Timothy Edgar, legislative counsel in the American Civil Liberties Union’s Washington, D.C., office, will be the First Amendment speaker June 7 at AAN’s Annual Convention in Pittsburgh.

Edgar will speak on the Bush Administration’s assaults on civil liberties and free speech in the post-Sept. 11 environment.

“We’ve alerted our former governor, Tom Ridge, to Edgar’s upcoming talk,” says Pittsburgh City Paper Editor Andy Newman. “Edgar is an engaging speaker — that’s clear from the wiretapped phone conversations of him that Ridge provided us.”

At the ACLU, Edgar is responsible for defending civil liberties before Congress and in the Executive Branch in the areas of national security, terrorism and immigration.

Following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Edgar’s work and writings have focused on the government’s response to those attacks and its impact on civil liberties, including, among other issues, the USA PATRIOT Act and a possible “Patriot II” sequel. He also focuses on policies regarding immigrants and detention, the establishment of military tribunals, the creation of the Homeland Security Department, increased government secrecy, and proposals for a domestic intelligence agency.

Edgar has testified before the United States Commission on Civil Rights and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. He appears on national and international television and radio to address civil liberties issues and is often quoted in major newspapers. He is also a regular public speaker both inside and outside the Beltway and is a principal legal adviser for the ACLU’s grassroots “Keep America Safe and Free Campaign,” launched in October 2002.

Edgar is a Harvard Law School graduate and former clerk with Judge Sandra Lynch of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Prior to the ACLU, Edgar worked on immigration, environmental and African democratization issues for private and pro bono law firms.