David Fidanque was the Executive Director of the ACLU of Oregon from 1993 — 2015. He joined the Oregon affiliate staff in 1982 as its Associate Director in Eugene, coordinating ACLU activities in southwest Oregon. The ACLU of Oregon currently has eight staff members, approximately 12,000 members and dozens of volunteer attorneys. The Executive Director has primary responsibility for supervising the ACLU's activities in its four major program areas: litigation, lobbying, communications and outreach. In addition, Mr. Fidanque is the primary spokesperson for the organization.
From 2006 to May 2010, he served as Chair of the National ACLU Executive Directors Steering Committee which helps coordinate ACLU staff work between the national organization and its 50 affiliates around the country.
Mr. Fidanque has been instrumental in the ACLU’s efforts to safeguard and advance civil liberties guaranteed by the Oregon Bill of Rights both in the courts and at the ballot box. He has participated in numerous ballot measure campaigns on issues related to LGBT rights, reproductive freedom, censorship and criminal justice reform.
In March 2013, David received the ACLU of Oregon’s highest honor, the E.B. MacNaughton Civil Liberties Award, in commemoration of his 20th anniversary as Executive Director.
Since 2001, David has served as a member of the Oregon Law Enforcement Contacts Policy and Data Review Committee (known as the LECC), which is appointed by the Governor to deter racial profiling and improve relationships between Oregon law enforcement agencies and communities of color. David has also been appointed by five governors since 1989 as a member of the Asset Forfeiture Oversight Advisory Committee, which reviews civil and criminal forfeitures carried out by law enforcement.
Many people assume Mr. Fidanque is an attorney, but he is not. He is a former broadcast journalist who worked for KEZI-TV and KZEL-FM in Eugene as a reporter in the mid-1970s. After leaving KEZI in 1976, he worked at the Oregon Legislature during the 1977 legislative session and then as an aide to former U.S. Rep. Jim Weaver from 1977-81 before joining the ACLU of Oregon staff in 1982.