PGHIMC - Pittsburgh Independent Media Center

Civil Liberties in a State of Emergency
by david Friday, May. 28, 2004 at 3:11 PM
david@indypgh.org

<p>The State <em>really</em> doesn't want protests to take place this summer.

Activists in Georgia, Boston and New York are facing unparalled obstacles to organizing against the G-8, the DNC and the RNC. In the same week that U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft announced that "al-Qaida plans to attempt an attack on the United States in the next few months," we have witnessed:

• Permits denied in New York City [ 1 | 2 ] for public assembly and protest at the Republican National Convention;
• Restriction of public assembly and movement through the closure of up to 40 miles of roads in and around Boston during the Democratic Convention;
• The declaration by Georgia Governor Purdue of a State of Emergency, effectively legalizing all efforts used to suppress protests against the G8 Summit.

The GA state of emergency went into affect on Monday, May 24 and runs through June 20, 2004. Though a few permits were recently issued for G-8 demonstrations they could be revoked under the state of emergency, thus creating a situation where all assemblies are declared unlawful. In addition, the state of emergency could allow for:

• Martial rule to be declared
• Curfews to be imposed
• Military units to "guard" the streets
• Detention and arrest of demonstrators until the "emergency" is over
• Escalation of use of force with limited accountability

For more information on these attempts to suppress dissent:

• Atlanta IMC | Boston IMC | NYC IMC
• Save Our Civil Liberties Campaign
• United for Peace and Justice
• Black Tea Society
• RNC Watch

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