Feingold to Focus On Civil Liberties During Wartime

Feingold's speech, which will take place at 8 p.m. in Memorial Hall, is sponsored by UNC Young Democrats and is free and open to the public.

His appearance was originally scheduled for Dec. 3. but was postponed because of a Senate vote on legislation designed to help the United States recover economically from the attacks.

In an interview with The Daily Tar Heel on Friday, Feingold said he will discuss many of the same issues he planned to talk about prior to the attacks. He said he will also focus on the lessons that can be learned from the attacks.

Feingold's appearance at UNC is part of a national speaking tour that includes the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, University of Texas at Austin and the University of Iowa.

"I decided a few days after (Sept. 11) that it was even more important to do the tour," he said. "I wanted to be one of the people who would go right away and discuss (issues)."

Feingold said he plans to stress the importance of maintaining basic civil liberties in light of increased security measures designed to prevent future attacks.

"At the domestic level, we need to have the right balance of law enforcement powers instead of the need to focus on civil rights," he said.

Feingold was the only senator to vote against the USA PATRIOT Act, an anti-terrorism bill that passed the Senate 98-1 on Oct. 25.

He also said it is important that domestic issues return to the forefront of American politics.

"The battle against terrorism is number one, but (we) have to start getting back to issues that were important prior to September 11," he said.

Feingold cited racial profiling, elimination of the death penalty and campaign finance reform as some of the most important issues facing Congress this year.

Chris Brook, Young Democrats member and coordinator of Feingold's appearance, said he expects the visit to elicit a positive response on campus.

"He's an incredible spokesman for progressives on campus," Brook said. "There's going to be an incredibly positive reaction to him being on campus and his speech."

Brook added that he thinks national security issues, especially the ramifications of the USA PATRIOT Act, will be the most significant issues Feingold discusses.

Feingold described his reasons for participating in a speaking tour as an effort to encourage students to become involved in policy discussions.

"The point is to say that really we desperately need young people to take a leadership role," he said.

Feingold said students are well-equipped with many important skills, especially in the areas of language and technology.

"I would say that the students of today ... are already in the process of doing something (my generation) didn't do much of, and that's try to truly understand other countries, languages and politics," he said.

"(Young people) can do tremendous service for our country if they are the generation that brings us in touch with world."

The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu.