E-News Nassau

Saying Boooo! 

Want to Trick or Treat in the Village of Port Washington North? Better get a note from your mother.

According to a local ordinance, minors under 19 cannot be on the street after 7 pm on Oct. 30 or 31 without written parental permission.  A group of students concerned with student's rights, obviously candy lovers all, decided not to just accept what they believe is an unconstitutional transgression on their freedom of movement. They decided to do something to change the ordinance. They have been protesting the law for eight months and are trying to come up with alternatives to the curfew. For advice, they turned to the Nassau chapter, and Executive Director Tara Keenan-Thomson supported their position at the September village board meeting.  Cheers to youngsters who say booo! when they think their rights are being violated. Now, that's a real treat.

Another Student Heard From

You may remember the big story in the New York Times about the student who caught on tape his history teacher's "teaching" that evolution and the Big Bang were not science, that there were dinosaurs aboard Noah's ark, and that only Christians had a place in heaven. That 11th grader, Matthew LaClair, faced a hostile community, teachers and school board in Kearney, N.J., but he, with the ACLU at his side, had the guts to challenge this teacher-preacher.

Find out how the story ends from this brave young man himself, this Sunday, September 30, at 11 am at the Ethical Humanist Society,  8 Old Country Road, Garden City, NY 11530. Phone: (516) 741-7304

Jeff Desovic Didn't Do It

Even though the jury knew that the DNA evidence didn't match Jeff Desovic was found guilty of murder. Why did it take 17 years and the intervention of the Innocence Project for Jeff to be released?

Hear Jeffrey Desovic tell his story Sat. Oct. 27, 7 pm. His presentation, "The Flawed Justice State": A Warning to New Yorkers, at The Garden City Jewish Center, is sponsored by the NYCLU Nassau Chapter and New Yorkers Against the Death Penalty. Call 741-8520 for information. Admission: free

The Garden City Jewish Center, 168 Nassau Boulevard, Garden City; Phone: 516-248-9180,

info@GardenCityJewishCenter.Org

Student Conference on the 3 R's

Rights, Responsibilities, Remedies

Can your school watch you in cyberspace? Can you pray in school? Can the school tell you what to wear in the building?

These are the types of questions on student rights that hundreds of high schoolers will vigorously discuss at this year's Student Conference at the Hofstra Student Center Theater. The student conference is one of the most well attended and most anticipated events on the Nassau chapter's calendar. It's a chance to stimulate interest in young people about how and why the Bill of Rights protects them too. The discussion groups include: Your Right to Freedom of Expression - Speech, Press, Religion, Personal Appearance; Your Right to Privacy - Personal Searches, Lockers, Automobiles; Your Rights in the Community – Police, Parents, Rockefeller Drug Laws and Your Right in Cyberspace In and Out of School - Cyberstalking and Bullying, Net Nanny, Home Websites.

Many of the Nassau NYCLU board will participate as speakers and panel facilitators, and Steve Lloyd Director of Intercultural Affairs for the Nassau County Commission on Human Rights will make the keynote presentation. The NYCLU conference is co-sponsored by Hofstra School of Education and Allied Human Services, Center for Civic Engagement and Wachtel Center for the Study of Non-Violent Change. 

Students who are interested in attending can have a teacher call the NYCLU Nassau office at 516 741-8520 for information on how to register. The conference, breakfast and refreshments are free. Students are asked to buy their own lunch.