Romero '87 urges balance of civil liberties, security

No speech, no podium — Anthony Romero '87, the 6th executive director of the ACLU, made clear from the outset that the talk he gave in the Whig-Clio Senate chamber last night would be informal and "among friends." The approach launched students into an almost two-hour long forum focusing largely on civil liberties in America following Sept. 11.

Through 10 prepared questions that he held on notecards during the talk, Romero outlined several American values that the ACLU felt had been threatened by the country's reaction to Sept. 11.

Fear and anger among citizens goaded the government to prematurely enact legislation, Romero said.

"That pressure led to some very difficult political and social policies that the government put into place," he said. Some of these policies cut to the "core" of American values, he added. He cited the USA Patriot Act, which he said allows the Attorney General to hold a person suspected of posing a terrorist threat indefinitely, as long as there is "reasonable belief" of the person's guilt.

"That's a very nebulous standard," Romero said.

While most students agreed that it is important for a country to maintain security and civil liberties, Romero said that there was a tendency among the average American to think that issues of liberty do not affect him, and to prioritize safety at the expense of some Asians' and Muslims' liberties. He emphasized that Americans, especially the young, had to caution against this mindset.

"If you have safety without liberty, you have a totalitarian regime. If you have liberty without safety, you have anarchy and chaos," he said.

Other issues touched upon included the proposed TIPS program to encourage citizens to report un-American activity to the government, racial profiling and airport security.

Support nonprofit student journalism. Donate to the ‘Prince’. Donate now »

Romero cautioned that if Americans were not conscious of civil liberties, Asian and Muslim Americans could fall prey to injustices in the same spirit as the Japanese internment during World War II and the Palmer raids after World War I.

He closed by urging students to contact him and become active in the ACLU.

"All I'm asking you is to stay involved and stay active," he said. "We need young people to make this their cause."

Romero also reminisced about his days at the University, saying he met many of his "best friends in life" during his four years here. Romero was a Wilson School major and helped to plan the 'Take Back the Night' march that tightened nighttime security.