3/17/08--Boston College Law School and the American Constitution Society (ACS) are pleased to present a panel discussion with experts in the fields of human rights, professional responsibility and freedom of speech:  "Discussing Torture: Law, Policy, and Debate."  The event will take place in East Wing room 115A from 12:30 pm to 2 pm, and will be open to everyone.  A Q&A session will follow the panelists' remarks.

"The invitation to Attorney General Mukasey to be our Commencement speaker has sparked discussion here on a number of important subjects, including the legality of interrogation techniques in the fight against terror and the role of government lawyers in defending or preserving the government's legal position on such questions," said BC Law Dean John Garvey.  "I hope this event will further that discussion and allow our students to better understand some very important questions and concerns, some of which they will face in their own careers."

Austin Evers, President of the BC Law chapter of ACS and co-organizer of the event, welcomes the chance for open dialogue.  "Attorney General Mukasey’s testimony in January was very troubling because he appeared to equivocate on a stark moral issue. The event on Thursday is designed to explore that testimony, as well as the broader legal climate around torture, so each member of the BC Law community can take an informed position as we approach graduation."

Panelists and bios appear below.  Pizza and drinks will be served.

Sharon Kelly
Campaign Manager, Elect to End Torture ‘08
Human Rights First
 
Ms. Kelly directs Human Rights First’s Elect to End Torture ’08 campaign, a nonpartisan advocacy initiative focused on ensuring that the next President of the United States puts an end to policies authorizing torture and official cruelty.  The campaign has hosted a series of meetings with the presidential candidates and retired military leaders opposed to torture and organized public events in targeted primary states.  As the election season continues, the campaign is building a growing constituency of people committed to taking action against torture and official cruelty, and educating policymakers, the public, and the media that adherence to American laws and values is an asset rather than a liability in the fight against terrorism.
 
Before joining Human Rights First, Kelly worked in the office of the Senate Majority Leader as the research director and policy advisor for the Senate Democratic Communications Center.  In addition to her experience on Capitol Hill, she has worked on numerous political campaigns at the national and state levels.
 
Kelly graduated from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and received a J.D. from Harvard Law School. 


Wendy Kaminer
Lawyer and author

Ms. Kaminer, a lawyer and social critic, writes about law, liberty, feminism, religion, and popular culture.  She blogs on civil liberties at thefreeforall.net.  A former Guggenheim fellow, she is the author of seven books, including Free for All: Defending Liberty in America Today;  Sleeping with Extra-Terrestrials: The Rise of Irrationalism and Perils of Piety;  True Love Waits: Essays and Criticism;  It's All the Rage: Crime and Culture;  I'm Dysfunctional, You’re Dysfunctional: The Recovery Movement & Other Self-Help Fashions; and A Fearful Freedom: Women’s Flight from Equality.  Her articles and reviews have appeared in numerous publications including The New York Times, The Atlantic Monthly, The Wall Street Journal, The American Prospect, Dissent, The Nation, Newsweek, and Free Inquiry.


Allan Ryan
Attorney, Harvard University's OLC
Adjunct faculty, Boston College Law School

Mr. Ryan is a graduate of Dartmouth College and the University of Minnesota Law School magna cum laude, where he was President of the Minnesota Law Review. He served as a law clerk to Justice Byron R. White of the Supreme Court of the United States. After service in the United States Marine Corps, Ryan became Assistant to the Solicitor General of the United States, representing the U.S. government in the Supreme Court. In 1980, he was appointed the first Director of the Office of Special Investigations, U.S. Department of Justice. In this position, he was responsible for the investigation and prosecution of Nazi war criminals in the United States.

Since 1985, Ryan has been an attorney at Harvard University and Harvard Business School. In addition to teaching human rights law at Boston College Law School, he has served as a consultant on genocide prosecutions to the government of Rwanda and participated in several international conferences on how governments should face the crimes of predecessor regimes.