Bio
Mike Brickner joined the ACLU of Delaware as its Executive Director in May 2020.
Since arriving at the ACLU-DE, Mike has overseen dramatic growth in the organization's staff and reach. Notable civil liberties wins under Mike's tenure include: a ban on formal 287(g) agreements between local law enforcement and Immigration and Customs Enforcement; guarantee of a right to counsel for low-income people facing eviction; settlement of a historic public education funding lawsuit guaranteeing millions more dollars going to underserved students; creation of Delaware's Clean Slate laws allowing hundreds of thousands of people to have automatic record clearance; and the launch of the Every Vote Counts campaign to modernize Delaware's voting rights laws.
Mike has served on the boards of the Brush Foundation, First State Abortion Fund, Hiram College Alumni Executive Board, and Kent State University's Masters in Public Administration Advisory Board. In his spare time, Mike is an active foster to dogs in need of rescue, has observed multiple international elections, and is an active platelet donor.
Prior to arriving in Delaware, Mike was the Ohio State Director of All Voting is Local, a new campaign to secure and expand the right to vote. As State Director, Mike led campaigns to fight discriminatory voter purges, ensure jailed voters could cast a ballot, and exposed how unfair provisional ballot systems disenfranchised Black, low-income, and young voters in Ohio.
Mike previously served as Senior Policy Director at the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio. During his 14-year tenure at the ACLU of Ohio, Mike worked on a variety of critical civil liberties movements. These include conceiving of campaigns to reform Ohio’s criminal justice system, ensuring safe and equitable access to reproductive healthcare, and ensuring LGBTQ people are free from discrimination.
Mike earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology from Hiram College and a master’s degree from Cleveland State University’s Diversity Management Program.
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