(WASHINGTON) — The Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) is delighted to announce the appointment of Kate Ruane as Director of its Free Expression Project. Kate succeeds longtime CDT expert Emma Llansó, who after 14 years at CDT is transitioning to a role in the federal government. An attorney with an extensive background in fighting for strong protections guaranteeing freedom of speech, Kate was most recently the Director of the U.S. Free Expression Programs at PEN America.
CDT President & CEO Alexandra Reeve Givens says:
“We’re thrilled to welcome Kate to CDT and to benefit from her years of experience working on the intersection of civil rights and free speech protections, online privacy and surveillance, and addressing online harassment and disinformation.
Kate is a passionate advocate for safeguarding people’s fundamental rights to publish and receive information, participate in our democratic processes, and share knowledge.”
At PEN America, Kate promoted press freedom, worked to mitigate the impact of disinformation on public discourse, and expanded PEN America’s engagement with partners and coalitions to counter threats to free expression and democracy. She led advocacy to protect drag performances and gender non-conforming expression, collaborated on legislative efforts to end book bans in schools, and assisted in drafting amicus briefs.
Before joining PEN America, Kate led U.S. policy at the Wikimedia Foundation, the non-profit that hosts Wikipedia and other free knowledge projects. She also served as Senior Advisor for the First Amendment and Consumer Privacy at the American Civil Liberties Union for three years and spent 11 years as a Legislative Attorney for the Congressional Research Service.
On joining CDT, Kate says:
“For years, I’ve worked with CDT and admired its commitment to protecting free expression online for everyone and keeping new technologies free of government censorship, as well as its deep expertise across the technology policy spectrum.
I’m especially looking forward to continuing CDT’s determined focus on supporting strong free expression protections that benefit communities of color, religious minorities, LGBTQ+ communities, and other oft-censored groups.”
Kate received her B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania and her law degree from American University, Washington College of Law.
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The Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) is the leading nonpartisan, nonprofit organization fighting to advance civil rights and civil liberties in the digital age. We shape technology policy, governance, and design with a focus on equity and democratic values. Established in 1994, CDT has been a trusted advocate for digital rights since the earliest days of the internet. The organization is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and has a Europe Office in Brussels, Belgium.