS2-TV, will serve as the event’s moderator. Sabi Shabtai, an international consultant about terrorism, will deliver the keynote address, “Civil Rights and National Security: Walking a Fine Line.”

Panelists for the town hall discussion are: Gordon Bakken, CSUF professor of history; Luis Flores, chief division counsel for the Los Angeles division of the Federal Bureau of Investigation; Terry Francke, general counsel for the California First Amendment Coalition; and Stephen Rohde, a constitutional rights attorney.

The event is sponsored by the Orange County Human Relations Commission, and Cal State Fullerton’s Center for Community Dialogue, Center for Public Policy and the College of Communications.

Additional information is available from the Office of Public Affairs and Government Relations, at (714) 278-4854.

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