Pittsburgh plays host this week to the G-20 summit, a gathering of leaders of the world's largest national economies and the European Union. And, as with many past international summits, protest groups are embroiled in legal battles over their ability to voice opposition to international political and corporate elites.
On Tuesday morning, lawyers for the ACLU of Pennsylvania and the Center for Constitutional Rights presented arguments before US District Court Judge Gary Lancaster describing a pattern of unconstitutional searches and seizures on the part of local law enforcement against two protest groups--the Seeds of Peace Collective and the Three Rivers Climate Convergence (3RCC).
Showing posts with label civil rights. Show all posts
Showing posts with label civil rights. Show all posts
9/24/09
Police Harassment Greets G-20 Protesters
3/2/09
Civil Liberties under the Obama administration
punditman says...
I think it is safe to say that there was not only the hope—but also the assumption—that Obama would go about overturning eight years of Bush administration illegality.
Yet as Glen Greenwald, American Constitutional and civil rights litigator and Salon.com columnist says, the Obama Department of Justice is:
Greenwald spoke recently at the annual conference of the ACLU of Massachusetts regarding impediments to the restoration of civil liberties under the Obama administration. When you have half an hour, take the time to listen. It may change some of your assumptions:
MP3 here
I think it is safe to say that there was not only the hope—but also the assumption—that Obama would go about overturning eight years of Bush administration illegality.
Yet as Glen Greenwald, American Constitutional and civil rights litigator and Salon.com columnist says, the Obama Department of Justice is:
...not merely trying desperately to keep the Bush administration's spying activities secret, and not merely devoting itself with full force to preventing disclosure of relevant documents concerning this illegal program, but far worse, doing everything in its power even to prevent any judicial adjudication as to whether the Bush administration broke the law by spying on Americans without warrants.Indeed, it is starting to very much to look like business as usual in Washington on the Constitutional front.
Greenwald spoke recently at the annual conference of the ACLU of Massachusetts regarding impediments to the restoration of civil liberties under the Obama administration. When you have half an hour, take the time to listen. It may change some of your assumptions:
MP3 here
9/2/08
Federal Government Involved In Raids On Protesters
by Glenn Greenwald
Today's Star Tribune added that the raids were specifically "aided by informants planted in protest groups." Back in May, Marcy Wheeler presciently noted that the Minneapolis Joint Terrorist Task Force -- an inter-agency group of federal, state and local law enforcement led by the FBI -- was actively recruiting Minneapolis residents to serve as plants, to infiltrate "vegan groups" and other left-wing activist groups and report back to the Task Force about what they were doing. There seems to be little doubt that it was this domestic spying by the Federal Government that led to the excessive and truly despicable home assaults by the police yesterday.
As the police attacks on protesters in Minnesota continue -- see this video of the police swarming a bus transporting members of Earth Justice, seizing the bus and leaving the group members stranded on the side of the highway -- it appears increasingly clear that it is the Federal Government that is directing this intimidation campaign. Minnesota Public Radio reported yesterday that "the searches were led by the Ramsey County Sheriff's office. Deputies coordinated searches with the Minneapolis and St. Paul police departments and the Federal Bureau of Investigation."
Today's Star Tribune added that the raids were specifically "aided by informants planted in protest groups." Back in May, Marcy Wheeler presciently noted that the Minneapolis Joint Terrorist Task Force -- an inter-agency group of federal, state and local law enforcement led by the FBI -- was actively recruiting Minneapolis residents to serve as plants, to infiltrate "vegan groups" and other left-wing activist groups and report back to the Task Force about what they were doing. There seems to be little doubt that it was this domestic spying by the Federal Government that led to the excessive and truly despicable home assaults by the police yesterday.
Peacenik wonders why there is such a concerted effort to disrupt legitimate protest. It seems like it is a warm up for the near future. What Peacenik doesn't understand is why the police, who are by and large made up of underpaid everyday regular people, so enthused to participate in this kind of stuff. Its their neighbours, its their kids, and its their friends who they are cracking down on.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)