Tuesday, July 6
2:00 pm
Conference Registration Opens
3:00 pm - 5:00 pm
A Reception for Youth
Hosted by the Northern California Affiliate.
4:00 pm
ACLU Store Opens
5:30 pm - 7:45 pm
Welcome Plenary
Kick off the conference with greetings from Playwright Eve Ensler, ACLU President Nadine Strossen and local leaders from our host city. Keynote address by ACLU Executive Director Anthony Romero and entertainment by singer/songwriter Steve Earle. Connect with old ACLU friends and make new ones over a light dinner.
8:00 pm - 9:30 pm
Political Action Training
An introduction for new activists or a refresher course for seasoned advocates, offered by community organizing experts from the ACLU Legislative Office in Washington, D.C.
10:00 pm
Beats and Rhymes for Freedom - a concert
Featuring Youth Speaks, Kiwi of Native Guns, Calligraphy of Thought and other featured guests to perform at the ACLU Membership Conference Youth Event.
Wednesday, July 7
7:30 am - 8:30 am
Breakfast
8:45 am - 9:30 am
U.S. Supreme Court Update
Get the latest on civil liberties developments in our nation's highest court from ACLU Legal Director Steve Shapiro.
9:30 am - 10:45 am
Say ""I Do"" to Marriage for Same-Sex Couples
Plenary session featuring keynote address by San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom.
Also featuring Rev. Cecil Williams and ACLU clients who are challenging the status quo.
11:00 am - 12:15 pm
Marriage/Equality and Gay Rights - Breakout Sessions
- Let's Talk About Marriage for Same-Sex Couples: Framing the Issue With Messages That Work
- Getting Started: Mobilizing in Your Community
- Freedom From Fear: Safer Schools for LGBT Kids
12:30 pm - 2:30 pm
Usual Suspects: Racial Profiling in America - Plenary Lunch
Discuss implications of this controversial law enforcement technique with a panel including UCLA and Columbia law professor Kimberle Crenshaw; civil rights attorney Banafsheh Akhlaghi; Montgomery County Police Chief Charles A. Moose, who pursued the Beltway snipers; and ACLU Youth Activist Scholarship winner Elliott Wolf.
3:00 pm - 4:00 pm
Promises and Threats of Technology - Breakout Sessions
- Human Genetics and Civil Liberties
Hear from experts in the fields of medicine, law and bioethics on the interplay of emerging technologies, government regulation and individual freedoms. Speakers include Dr. Paul Billings and attorney/professor Lori Andrews. - Politics and the Internet
Howard Dean's campaign manager Joe Trippi explains how politicians are using the Internet as never before, and American University constitutional law scholar Jamie Raskin assesses the Internet's impact on your vote and electoral politics. ACLU client Alan Porter shares his story.
6:00 pm - 9:00 pm
Gala Dinner: America at a Crossroads: Journalists and Artists Share Their Perspectives
Journalists and artists offer their perspectives on contemporary issues. Confirmed speakers include investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, social comment with an edge by storyteller Sandra Tsing Loh and filmmaker John Sayles, with clips from his new film. Entertainment by comedian Greg Proops.
9:45 pm
Fahrenheit 9/11
A special screening for ACLU members of Michael Moore's controversial film ''Fahrenheit 9/11,'' a scathing indictment of White House actions after the Sept. 11 attacks, which won the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival.
Thursday, July 8, 2004
7:30 am - 8:30 am
Breakfast
8:30 am - 10:15 am
Freedom's Foundation: The First Amendment
A plenary session on fundamental rights - such as freedom of speech and the press, right to assembly, and separation of church and state - moderated by NPR Correspondent Ina Jaffe with views from ACLU President Nadine Strossen; Jay Sekulow, Chief Counsel for the American Center for Law and Justice; Barry Lynn, Executive Director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State; and Wayne LaPierre, Executive Vice President/CEO of the NRA.
10:30 am - noon
Government Intrusion, Personal Autonomy and Privacy - Breakout Sessions
- Vanishing Rights and Reproductive Freedom
Grassroots organizers, medical experts and elected officials examine the imperiled status of women's right to choose. - Domestic Political Spying: Paranoia or Reality?
ACLU clients and civil rights activists look at who's being watched by Big Brother. - Free Speech and Expression: Trends and Threats
ACLU clients, activists and academics provide various perspectives. - Immigration: Emerging Challenges
Journalists, demographers and advocates discuss immigrant communities and the opportunity to build new civil liberties constituencies for the future. Prof. Paul Ong, Rene Ciria-Cruz, Angela Sanbrano, and Pramila Jayapal. Lucas Guttentag, ACLU's Immigrant Rights Project, moderator.
12:15 pm - 2:15 pm
Balancing National Security and Liberty: Keeping America Safe and Free - Plenary Lunch
Speakers include Arianna Huffington, nationally syndicated columnist and author; Coleen Rowley, FBI whistleblower and one of Time Magazine's 2002 Persons of the Year; former U.S. Representative Bob Barr; and Richard Clarke, who recently testified before the 9/11 Commission as a former member of the National Security Council, and author of the recent book Against All Enemies.
2:30 pm - 3:30 pm
Where are the Future Civil Libertarians?
Meet the ACLU Youth Activist Scholarship Award Winners, young filmmakers who produced Fog of Fear, and the winner of the ACLU College Freedom PSA Contest.
4:00 pm - 5:30 pm
Debate: Gov. Howard Dean v. Gov. Bill Owens
The former governor of Vermont and sitting governor of Colorado debate one of today's hottest issues: Civil Liberties and the War on Terror.
5:30 pm - 6:00 pm
Jefferson Starship - Closing Performance
Classic rock legend Jefferson Starship pays tribute to the ACLU and its defense of First Amendment freedoms.