Subject: Fwd: [SAPB_R] DONT TALK! Just Say NO to Grand Jury Attack on the Anti-War Movement Date: Wed, 11 Feb 2004 16:38:51 -0500 To: lpny_discussion From: Bob Armstrong Given the attacks on liberty here , what is it that we are= imposing on Iraq ? --- Original Message --- From: "SAPB &R" To: =A0 Sent: Tue, 10 Feb 2004 15:43:28 -0800 Subject: [SAPB_R] DONT TALK! =A0Just Say NO to Grand Jury Attack on= the Anti-War Movement >=A0My Groups | SAPB_R Main Page >=A0please post and forward broadly ... > >=A0DON=92T TALK!=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0 > >=A0Just Say NO to Grand Jury Attack on the Anti-War Movement >=A0A statement from the National Office of Refuse &=A0Resist! > >=A0February 9, 2004 > >=A0For the first time since the Vietnam War, a university has been= ordered to turn over records concerning an anti-war program on= campus to a federal grand jury. Four anti-war activists have= also been subpoenaed to appear before that same grand jury on= February 10. On top of this, the university has been issued a= gag-order, preventing it from saying anything about the whole= sordid affair. > >=A0What so provoked the ire of the Bush-Cheney-Rumsfeld-Ashcroft= gang was a conference on November 15, 2003, on the Drake= University campus titled =93Stop the Occupation! Bring the Iowa= Guard Home!=94 The conference was followed the next day by a= righteous demonstration at the headquarters of the Iowa National= Guard in Johnston, Iowa. This is precisely the kind of action= the times call for if we are going to stop the government=92s= juggernaut of war and repression. > >=A0Stung by popular resistance, the government issued a subpoena= on February 3 =A0to Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, calling= for the turning over all records and documents in the possession= of Drake University relating to the anti-war conference held on= campus. The conference was sponsored by the Drake Chapter of the= National Lawyers Guild (NLG). > >=A0The subpoena commands the university to turn over all records= =93relating to the scheduling of the conference,=94 the identity of= all =93persons that actually attended the meeting, the identity of= the officers of the Drake chapter of the NLG,=94 all =93meeting= agenda or annual reports of this organization filed with the= University since January 1, 2002,=94 and all =93records of Drake= University campus security reflecting any observations made of= the November 15, 2003 meeting, including any records of persons= in charge or control of the meeting, and any records of= attendees of the meeting.=94 > >=A0In other words, the university is being commanded to act as an= arm of the state in spying on political dissent (the assumption= is made that the campus cops already did so!) and it is ordered= not make any public comment or protest about it. > >=A0The Grand Jury Is a Tool of Repression > >=A0The popular illusion is that grand juries exist to protect= citizens from malicious prosecution by the state, by hearing the= state=92s evidence in private to ascertain if there is sufficient= reason for a trial to be held. In the 1950s and 60s, however,= grand juries were regularly used to both harass political= dissenters and threaten people with being sent to jail if they= do not snitch on their associates in secret proceedings. For= example, baby doctor Benjamin Spock and Yale chaplain William= Sloan Coffin were indicted by a grand jury for conspiracy to= obstruct the draft after they had signed a statement against the= Vietnam war and the draft. > >=A0Grand jury testimony used to be secret. Now under the USA= Patriot Act, =93secret=94 grand jury testimony can be shared with= the FBI, CIA, and other agencies asserting an interest in an= =93anti-terrorism=94 investigation, but witnesses cannot get a= transcript to prove what they did or did not say. So what goes= on behind the closed doors is only a secret from the movements= of resistance, not from the political police. > >=A0When you appear before a grand jury, you may not be accompanied= by your attorney, there are no public spectators, and the= federal attorney asks the questions. You can -- and should --= assert your Fifth Amendment right not to testify. But you cannot= do this selectively. That is, once you begin answering= questions, you must answer them all or go to jail. Finally, the= government can strip you of your Fifth Amendment protection by= giving you immunity from prose=ADcution for what you say. If this= happens, you must tell the government snoops what they want to= know or go to jail. > >=A0Too often people subpoenaed think they can outfox the grand= jury and =93find out=94 what the investigation is really after. This= is a very big mistake. The trained federal attorney has no= intention of tipping the government=92s hand. If you give= testimony -- even seemingly innocuous testimony -- it can be= used after you leave the room to =93corroborate=94 a bogus story= being fed to the grand jury. Also, if your associates are later= indicted, you have no way of proving that it was not on the= basis of your testimony. The watchword in dealing with the= agents of repression is always DON=92T TALK. > >=A0The Politics of Repression > >=A0This sudden resurgence of federal grand juries against antiwar= protests highlights some ugly trends and dangerous= possibilities. Besides the chilling of dissent against the= U.S.=92s =93war on the world=94 by threatening people with grand jury= subpoenas, there is a larger pattern of a grab for power by the= federal government as concentrated in the executive branch.= First of all, why is the federal government involved at all? > >=A0There is a move underway to paint anti-war protest as illegal= support for =93terrorism=94 under the USA Patriot Act and it raises= the specter of using anti-dissent federal laws from World War I= that are still on the books. Those laws sought to criminalize= the promotion of =93disaffection=94 among the armed forces or impede= military recruitment. The Sedition and Espionage Acts were used= during that period to jail hundreds of antiwar activists and ban= anti-war publications from the U.S. mail. > >=A0What we are seeing is a pattern of selectively =93federalizing=94= local law enforcement, literally making =93a federal case=94 out of= local dissent, and creating federal =93dissent verboten=94 zones= around the President and federal institutions. > >=A0Finally, colleges and universities have historically been= integral to movements for rights and social progress. In= attacking a university the government seeks to wield its= tremendous power to shut down avenues of questioning and= facilities for the organization of protest. Added to this is a= totally unjustified gag order of a type that has been made= =93standard operating procedure=94 in the USA Patriot Act. > >=A0The Importance of Saying NO! > >=A0Refuse &=A0Resist! calls on all progressive movements and= organizations opposing the Bush regime=92s =93war on the world=94 to= adopt guidelines and practices that will frustrate the= activities of the federal snoops. We urge all those served with= these political harassment grand jury subpoenas to seek legal= counsel, expose these attacks to the public, and to resist= compliance by every appropriate means. Responding to these= attacks is not a =93distraction=94 from our movements; it is an= integral part of our struggle and wins people to understanding= more clearly the nature of what we are up against. > >=A0As Refuse &=A0Resist! says in its founding statement, =93we= renounce all allegiance to this hateful =91Resurgent Amer=ADica=92= program, and encourage all others in its vociferous and= deter=ADmined renunci=ADation. There can be no communal=ADity of= purpose, healing of divisions, or coming together as one nation= behind this new course. To acquiesce further in silence is to be= complicit.=94 > >=A0We call on everyone to dare to do what is necessary and= organize to stop the war on the world and its police state= measures at home. Give your full support to the anti-war= community of Iowa and the National Lawyers Guild. Support the= demand that Federal Attorney Stephen Patrick O=92Meara and Federal= Judge Ronald E. Longstaff quash these politically motivated= subpoenas. Join the protest demonstrations at the federal= courthouse. And whole heartedly stand with all who refuse to= comply. > >=A0* * * > >=A0Contact Refuse &=A0Resist! at 212-713-5657= or=A0=A0info@refuseandresist.org, where further updates on this= important battle will be posted at www.refuseandresist.org.= Statements of protest and support can be forwarded through= Refuse &=A0Resist! > >=A0This e-mail address is primarily for distribution and if= necessary, for! =A0contacting the organization, SAPBR. Please DO= NOT send personal messages or messages addressed to particular= individuals to this e-mail address. Thank you.=A0=A0 > >=A0Optimize your Internet experience to the max with the new MSN= Premium Internet Software. >=A0Yahoo! Groups Links > >=A0To visit your group on the web, go to: >=A0http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SAPB_R/ >=A0=A0 >=A0To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: >=A0SAPB_R-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com --=A0 =A0Bob Armstrong -- http://CoSy.com -- 212-285-1864 WriteUp : .CoSy.MidWinterParty 17 =A0:= http://cosy.com/y04/MidWinter17.htm Computing Environment : =A0http://CoSy.com/CoSy/ A WTC vision : http://CoSy.com/CoSy/ConicAllConnect/ Liberty : http://CoSy.com/Liberty.htm Restore our Right to Relax : =A0http://ny.lp.org/cgi-bin/petition.cgi?Against_the_Smoking_Ban =A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A02004/02/11 4:30:54 PM