Justice Served?

Go to this story on Free Press.Net to read about the arrests of journalists at the Republican National Convention which included none other than Amy Goodman of Democracy Now. I guess Free Press.Net is taking a lot of the credit for their bombardment of pressure on the City of Saint Paul so the charges would be dropped against all journalists arrested at the RNC. Let me tell you, there were plenty of St. Paul residents that put pressure on City Hall over their part in handling the chaos of the RNC. It wasn’t just Free Press.Net that made them drop the charges.

The fact remains that the so-called law enfarcement, (I call it enfarcement instead of enforcement),were orchestrated by the Federal Government. It was obvious that the Mayor of St. Paul, its City Council and other Local, State and National level elected officials stayed clear and did not comment or interfere in any way shape or form. Gutless bastards in my book. The “law” succeeded in removing, at least for a few hours and in some cases a day or so, legitimate journalists that would tell the real story about what was happening on the streets of St. Paul. That real story being that police were beating, using pepper spray and rubber bullets on anyone they wanted to with no attempt to assess a situation. You were guilty of no crime but were persecuted for being there and exercising your first amendment right to free speech.

The people who broke windows, tipped over dumpsters and newspaper boxes broke the law. Funny isn’t it, how Faux News had a camera trained on a lone masked protester who broke a window at Macy’s Department Store. The march was going on, with crowds of over 10,000 people, (some say as many as 30,000), and they happen to have a camera on this lone window breaking incident, blocks away from the march itself. Why would any major news outlet be blocks away from the action? How uncanny. The thought that the Fox camera operator and newscaster were right there, at Macy’s window. How convenient. Some journalists, with press pass credentials, who were close to the actual march, were arrested, with some being brutally beaten, like Democracy Now’s Nicole Salazar, while the big news media’s Fox cameras were johnny-on-the-spot with a photo op to show the world how dangerous these protesters are.

In my opinion, it was a set up, pure and simple, and it sucked. It was propaganda that made the old USSR propaganda machine ala Pravda look like a children’s read.

What really gets me is the fact that when the University of Minnesota, a Big Ten conference school, won the NCAA National Hockey crown in 2003, the streets of Minneapolis were burning with cars being tipped over, windows broken, police being attacked by the drunken revelers and no storm troopers with AR 15 assault rifles and gas masks were around to keep the peace and quell the riot. They used regular law enforcement techniques to stop a full scale riot and video cameras to prosecute those that needed it.

But here at the 2008 RNC, they were ready to take anyone off the streets that they might have thought would pose any type of problem and would bring the truth down to the level of the common man about the plain and simple fact that the people were marching and asking for an end to an unfair, immoral and illegal war.

This whole RNC business, and yes, it was a $50,000,000 business deal, was hard to take in St. Paul. I mean why did the Republicans want to come to St. Paul, a small town by standards of the big cities out there. The damn Xcel Energy Center, a great wonderful hockey venue by the way, seats under 20,000 people for a Minnesota Wild game. The Democrats used Pepsi Center in Denver and seated almost 80,000 attendees!

Some say that the Repubs thought Minnesota to be a swing state. Others said it was because of the Norm Coleman Senate seat that might fall to Al Franken. That second scenario could not have been true as Norm, the wife beating Senator, was never seen nor mentioned at the RNC. Even the idea that Minnesota’s Govenor, Tim Pawlenty, would be chosen as Vice President didn’t come to fruition. Nope. There was no reason to come to St. Paul except to showcase their might. They even had a machine gunned equipped Coast Guard boat on the Mississippi River for chrissake!

I believe that parts of the whole affair were orchestrated in an effort to show the peaceful public that anyone who thinks liberally is breaking the law. To instill fear into the minds of everyday people. They tried divide and conquer.

There are more demonstrations scheduled in Minneapolis and St. Paul. I bet you won’t see them on Fox or any other of the major media outlets. They are peaceful events and stay that way until the enfarcement comes around in riot gear.

To make my point perfectly clear, here is a short story about my family’s involvement at the RNC march on September 1, 2008:

We arrived at the Capitol around 10:45 a.m. The announcement flyer said to be there by 11 a.m. We gathered, talked with folks and lined up for the march. I had my wife with me, my oldest daughter and her four children who ranged in age from 1&1/2 to 10 years old. If I had thought there would be violence or danger, I never would ever take a chance that would put those Grandkids in harms way, period.

We marched. I was in front, with the Veterans For Peace who were to lead the march. The VFP relinquished the lead to the Iraq Veterans Against the War just before the start of the march. My family was behind me a few hundred yards. There was a sea of people marching and carrying signs of protest and asking for peace.

When the march was completed, I waited near the Capitol. I called Barb on the cell phone and since we were familiar with the layout of the grounds of the Capitol campus, we met at a place central to where we finished, the Minnesota Law Enforcement Memorial fountain.

It was a hot day. The children were hot and sweaty. They saw the pond at the memorial and proceeded to wade, then immersed into the cool water. I mean, they are kids, and they have common sense and did what should come naturally. They went swimming on a hot day.

Two State police. Capitol guards, in a golf cart, in shirt sleeves who were in the area drove by the memorial and without stopping the cart and getting out of it, directed the adults, in this case my daughter and wife, to get those kids out of the pool as “They can’t swim in there” was proclaimed. They drove off without watching to see their instructions enforced.

This casual reckoning was business as usual, not six blocks from the pepper spray, rubber bullets, swinging billy clubs and show of force to people marching for peace. The local State police guards knew their people, knew we were peaceful, knew we liberals weren’t there to cause trouble. They see us all the time, and the hardest part of their law enforcement job is to shoo four little kids out of the pond at the foot of a granite memorial to “real” cops.

The saddest part for me is that St. Paul will never be the same. And it isn’t one bit strange that none of the journalists detained and arrested were charged. They succeeded to get them off the streets for a time, so Faux News can get their window breaking shots on the six o’clock news.

Peace to All.

Sphere: Related Content

First Hand Eyewitness, RNC Arrests

On Sunday, August 31, 2008, a group of people marched on the Xcel Energy Center, site of the 2008 RNC National Convention. This was a permitted march. It was a solemn march. Those that participated were asked to wear the orange and black that is worn by prisoners, (detainees), at Guantanamo Bay. They carried replica tombstones and the names of dead soldiers and Iraqi civilians were read amidst a single drumbeat.

I will be at another March on the RNC that is due to take place today. We gather at 11:00 a.m. and march at 1:00 p.m. The march today is billed to be larger than the solemn march that took place on the 31st. Some accounts said there were 1500 people attending Sunday’s march. Others say it was closer to 750. But these are guesses by those on the ground. There was no media or law enforcement count mentioned anywhere that I have looked for it.

Todays march will be decidedly larger. Estimates are for 6000-10,000 people to assemble. The route is being done with a permit, but some people may decide to pass a blockade and risk arrest like Steve and others did. I will report the truth after todays action.

Go HERE for more reporting and pictures of the arrests.

Steve Clemens, an activist from our area of the world, wrote this update about his Civil Disobedience at this Solemn March on the RNC:

Report Back on the RNC 9 by Steve Clemens. September 1, 2008

Sunday August 31, 2008 saw the first arrests of peaceful protestors at the Republican National Convention held in St. Paul, MN. As plans began to be announced for scheduled protest marches and rallies against the on-going war on Iraq and “against the Republican agenda”, a few of us in the local peace community in the Twin Cities grew uncomfortable with the style and tenor of some of the protests.

Although we are as strongly apposed to the war as many other groups, some of us wished to have a more reflective and solemn protest against the loss of life and physical and psychological destruction of both soldiers and civilians this war has wrought. This war had been supported by both major political parties and is not just a “Republican” issue.

My friend Dr. David Harris, an active member of Veterans for Peace, shared these concerns and generated the idea of a silent march carrying symbolic tombstones with the photos and names of dead U.S. soldiers and Iraqi civilians killed in the war. Our mutual friend and peacemaker, Sami Rasouli, an Iraqi-American and founder of the Muslim Peacemaker Team provided photos he has taken during the war of some of the enormous numbers of Iraqi casualties that he has witnessed first-hand.

Dr. Harris’s idea was to march to the Xcel Center, the location for the RNC, carrying the tombstones with just a drum cadence and the reading of the names of the dead on both sides with the response from the marchers being “We remember you” in a similar fashion to the annual protest at The U.S. Army School of the Americas at Ft. Benning, GA. There, each November, the vigilers respond with “Presente!” when names of the victims of that notorious remnant of the Cold War are sung out.

Dr. Harris also felt the need to include an option in the march for those who felt called to supplement their protest with an act of nonviolent civil disobedience. Marchers were told that if they wished to risk arrest, they could nonviolently continue beyond the legal route of the march and attempt to carry their tombstones to the convention site itself. He was public and clear with both the marchers and the police about these intentions and the risks involved.

Prior to the start of the march, only 4 expressed an interest and willingness to commit to the civil disobedience portion of the march with one saying she would like to do so but wasn’t sure she’d have the physical stamina to be able to march to the point where the breach of the security line would occur. So, initially, three of us chose to branch off the route to an area scouted out in advance where it appeared there was an opening in the fence.

However, when we approached the opening, it turned out to be a swinging gate to allow vehicles to pass and the gates were quickly shut and secured as we slowly approached. As I entered the area, I noticed a gap under the fenced-off area where I though we might be able to squeeze under and so I told the other two to follow me. Given my physical size, it was somewhat a chore to squeeze under the wrought iron fencing but after I managed it, I waited for the other two. When we had cleared it, I noticed to my chagrin that we were “boxed in” by fencing all around us except for a rear building entrance on one side.

However, on closer inspection, I discovered that one section of the fence wasn’t properly secured and could possibly be lifted off its hinge pins and removed to the side. Joel and David gave me a hand in lifting the heavy 4’ x 10’ panel up and as I moved the section to the side, at least a half dozen law enforcement officers rushed to the site from inside the perimeter to prevent our access. I gently pushed the fence as they struggled to close the breach. I told the officers that we were committed to nonviolence and had no intention of injuring anyone – we just wanted “to go to the Xcel Center to deliver a letter and documents to President Bush”.

Earlier that morning, I wrote an open letter to the President, calling him to immediately end this war, quoting portions of International Law and treaties it had violated. Needless to say, the police were more concerned with their security perimeter than the desires of a few to peaceably confront the “Commander-in-Chief”. After it became clear that we would be unable to proceed further in a nonviolent manner, we decided to remain where we were. We were also pleasantly surprised to find that Josh, Dan, and Duncan had joined us. I knew Josh and Dan from the recent 500 mile “Witness Against War” walk from Chicago to St. Paul they had completed the day before. I was glad to have their gentle spirits with us! None of us had previously known Duncan but he was the one who had shown David the area where we might by-pass the fence prior to the walk.

As at least a dozen police officers in riot gear with long wooden batons quickly established themselves between us and the fence, I then noticed that three other friends and joined us on “the wrong side of the law”. Sister Betty Mckenzie, a nun who is 78 had crawled under the fence along with Mary Vaughan and Jeanne Hynes. All three women have been faithful peace activists and active members of AlliantACTION, a local group that has vigiled weekly for the past 12 years at the headquarters of a war profiteer, Alliant Techsystems. So that completed our group of nine.

As the police regrouped and officers were deciding what to do with their caged prey, Mary decided to lead us in song. Down By The Riverside, Let It Be, Give Peace a Chance, and even a spirited solo by Duncan of James Brown’s classic, “I Feel Good” rang out. Many members of the media had crowded up against the outside of the fence wanting to get a photo or a quote from Betty or Jeanne who were closest to them. One of our group asked me to read aloud my letter to the President so the surrounding police could hear it. I obliged.

After what seemed to be 15-20 minutes, a police commander came to inform us that “You know you are under arrest?” Actually, other police must have been a little lax in their training as that was the first we were notified that we were “arrested”. We had a pleasant conversation with him, informing him of our commitment to nonviolence and our intent to deliver the letter and documents to the Convention site. He said that wasn’t going to happen and asked if we would “cooperate” with the arrest procedure. David, ever the diplomat, responded “of course” but then quickly added, “Actually, we might not cooperate but we are certainly nonviolent”.

In an act of supreme irony, David was the first to be shackled with a set of PINK handcuffs! I told him how proud Media Benjamin and her Code Pink group would be if they could see him now. (Media and Code Pink members had marched with us before we veered off-route.) I had to settle for black handcuffs and the officer cooperated with my request to not make them too tight because I suffer from carpal tunnel. He was very respectful and all of the officers responded to our peaceableness in a professional and respectful manner. A number of the officers responded positively to David’s ready identity as a military vet since he proudly had worn his Veterans For Peace t-shirt. I had chosen to wear my LA Catholic Worker shirt with a Dorothy Day quote: “The only solution is Love” on it. Jeanne wore her NO WAR t-shirt which included “Our God is Love; Our Gospel is Peace”.

The booking process began in the building we had come behind – St. Paul’s famous Landmark Center. We were searched and patted down and then photographed alongside our “Arresting Officer” with a white board declaring our names, birthdates, and case numbers. Our metal handcuffs were replaced with sturdy plastic flexi-cuffs and we were herded out to a waiting police van to be transported to the Ramsey County Jail for the rest of the booking process.

I later found out that Sister Betty has collapsed while being processed and was caught and helped into a wheelchair. I think the combination of the outside temperature, the march, and the excitement of crawling under the security fence had strained her frail physique. Mary informed us that she thought Betty was recovering fine. We later discovered that they kept Jeanne and Betty at the first location and completed their booking process there so they wouldn’t have to be transported elsewhere. Again, we were treated with respect and dignity despite the fact that the two previous days had seen what seemed to me as egregious excesses by the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office against what they and the media defined as “anarchists”. They were probably ignorant that Dorothy Day herself and many of today’s principled servants of the poor, the Catholic Workers, identify themselves as anarchists.

After having our property put in plastic bags (belts, combs, watches, keys, pens and paper …) we were fingerprinted and booked. Duncan was placed in a separate cage because he didn’t have any identification on him and he was from out-of-state. It was indicated that he might be held until they could verify his identity through other means. After receiving a citation for “trespass: refusing to leave the premises of another”, the police put us back into a van with stainless benches and a divider that reminded me of a cattle truck. They drove us a block or two away from the jail and gave us directions about how to walk back to the State Capitol, our starting place. We were given our property back at that point so we were able to contact our families and friends to let them know we were OK and able to breathe free air again.

The citation indicates that we will be contacted by mail for our court appearance and, I know from previous experience, that we can be fined and get up to 3 months jail time if convicted. But that is for the next leg of this journey for peace. We must end this war!
(There are some good photos of the peace witness on The Minnesota Independent website.
Peace to All.

Sphere: Related Content

Putting the FREEDOM back in Free Speech

Denver Police & Homeland Security decided they would contain protesters near the DNC convention in a fenced area, dubbed the “Freedom Cage”. Here is a picture of that area– empty.
CommonDreams reports:
“On Monday afternoon, a couple hours after the convention kicked off, the zone was an asphalt desert. A microphone stood on a lonely stand. A Canadian documentary crew waited for protesters, who never came. An official sign-up sheet near a low-rise platform was a study in sarcasm.

Requesting the 7 a.m. slot was one “G. Washington,” who listed his cause as “You can’t cage freedom.” At 11:30 p.m., “B. Obama.” Topic: “Hope for Cages.”

“It’s so far away (the freedom cage, from the convention venue), it’s surrounded by cops, it’s just ridiculous.”

One of the most active groups is Recreate 68, an alliance of anticorporate and antiwar protesters that has demonstration permits every day of the convention. But rallies and parades have also being staged by groups pitching everything from immigrant rights, women’s equality, and Ralph Nader to lower fuel costs, legal marijuana, and a united Jerusalem.

As of Tuesday night, the city had reported 135 convention-related arrests. Most occurred Monday night, when police say a crowd of 300 disrupting traffic near Civic Center Park refused requests to disperse and then rushed a police line.

Suspects were charged with disobeying orders, obstructing a public street, and interference, violations of city ordinances. But most events have been peaceful, officials say.”

On Wednesday, a throng of protesters, lead by Veteran for Peace, surged a group of people three blocks long, led by members of the Iraq Veterans Against the War, streamed from the Denver Coliseum on Wednesday in an anti-war protest march to the Pepsi Center, where the Democratic National Convention is being staged.

By contrast, in China, the Government allowed people to apply for permits to protest in official designated zones– but then never approved one permit to do so. In fact they slapped a few 70 something year olds, who wanted to protest their displacement, loss of homes due to the Olympic construction, with a sentence of “re-education classes” something usually given to prostitutes and thieves. They were told if they disliked the re-education program, they could be sent to labor camp, an even worse fate. One of them nearly blind, both elderly.

So the US did not require the permit process, they tried to contain protesters in a fenced zone lorded over by law enforcement officials. The police presence has been crushing in Denver already, with caravans of cops flying around the city and eight or 12 guys in full riot gear hanging onto the outside of big SUVs in a show of force. The free speech crowd rejected the secluded area, and one person said no cars could get within a several block radius, making it difficult for the elderly & handicapped access.

No surprise that protesters are thinking outside the box, or in this case, outside the cage.

cross posted at ramblings

Sphere: Related Content

this made me smile quite a bit

‘Karl Rove, former senior aide to President Bush, spoke to a hostile crowd at the University of Iowa yesterday evening. Students and local citizens protested his appearance at the university and “staged a mock trial” for Rove inside the student union before the speech.’

note that this is in iowa

‘The University paid Rove $40,000 for the speech and had to agree to limit “recording equipment and flash photography” to “the first five minutes of the lecture.” At the end of the talk, an audience member shouted at Rove: “Can we have our $40,000 back?” Rove replied: “No, you can’t.“‘

can we have our country back?

Sphere: Related Content

Protestors still going after Gonzo :)

YAY!!! I can be thankful for these students who disrupted Alberto Gonzales’ speech at the University of FL. on Monday evening. From the CommonDreams writeup linked above:

In his first appearance at a university since resigning in August, former U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was met at UF on Monday with a mixture of cheers, boos and scattered interruptions by protesters, two of whom were arrested.1120 11Gonzales, who resigned from his position after a controversial tenure, spoke to more than 800 people at the Phillips Center for the Performing Arts.

During his prepared speech, Gonzales largely avoided discussing the controversies he faced in office, including his dismissal of nine U.S. attorneys. Watch the videos after the fold and in the second one, listen to the BOOs at the end of his speech. The school paid Berto $40 grand to show up..which came from student tuitions according to the first video which is a news station’s footage.

Read more

Sphere: Related Content