Fueled by a little exasperation and a lot of good intentions, Ben Byrne headed to the Student Activities Center.

In the spring of 1998, Byrne, now a senior in graphic design, was reading the newspaper when he became “irritated by the feeling that there were a lot of issues affecting students, and no one was taking action,” he said.

Byrne gathered a small group of people, including Josh Raulerson, senior in English and journalism and mass communication.

Together they formed a campus chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, a group whose purpose is to educate students and create an awareness of their rights in the Iowa State community, Byrne said.

The chapter, now in its second year, is prepared to open discussion on the “mixed bag” of issues that are categorized as civil liberties, said Byrne, who serves as chapter president.

“A lot of people think that civil liberties are just what’s in the Constitution, but it’s more complicated than that,” he said.

Basic civil liberties, including the freedoms of speech, press and religion as well as the right to assemble, are the foundation for the issues the ISU chapter addresses.

Some of these issues are topics of both national and local debate, such as student-drug testing, hate speech and security policies on campus, Byrne said.

Raulerson also said he would like to see the group discuss “law enforcement issues, privacy matters and academic freedom.”

Along with discussion of these topics, the group also offers counseling to students who think their free speech rights are being violated by the university.

In some cases, particularly on the national and state levels, ACLU chapters help citizens fight legal battles if their rights are being violated, said Barbara Mack, associate professor of journalism and mass communication.

Mack, whose also a volunteer free-speech lawyer for the Iowa Civil Liberties Union, said that although the ACLU is a private, nonprofit organization, it can undertake a lawsuit itself, or the ACLU could “help an individual bring his or her own case to court.”

The ISU chapter plans to educate students, faculty and staff about their rights by providing open discussion and a number of programs and speakers, including ACLU National President Nadine Strossen.

On Oct. 8, the group will hear Strossen speak at Drake University, and the members will participate in workshops the next day, said Herman Quirmbach, adviser for the chapter.

Quirmbach, who also is a member of the Board of Directors for the Iowa Civil Liberties Union, said he is “absolutely thrilled that the chapter has come into existence,” and the goal this year is to expand.

The first meeting will begin at 8 p.m. today in Room 230 of the Memorial Union.

Byrne said anyone in the ISU community is welcome to the meeting.

“Not a lot of us have experience in politics — you don’t have to be a wiz at politics” to become involved with the ACLU, he said.

At the meeting, the group will introduce its officers to newcomers and will address programming and presentation issues.

For a detailed description of the national ACLU and the issues it addresses, visit its Web site at www.aclu.org. For more information on the ISU chapter, e-mail Byrne at [email protected].