Dissent Is Patriotic
The Bill of Rights Defense Committee's e-mail newsletter
March 2, 2003, Vol. 2, No. 2
Newsletter topics:
- Resolution News: 51 local resolutions passed; state resolutions proposed in Hawai'i and New Mexico
- Legislation:
- Congressman Sanders to propose bill exempting libraries and bookstores from USA PATRIOT Act Section 215
- Three Senators introduce bill to address FISA concerns
Secret Justice Dept. draft of un-PATRIOT II leaked to Center for Public Integrity - Total Information Awareness loses funding; Special Registration retains funding
- National League of Cities conference
- Oregon workshop inspires, supports formation of new committees
- Professor Sami al-Arian arrested; Ashcroft attributes arrest to USA PATRIOT Act
Resolution News
Local Resolutions: The January newsletter reported the passage
of the 25th resolution. (Actually, there had been 26. We apologize
for missing Mansfield, Connecticut, on January 13.) Six weeks later,
there are 51 "civil liberties safe zones," whose local
governments have declared their commitment to protecting the civil
liberties of their more than 5.7 million residents. More than 100
other safe zones are in progress, and new local "Bill of Rights
Defense Committees" are forming every day. BORDC welcomes the
following additions:
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San Francisco, CA
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West Hollywood, CA
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Yolo County, CA
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Point Arena, CA
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Brattleboro, VT
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Ithaca, NY
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University City, MO
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San Anselmo, CA
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Claremont, CA
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Santa Monica, CA
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Village of New Paltz, NY
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Davis, CA
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Ridgway, CO
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Gustavus, AK
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Vashon-Maury Island, WA
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Rockingham, VT
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Seattle, WA
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Ashland, OR
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York, PA
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Castle Valley, UT
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Missoula, MN
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Crestone, CO
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Richmond, CA
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Cotati, CA
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Town of New Paltz, NY
See Legislative News below for the impact of this rapidly growing movement.
State resolutions proposed in Hawai'i and New Mexico:
Hawaii is the first state to consider a resolution affirming the Bill of Rights. House and Senate bills have passed out of their initial committees and are now being considered by the House Judiciary and Senate Judiciary and Hawaiian Affairs Committees. If they pass those committees, they will go to the full Hawai'i House and Senate for debate and votes.
New Mexicans also have a resolution that is progressing through their state government. For more information, visit the web site of the Global Dialog Project and read the March 1 article in the Santa Fe New Mexican.
Communities in Vermont have shown a strong commitment to civil liberties and the Bill of Rights with four resolutions passed and ten town meeting votes scheduled for this week. The Vermont Library Association has demonstrated its strong opposition to USA PATRIOT Act Section 215, which threatens rights of people who use libraries. Vermont Representative Bernard Sanders and Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy are among members of Congress calling for changes in the USA PATRIOT Act.
Congressman Sanders to introduce "Freedom to Read Protection Act of 2003"
Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act allows the FBI to go after materials such as papers, floppy disks, data tapes, and computers with hard drives, library circulation records, Internet use records, book purchasing records and registration information stored in any medium. In addition, it prevents a librarian or bookseller, under penalty of law, from informing patrons that the library is under investigation or that its patrons' records have been searched.
Congressman Bernard Sanders (I-VT) will soon propose a "Freedom to Read Protection Act of 2003," which would exempt libraries and bookstores from section 215 of the USA Patriot Act. This bill would also increase Congressional oversight into the government's use of the Patriot Act.
The BORDC considers this bill an important first step toward the restoration of civil liberties. Your help is essential to ensure its passage. In future Action Alerts, we will inform you when the bill has been introduced and how you can help, and we will keep you informed of its progress
Three Senators to introduce bill addressing FISA concerns
Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Charles Grassley (R-IA), and Arlen Specter (R-PA) of the Senate Judiciary Committee have issued their committee's report on the FBI's use of the FISA law. On February 25, the senators introduced the "Domestic Surveillance Oversight Act of 2003," which would enable Congress to oversee the FBI's surveillance of Americans. See Senator Leahy's press release. We will follow this bill's progress and keep you informed.
Secret Justice Dept. draft of un-PATRIOT II leaked to Center for Public Integrity
On Friday, February 7, on NOW with Bill Moyers, Bill Moyers interviewed Charles Lewis, Executive Director of the Center for Public Integrity. The interview broke the story of the Justice Department's secret draft bill called the Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003, AKA "PATRIOT II," which had been leaked to the Center, and which the Center scanned and made available to the public via its web site. The draft bill gives the government more power and authority than the first USA PATRIOT Act.
Read a transcript of Moyers's interview with Lewis. Read the draft bill and the Center for Public Integrity's analysis.
Total Information Awareness loses funding; Special Registration retains funding
Our February 7 Action Alert asked for help in shutting down both Total Information Awareness (TIA) and the Special Registration program by cutting funding from the Omnibus spending bills. Thank you to all who made calls to their Congresspeople and to the conferees who reconciled the House and Senate bills. Congress is withholding funding from the TIA program for 90 days pending a report by the Defense Department detailing various aspects, including impact on privacy. Senator Russ Feingold has introduced S-188, "The Data-Mining Moratorium Act," which would impose a moratorium on data mining. We will send you an action alert about how you can help this promising bill become law soon.
Congress rejected Sen. Edward Kennedy's amendment to cut funding for the Special Registration program.
National League of Cities Conference
The National League of Cities Congressional City Conference will be held in Washington, D.C., on March 7-11. If your city government has passed a resolution or plans to soon, find out if it is a member of the League and if it is sending someone to represent your city. If the answer is yes, ask your representative to do three things:
- During meetings with Congresspeople on City Lobby Day (Tuesday, March 11), mention your city's concerns about civil liberties which led to the passage of your city's resolution. Deliver copies of the resolution to all Congresspeople visited or their aides.
- Suggest to the League's president, New Haven Mayor DeStefano, or to members of the Finance, Administration and Intergovernmental Relations (FAIR) Steering Committee about having the League consider a resolution at its next meeting.
- Talk to members from other cities about threats to civil liberties and about what cities like yours are doing nationwide to protect their residents' constitutional rights.
Oregon Workshop Inspires Formation of New Committees
by Hope Marston, LCBORDC
The Lane County Bill of Rights Defense Committee (LCBORDC) hosted a statewide workshop/training for Oregon Bill of Rights chapters on February 9. The day-long session included a two hour presentation on the UPA, Homeland Security, and UPA II -- a speakers' training -- and a strategy session with activists from the eight Oregon communities that participated. This marks the beginning of a statewide network of Bill of Rights Defense work in Oregon, possibly leading to a statewide initiative opposing the UPA and other violations of our Constitutional guarantees.
The evening concluded with a public forum. Speakers included Brian Michaels, free speech attorney; Raquel Hecht, immigration attorney; Ibrahim Hamide, speaking about Muslim detentions; Cara List, of the Oregon Library Association; Hope Marston, from the Lane County Bill of Rights Defense Committee; and Dave Fidanque of the Oregon ACLU. The room was filled to capacity, and the LCBORDC plans to host at least two or three more public forums around Lane County, as the group plans to take its campaign to pass an anti-UPA resolution to the Lane County Commission in early April. Meanwhile, activists in 13 Oregon cities are working on city and county resolutions. Speakers from the LCBORDC are traveling throughout the state, presenting information about the UPA, Executive Orders, and UPA II.
Professor Sami al-Arian Arrested
Several news stories have reported the Feb. 20 arrest on terrorism charges of University of South Florida Professor Sami al-Arian, a Palestinian who has lived in the United States since 1975. Attorney General John Ashcraft has claimed that the USA PATRIOT Act made the arrest possible because it removed barriers to introducing information gathered in national security investigations into criminal courts. In a Feb. 21 interview on Democracy Now, Georgetown University Law Professor David Cole indicated that he did not believe that was the case. Cole represented al-Arian's brother-in-law, Nabil Al-Najjar, who was deported last year after spending years in prison. Cole's book with coauthor James X. Dempsey, Terrorism and the Constitution, includes a description of that case and of the use of secret evidence.
The Bill of Rights Defense Committee hopes that the Attorney General's apparent need to use al-Arian's case to prove the efficacy of the USA PATRIOT Act will not deny Professor al-Arian his right to receive a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury, as Amendment VI of the Bill of Rights guarantees, and that he will be confronted with the witnesses against him. This right should protect al-Arian from the use of secret evidence.
Make a Gift in Defense of Civil Liberties
If you would like to support the work of the Bill of Rights Defense Committee, consider making a tax-deductible contribution to our fiscal sponsor, the Greensboro Justice Fund. Write "BORDC" in the memo line. Your purchase of bumper stickers, buttons, booklets, and Bill of Rights get well cards also help us to cover our expenses. Click here for our catalog/order form.
Never doubt that a small group of
thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is
the only thing that ever has.
- Margaret Mead
Editor: Nancy Talanian, Codirector
Bill of Rights Defense Committee
8 Bridge St., Suite A
Northampton, MA 01060
Email: info@bordc.org
Web: www.bordc.org
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