Panel to address changing rights

In an attempt to answer concerns about the balance of national security and personal privacy, a panel of experts on civil liberties will address interested students and faculty at 7 p.m. tonight in Rawles Hall 100. The discussion is open to the public.\nThe panel, "Your Rights vs. National Security Interests," is the second in a series hosted by the University and is sponsored in conjunction with the Chancellor's Office, Union Board and the National Emergency Forum Committee.\nPanelists from both local and national institutions are expected to partake in the two hour presentation discussing civil liberties and individual rights in post-Sept. 11 America. Panelists will include members of the IU faculty, administration and services and representatives from both the Indiana Department of Civil Liberties and the FBI. Following introductions and the brief presentations of each panel member, the forum will be open to questions from the audience.\n"This is a perfect opportunity to clear up questions people may have about civil liberties," said sophomore Aaron Huffaker, assistant director for the Union Board lecture series and National Emergency Forum Committee member. "In this time of tragedy and rebuilding in our country, we must face tough questions like how to protect the citizens of the United States without eroding the privacy and civil liberties we enjoy and have grown accustom to as U.S. citizens."\nThe forum will be applicable to everyone on-campus and allow for discussion of what the current context means in terms of each individual, Dean of the Faculties Moya Andrews said.\n"We're all affected by the constraints on our civil liberties ... it's important that people see the big picture," Andrews said. "One of the important things on campus is the access people have to intellectual capital, and this forum provides that opportunity for the participants to see the landscape in a very comprehensive and complex way."\nThe forum will offer a wide variety of distinguished panelists, including: The FBI special agent in charge of the Indianapolis white-collar crimes unit; the chief of the IU Police Department; the legislative director for the Indiana Civil Liberties Union; and an IU law professor specializing in immigration law.\n"The panel will provide perspectives of very respected people in their fields," Huffaker said. "The panel is an excellent opportunity for students to ask highly qualified and respected panelists questions about civil liberties in general as well as specific questions regarding how our rights have changed because of September 11."\nJunior Nick Hillman, director of lectures for Union Board, said the installment could serve as an outlet for students' concerns.\n"I would like to see a lot of students and faculty involvement for those who attend ... The Chancellor will be present and will be able to have a pulse on the students," Hillman said. "She will know what concerns we have. Civil liberties are often overlooked and this will be a good way for people to learn about their rights"