Free Speech is Under Attack! Here's how to STOP It:

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By Kathryn Smith (about the author) Page 3 of 4 page(s)

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The Center for Constitutional Rights argues in court about the Patriot Act: “…the government’s reliance on overbroad laws imposing guilt by association in the war on terrorism. Our clients sought only to support lawful and nonviolent activity, yet the Patriot Act provision draws no distinction whatsoever between expert” (legal) “advice in human rights, designed to deter violence, and expert” (legal) “advice on how to build a bomb. We think the Constitution demands that the law recognize the difference between furthering human rights and furthering violence.”

Note also the CCR’s statement about a significant victory they had in court, in which parts of the Patriot Act were struck down:

In a decision issued late Friday, U.S. District Judge Audrey Collins ruled that a ban on providing “expert advice and assistance” to terrorist groups violates the First and Fifth Amendments to the Constitution because it is so vague that it “could be construed to include unequivocally pure speech and advocacy protected by the First Amendment.” (Emphasis has not been added).

TO EDUCATE THE PUBLIC:

~Organize town hall meetings at your local community college or church.

~Write letters to the editor, appealing to local papers and underground sources if you believe the mainstream won’t print your letter. You might be surprised: Key Patriot Act facts have been printed by some mainstream editors I have submitted the facts to. Give them a try before you give up.

~Dial in to radio talk shows.

~Circulate chain emails.

~Post to blogs everywhere.

~Hand out this link detailing our rights if we are stopped or queried by the police:

http://www.aclu.org/police/gen/14528res20040730.html.

Word will spread! Especially if you give specific permission for others to quote or reprint your articles, asking that they be distributed all over the web, word will get around!
3) Contact your grassroots leaders.
Ask them to make free speech their first point of focus. It only makes sense! If we don’t have free speech, we will not even be talking about saving the whales, global warming, healthcare or…Amy Goodman’s arrest. 4) Meet with the police

Yup, you read that right. Do this in groups, of course: Never alone! But the fact is, that police are often as “in the dark” as our deliberately uninformed populace, thinking that anybody simply dubbed a “terrorist” is exactly as accused. This is usually not the case:

According to ACLU attorney Ben Wizner on the ACLU‘s Blog of Rights, more than 99% of the Guantanamo detainees have been proven innocent.

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Take action -- click here to contact your local newspaper or congress people:
Demand that the Patriot Act be overturned or amended

Click here to see the most recent messages sent to congressional reps and local newspapers

This quote summarizes the nature of my concerns and the content of personal experiences which stir my activism: "Necessity is the plea for every infringement on human freedom. It is the argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves". --Paul (more...)

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