Home » About » Newsletters » May 1998
New ACLU Officers Elected
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Florida is proud to announce the election of its new officers.
Ray Arsenault is the new ACLU of Florida President. Arsenault is Professor of History and Director of the University Honors Program at the St. Petersburg Campus of the University of South Florida. A specialist in the history of the American South and the modern civil rights movement, he is also the coeditor of the University Press of Florida's "Florida History and Culture" series. His many publications include two prizewinning books and an edited anthology, Crucible of Liberty: 200 Years of the Bill of Rights (Free Press 1991). In 1985, his seminal article "The End of the Long Hot Summer: The Air Conditioner and Southern Culture," was awarded the prestigious GreenRamsdell Prize by the Southern Historical Association. He also plays an active role in several historic preservation, environmental and civic groups in the Tampa Bay/St. Petersburg area.
Arsenault, who served as President of ACLU's Pinellas County Chapter from 19851997, has been an active member of the ACLU of Florida for 18 years. He has been a member of the Board of Directors of the state affiliate since 1985, and served four terms as state VicePresident before his election to the presidency this Spring.
"I feel very privileged to serve as President of the Florida ACLU," said Arsenault. "Matching the high standard of leadership set by Paul Joseph, Jim Green, Randy Berg and earlier presidents will not be easy, but I am determined to do what I can to sustain the vitality and vigilance of this remarkable organization.
Arsenault added, "At this point in our state's history, with the forces of repression and intolerance seemingly gaining momentum and respectability, it is difficult to imagine a more important undertaking than the ACLU's continuing effort to make the protections and guarantees of the Bill of Rights a reality for all Floridians."
Arsenault replaces Randy Berg, Executive Director of the public interest law firm Florida Justice Institute in Miami, as President. Berg, a former Director and Executive Committee member of the Florida Bar Foundation, is active in community interest and advocacy groups and has been widely published. Berg guided the organization through what could have been a difficult transition from one executive director to another. He ably directed the executive director search committee that selected Howard Simon, former director of the ACLU of Michigan.
Bill Boyd, associate at the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, was elected Vice President. Boyd has taught at Harvard University, Queen's College of the City University of New York and the Lycee de Manegouba in Nkongsamba, Cameroun. He has published numerous articles and one book and has a prominent background in media as a CBS television administrator and a PBS television reporter.
Alan Ehrlich was reelected as Treasurer of the organization. Ehrlich has been active in the Broward Chapter for many years. He is an attorney and financial planner, and his professional expertise has capably guided the budget and endowment of the ACLU of Florida.
Lida RodriguezTaseff, an associate at the Miami lawfirm of Akerman, Senterfitt & Eidson, was elected Secretary of the ACLU of Florida. RodriguezTaseff, a native of Colombia, practices commercial litigation and is currently on the Board of Directors of Florida Legal Services and the Florida Association for Women Lawyers, Dade County Chapter.
Jeanne Baker, an attorney with the Federal Public Defenders' Office, was reelected as the ACLU of Florida's representative to the National ACLU Board Representative. Michael Masinter, Professor of Law at Nova Southeastern University in Ft. Lauderdale, is the ACLU of Florida's Legal Panel Chair.
