Butch McCartney

UW-Eau Claire’s chapter of Amnesty International discussed the importance of keeping an eye on the government at a meeting Monday.

University Amnesty International president and senior Trever Hagen showed a film, “Of Rights and Wrongs: The Threat to America’s Freedoms.”

The video was produced by First Monday, a program of the National Alliance for Justice. Hagen followed up the video with a discussion about the state of civil liberties in the United States, post Sept. 11.

Hagen said there is a need for students to be aware of their own civil liberties.

“It’s important for people to be educated about the USA Patriot Act and violations of their civil liberties,” he said. “Education leads to awareness, which leads to active participation.”

The documentary features actress Susan Sarandon, the music of Bruce Springsteen and interviews with historians, professors and college students.

It is designed to provide examples of different instances in which individuals’ civil liberties have been denied.

In one instance, a teenage Muslim girl said she was forced at gunpoint to remove the scarf from her head in an airport.

In another scene, two men of Arab descent said they were jailed without due process and have been in jail for five months without trial.

The campus environment is a fertile ground for exposing ideas of awareness and educating the public about the state of their civil liberties, said Rita Webb, Amnesty International adviser.

“The price of liberty,” she said, “is an ongoing exercise in vigilance.”

College students, she said, will be the next civic leaders and by showing a film like “Of Rights and Wrongs: The Threat to America’s Freedoms,” Amnesty International is helping society in the long run.

Hagen said that students should not simply ignore what is going on in the government today.

“As voting members of society,” Hagen said, “students should be aware that their civil liberties are in danger of being misused and abused.”

The campus chapter of Amnesty International meetings remaining in the fall semester will be held at 6 p.m. Oct. 10 and 24; Nov. 7 and 21; and Dec. 5 in the Eagle Room of Davies Center.