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WLRN Airs Television ACLU Series
March 7, 2001
The ACLU of Florida is producing a twelve-part television series on civil liberties issues that impact South Florida. The first four shows in the series, ACLU: Freedom's Watchdog, will air three times a week during the entire month of March on WLRN Channel 36 in Miami-Dade.
The first show, on the history and mission of the ACLU, aired at 9 a.m. March 6. The show will re-air at 2 p.m. today and 7 p.m. March 8 on Channel 36. The second show, on the history of the organization in Spanish, will air at 9 a.m. March 13, 2 p.m. March 14 and 7 p.m. March 15. It will feature guests Lida Rodriguez-Taseff, national ACLU spokesperson for Spanish-language media and a partner with the law firm of Duane, Morris & Heckscher, and John de Leon, President of the ACLU of Florida's Greater Miami Chapter.
The third show titled, Libertad de La Expresion en Miami, (Freedom of Expression in Miami) will explore First Amendment issues that have been the subject of recent controversy in South Florida. The guests on that show, which airs in Spanish starting March 20, are Elena Freyre, Executive Director of the Cuban American Defense League, and Alberto Sarraín, the independent theater director who lost his rehearsal space after signing-on to the ACLU of Florida's lawsuit challenging Miami-Dade County's "Cuba Ordinance," which prevented Cuban artists from performing in Miami.
The fourth show, dealing with students' rights, will feature discussions on school publications, dress codes and censorship. That show airs starting March 27 and features guests Randall C. Marshall, ACLU of Florida Legal Director, and Janet McAliley, former Miami-Dade County School Board Member. Mae Singerman, a student journalist from Miami Beach Senior High School and an ACLU of Florida volunteer intern, will host the program.
ACLU: Freedom's Watchdog will air at 9 a.m. Tuesdays, 2 p.m. Wednesdays and 7 p.m. Thursdays during March, April and May on Channel 36, which can be seen on the following cable systems in Miami-Dade: 36 Adelphia, 15 ATT West, 12 Bell South, 26 ATT Miami, 31 ATT Kendall, 32 ATT North, 36 Charter Miami Beach, 36 Charter South Miami.
The ACLU's educational series is airing under the auspices of the Miami-Dade County Cable Television Access Project (Cable-TAP), a joint venture of Miami-Dade County Public Schools, Miami-Dade County government, and WLRN. Together they operate the largest cable system in the country, interconnecting to almost 500,000 households in Miami-Dade County. The free Cable-TAP productions give non-profit organizations the opportunity to inform viewers about important issues that affect South Florida. The ACLU series will explore topics including voting rights, racial profiling, immigration, and felony disenfranchisement. Shows are produced by ACLU of Florida staff, board members and supporters in English, Spanish and Kreyol.
