BORDC Staff
Nancy Talanian is a co-founder and the founding
director of the Bill of Rights Defense Committee. She is an experienced
activist and professional writer who saw the potential for converting
local successes in western Massachusetts into a national movement
and worked as a volunteer to develop the web site and launch the
movement. She has continued to translate the constituencies’
needs into strategies, tools, and information for local committees
and new constituencies. Through her work and writings on civil liberties
topics, and as a speaker at national and regional forums, she has
helped build a coalition of organizations dedicated to the restoration
of civil liberties. Her previous activism focused on helping to
end apartheid in South Africa and military dictatorships in Nigeria
and Burma.
Amy Ferrer, Web and Publications Coordinator,
develops online and print communication and outreach materials for
the Bill of Rights Defense Committee and manages the agency's websites. She also oversees the agency's
Human Rights Abuse Database. Prior to working with BORDC, Amy earned
her master’s degree in public policy and administration from
the University of Massachusetts Amherst. She also has previous experience
in reproductive rights advocacy, social justice work, and community
health education.
Ben Grosscup, Campaign Coordinator, reaches out
to communities in the eastern United States to provides assistance
to local organizing efforts. Before he joined the national BORDC
staff, he worked for the Northeast Organic Farming Association,
Massachusetts Chapter, to assist farmers and consumers around Massachusetts
in passing town resolutions on and promoting awareness of agriculture
and ecology issues. Ben brings experience in community organizing,
media relations, and web-based media.
Barbara Haugen, BORDC's Administrator, provides
office and technical support, updates BORDC's website, coordinates
intern and volunteer work, and assists with a variety of ongoing
research projects. She also helps develop action alerts and educational
resources, and serves as the managing editor of BORDC's monthly
newsletter. Before joining BORDC, Barbara worked as a VISTA lawyer
with the Legal Aid Society of Albuquerque, NM; as minister of the
Unitarian Universalist Church of Pittsfield, MA; and as assistant
to the director of MassAudubon's Arcadia Wildlife Sanctuary in Easthampton,
MA.