ACLU-MO's New Director of Advocacy and Policy to Start Today in Kansas City Office

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: 212-549-2666, media@aclu.org

KANSAS CITY, MO – Tony Wagner steps into his new role as the director of advocacy and policy for the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri (ACLU-MO) today, working out of the Kansas City office. He will oversee the organization’s legislative, public education and advocacy efforts.

For the past five years, Wagner was a regional field director for the Human Rights Campaign, where he motivated grassroots advocates to take action throughout the Great Plains and western states. Before that, he worked as a consultant, campaign manager and field organizer for numerous political campaigns. “It will be particularly fulfilling to be able to use the skills I’ve honed over the past 20 years to protect freedoms in my home state.”

A native of Washington, Missouri, Wagner earned his Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, with a minor in Political Science, from the University of Missouri-Rolla and attended Saint Louis University School of Law.

“Tony’s proven experience in coalition building and campaign management, coupled with his personal drive to protect and expand civil liberties, made him the ideal candidate for this position,” says Jeffrey A. Mittman, the ACLU-MO’s executive director. “As a member of our senior staff team, Tony will support our powerful ACLU presence throughout Missouri, which is important when speaking with one voice whenever we meet legislators in Jefferson City.”

Wagner is the first employee hired since the American Civil Liberties Union of Eastern Missouri became the ACLU of Missouri on Oct. 1. After the first of the year, he will be joined by a staff attorney in the Kansas City office.