Former PFAW President
Ralph Neas
Notes from Evan Smith
"This week's guest is a fixture on cable-TV talk shows, an attack dog for the left, a lightning rod for controversy on the right, a civil rights activist for three decades, a vigorous defender of civil liberties, the man who led the effort to Bork Robert Bork back in 1987, and one of the chief opponents of the pending nomination of Samuel Alito to the U.S. Supreme Court -- so buckle your seatbelt. Since 2000, Ralph Neas has been president of People for the American Way, growing the membership of that organization from 300,000 to more than 750,000. The bulk of his time and focus these last five years has gone to preserving the independence of the judiciary, blocking tax cuts, registering African American and Latino voters, and amending the Patriot Act, all in the name of building a progressive political movement. Born in Brookline, Massachusetts, the 59-year-old graduated from the University of Notre Dame and has a law degree from the University of Chicago. He formerly worked as chief counsel to Republican senators Edward Brooke of Massachusetts and David Durenberger of Minnesota, and he served as executive director of the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights from 1981 to 1995, during which time he worked to pass the Civil Rights Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the extension of the Voting Rights Act, among other landmark pieces of legislation." - Evan Smith, Texas Monthly Talks, Broadcast 1.12.06
