Rhiannon Grady is the director of the civil rights organisation Advocacy. In May 3307, Grady spoke out against the implementation of the Proactive Detection Bureau within the Federation. In November 3307, she announced Advocacy supported the Scriveners Clan's claim of ownership to The Scriveners Clan Dredger based on interstellar legal precedents that protected micro-societies.
Timeline[]
01 NOV 3307
- The Scriveners Clan's legal ownership of their dredger has been supported by the civil rights organisation Advocacy. The ancient Dredger-class bulk cruiser, currently located in the Oochost PC-C c29-0 system, is inhabited by a nomadic tribe descended from the vessel's original crew. Orion University claims that the cruiser is its commercial property, but has failed to make contact with its occupants. Rhiannon Grady, director of Advocacy, explained: "For centuries, there has been widespread legislation to protect remote communities from cultural contamination. These laws apply to micro-societies, such as those found aboard generation ships, that evolved in isolation. Therefore, Orion University should not presume to deprive over ten thousand people of the only home they have ever known. Unlike cases such as the Golconda, which requested emergency assistance, in this case we are legally and morally obliged to respect the status quo." Professor Elizabeth Perez, head of anthropology at Orion University, responded: "I was involved with the Golconda aid efforts, and fully appreciate the delicacy of this situation. But the dredger's age and condition makes it a hazardous environment for its people. Evacuation should be considered for their own safety, with appropriate measures to minimise cultural disruption." The university's megaship, Scientia Aeterna, has halted attempts to gain access to the Scriveners Clan dredger. However, it has not withdrawn its remote override of the vessel's hyperdrive.[1]
14 MAY 3307
- The Proactive Detection Bureau, which monitors all civil communications in the Federation, has received a boost from the galactic community. President Hudson's campaign for additional data proved so successful that the PDB has dramatically increased the range of its surveillance. Deputy Director Bethany Blake of the Federal Intelligence Agency announced: "We are now able to discreetly scan almost every private and public communications network used within Federal systems. As a result, arrest rates have soared and several organised crime rings have been dismantled." Shadow President Winters's efforts to distribute methods of blocking the PDB received considerable support, but failed to eclipse Hudson's initiative. This was interpreted by the Federal government as a mandate from the citizens to continue its surveillance programme. Rhiannon Grady, director of the civil rights organisation Advocacy, told the media: "Since the vast majority of citizens will never receive a visit from the FIA for their activities, the public has no sense of what they have lost. But history teaches us how hard it is to regain freedoms once you've given them away. The Federation has taken a large step toward becoming an interstellar police state with little regard for the individual."[2]