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    ACLU and NLG File Suit to Protect Occupy Boston

    [Via ACLU website]

    Civil rights advocates seek protection for peaceful protest at Occupy Boston

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


     Tuesday, November 15, 2011

    CONTACT:
    Chris Ott, Communications Director, ACLU of Mass., 617-482-3170 x322, cott@aclum.org

    Howard Cooper, Todd & Weld LLP, 617-720-2626

    BOSTON — Civil rights attorneys from the National Lawyers Guild and the American Civil Liberties Union went to court today

    seeking to protect the rights of free speech, assembly, petition, and association for demonstrators at Occupy Boston in Dewey Square, in light of the heavy-handed police crackdowns in recent days on Occupy Wall Street protesters in New York, Portland, Ore., and Oakland, Calif.

    “The Greenway is a public park and traditional open public forum and, as such, is a place where rights of free speech and assembly are paramount,” said Howard Cooper, an attorney from Todd & Weld, who filed the suit as a cooperating attorney with the National Lawyers Guild-Massachusetts Chapter and the ACLU of Massachusetts.

    “It is unreasonable to suddenly and forcibly oust peaceful protestors from streets, sidewalks, and parks that have long been used as places for peaceful expression,” said Cooper.

    The suit, filed in Superior Court, seeks a Declaration from the Court recognizing the right to peaceful protest and assembly under the U.S. Constitution and the Massachusetts Declaration of Rights, as well as an injunction to prevent police from staging another night-time raid, such as the one that began Oct. 10, 2011 and continued into the early morning hours of Oct. 11, when the Boston Police conducted a mass arrest of 141 people in the middle of the night.

    Although Boston police have said that they have no plans “today” to evict the Occupy Boston protesters, Boston Police Department spokesperson Elaine Driscoll told boston.com that, “It’s difficult to say what will happen moving forward, but we will make those decisions on a daily basis.”

    Meanwhile, a BBC report aired on WGBH this morning suggests that the recent crackdowns in other cities may be part of a coordinated effort. Oakland Mayor Jean Quan said that she participated in a conference call with leaders of 18 cities shortly before the latest wave of raids targeting Occupy Wall Street encampments across the country were launched, although she didn’t mention Boston by name.

    “What happened in Boston on the night of October 10th when the police prevented hundreds of peaceful protesters from exercising their constitutional rights could be viewed as an indication of the City’s sentiments,” expressed Urszula Masny-Latos, Executive Director of the NLG, Massachusetts Chapter. “It seems like the Courts declare our rights; however, it is up to the Mayor and the police to decide who can exercise them, when, and how.”

    “The right to peaceable assembly and protest is critical to our democracy,” said Carol Rose, Executive Director of the ACLU of Massachusetts. “We urge the Court to issue a clear statement that, in America, the public streets and parks belong to the people, and the rights to peaceful protest and assembly will be protected.”

    Legal Documents

    Daily Digest for November 12

    Good Morning from Occupy Boston!

    Below please find your daily digest.

    Fact of the Day: Cumulative student loan debt is on fast-track to pass the $1 trillion mark by the end of this year. With outstanding student loan debt doubling over the past five years, it now exceeds total credit card debt in the United States.
    News from other Occupations:  Check out The Guardian’s interactive map of Occupations across the globe, underscoring this is a worldwide movement that has spread wide in far in a very short amount of time

    Occupy Boston – Saturday, November 12, 2011

    Today’s Weather and EventsMostly sunny with highs in the lower 50’s. Really nice occupying weather so you should come on down. Check out our Calendar of Events for today, also posted at the bottom of this email.

    Highlights: Join the March for Health Care Justice Speak Out at 12:00pm and march at 1:00pm — Come discuss Citizens United at an open form at 3:00 p.m., meeting at the OB Library. And don’t forget the General Assembly at 7:00 p.m.!

    Volunteer Opportunities:  

    – Love talking about Occupy Boston? Want to bring more people in to build the movement? Outreach needs all the volunteers it can get, especially ahead of some big events coming up. E-mail if you are interested in more details

    – The Safety Working Group needs more volunteers! We need people familiar with the Occupy Boston community. Come today, 6:30pm in the library or emailInfoTent@OccupyBoston.org
    – Free School University needs more volunteers in order to keep this amazing feature of Occupy Boston up and running. Please see FSU’s volunteer page for more details.

    Other Working Groups seeking volunteers include Media, Outreach, Info Tent, Winterization, Logistics, Library and many, many more; every group is looking for volunteersso find the group that appeals to you and don’t be shy about offering help. Click here for a full list of Working Groups and their contact information. See where you think your strengths lay and where you can be most effective. We are looking for support both on and off-site, so even if you can’t come down there is something to do;  send an email the Info Tent for further assistance

    Donate!
    If you are able to, we are still looking for both material and financial support. Any help you can give is greatly appreciated. For information on how our money is managed, please see our Financial Accountability Working Group page.

    Saturday, November 12
     Project No One Leaves: Anti-Foreclosure Conference
    » 1:00am “Thrive” Movie Screening; Global release
    9:30amFree Health Screening (organized by Health Justice Working Group)
    10:00amGet Warm with Breath and Movement.
    10:45am**Cost of War Series (FSU) – Gold Star Military Family, The Arredondo’s (Camp Alex)
    11:00am Loving Kindness Meditation
    12:00pm**Speakout: Health Care Justice
    12:00pmFaith and Spirituality Working Group meeting
    12:00pm Meeting of the Hippy Drum Circle Working Group
    1:00pm March for Health Care Justice
    1:00pm **Cost of War Series Listening Sessions: Sarah Fuhro, Military Family
    1:30pm **Cost of War Series Listening Sessions: Vietnam Veterans
    2:00pm Winterizing meeting
    2:00pm **Concert- The Doctor’s Fox
    2:00pmCost of War Listening Session: Alice Copeland Brown
    2:30p Cost of War Listening Session: Joyce and Kevin Lucey, Gold Star Families Speak Out
    3:00pmFSU: What is Violence? What is Nonviolence? (Roundtable Discussion)
    3:00pmCost of War Listening Session: Military Family, Wayne Jaquith
    3:30pm Open Discussion on Citizens United
    3:30pm Women’s Caucus
    4:00pmFacilitation Working Group Meeting
    4:00pm**Cost of War Listening Session, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans
    5:00pm Anti-Oppression Working Group meeting
    5:00pm **FSU: The Howard Zinn Memorial Lecture Series, Noel Ignatiev
    6:30p Safety meeting
    7:00pmGeneral Assembly

    Questions or concerns? Please e-mail InfoTent@OccupyBoston.org and we can help you with whatever you need.

    Daily Digest for November 11

    Fact of the Day: In a stunning victory for the environmental justice and occupation movements, the Obama administration has delayed a decision on the Keystone XL pipeline until late 2012/early 2013; effectively killing the project.
    News from other Occupations:  Occupy D.C. held a Super Committee hearing in Freedom Plaza
    Occupy Boston – Friday, November 11th

    Today’s Weather and EventsCloudy with a chance of showers in the morning… Then sunny in the afternoon. Cooler with highs in the lower 50s.

    Check out our Calendar of Events for today, below.

    Highlights: Veterans for Peace Parade and Rally! Join us at 10:00 a.m. on the Common for a march back to Occupy Boston

    Volunteer Opportunities: 

    – Free School University may close due to lack of volunteers to help run the day to day logistics … all work is easy and people are appreciative.  Looking for a few dedicated volunteers.  Come to our meeting on Friday at 4:30 by the library and contact: FSU@lists.OccupyBoston.org

    – The Safety Working Group needs more volunteers! We need people familiar with the Occupy Boston community. Meetings are daily, 6:30pm in the library or emailInfoTent@OccupyBoston.org

    – The Food Tent is seeking a Food Coordinator to help with organization. If you are interested please contact Dan the Bagel Man at 857 272 6743 or email occupyboston.food@gmail.com.

    Other Working Groups seeking volunteers include Media, Outreach, Info Tent, Winterization, Logistics, Library and many, many more; every group is looking for volunteers so find the group that appeals to you and don’t be shy about offering help. Click here for a full list of Working Groups and their contact information. See where you think your strengths lay and where you can be most effective. We are looking for support both on and off-site, so even if you can’t come down there is something to do;  send an email the Info Tent for further assistance

    Donate!
    If you are able to, we are still looking for both material and financial support. Any help you can give is greatly appreciated. For information on how our money is managed, please see our Financial Accountability Working Group page.

    Friday, November 11
     COMMUNITY FOOD DRIVE – FEED THE HOOD
    12:00pm Project No One Leaves: Anti-Foreclosure Conference
    10:00am Veteran’s Day: Veterans for Peace [off-site] Parade and Peace Rally
    11:00am prayers/movement and arty centering! with Laura Evonne Steinman
    12:00pm The Dewey Square Ad Hoc Chorus on Dewey Square Plaza
    2:00pm **OccuPoetry on the Main Stage
    3:00pm Bible study
    4:00pm Direct Action Meeting
    4:00pm **Concert:TBA
    4:00pm Safety meeting
    4:00pm Street Theater Group
    5:00pm Facilitation
    5:00pm **FSU Lecture and Discussion: “Capitalism at a Dead End”
    5:30pmWinterizing meeting
    6:00pm Ocupar El Barrio
    6:00pm **FSU: “Peace and the Quiet” (TENTATIVE – Documentary Film Screenings)
    6:00pm Outreach Meeting
    6:00pm Indigenous Solidarity and Outreach Working Group Meeting
    7:00pm Ideas Working Group Public Discussion
    8:00pm Transparency Meeting
    8:00pm Volunteer Coordination
    9:00pm Campers GA
    11:00pm “Thrive” Movie Screening;


    Questions or concerns? Please e-mail InfoTent@OccupyBoston.org and we can help you with whatever you need.

    Daily Digest for November 9

    Good Morning from Occupy Boston!
    Below please find your daily digest.

    Fact of the Day: The Congressional “Super Committee” says the U.S. is broke and is looking to make cuts to Social Security and Medicare. Meanwhile, according to data from the Federal Reserve, corporations are sitting on $2 trillion in cash reserves that they don’t know what to do with.

    News from other Occupations:  Occupy Denver has elected a leader! In response to the Mayor’s demand the occupation present a single person for him and city officials to negotiate with, Occupy Denver’s General Assembly chose Shelly, a thre-year-old border collie. Noting that Shelby can breathe, bleed and show emotion, she already exhibits more characteristics of a “person” than a private corporation.

    Special Highlight: Just under a year ago reactionary politicians in Ohio passed a harsh anti-union law that was meant to break the back of organized labor. Labor fought back by getting enough signatures to put the issue on the ballot in the next election and let voters decide. Yesterday the votes were in and it was a landslide, as Ohioans overwhelmingly chose to overturn the bill and restore union rights in Ohio.

    Occupy Boston – Wednesday November 9Today’s Weather and Events: Sunny. Highs in the mid 60s. Southeast winds 5 to 10 mph.  Want to enjoy this great weather? Check out our Calendar of Events for today, also posted at the bottom of this email.Highlights: Join the march to stop the Super Committee from taking the axe to social security and medicare. Meet at 270 Tremont (in front of Wang Theater) at 11am

    Volunteer Opportunities:

    – Interested in seeing Occupy Boston stay through the winter? Then join the Winterization Working Group meeting today at 5:30pm, meeting at the Gandhi statue

    – Want to help coordinate volunteer needs in general? The Volunteer Coordination team is meeting Friday morning at 10:0am by the media tent. If you can’t make it, e-mail us and we can talk about how you can help.

    Other Working Groups seeking volunteers include Food, Outreach, Info Tent, Winterization, Logistics, Library and many, many more; every group is looking for volunteers so find the group that appeals to you and don’t be shy about offering help. Click here for a full list of Working Groups and their contact information. See where you think your strengths lay and where you can be most effective. We are looking for support both on and off-site, so even if you can’t come down there is something to do;  send an email the Info Tent for further assistance

    Donate!
    If you are able to, we are still looking for both material and financial support. Any help you can give is greatly appreciated. For information on how our money is managed, please see our Financial Accountability Working Group page.

     

    Wednesday, November 9
    11:00am[Outreach] Rally to Protect Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security with Mass Senior Action – Meet at
    1:00pmNon-Violence Working Group
    1:00pmLivestream Meeting
    1:30pmGet Warm with Breath and Movement
    2:00pm**OccuPoetry on the Main Stage
    3:00pmBible study
    3:00pm FSU Workshop: Your Rights at Work
    4:00pm Direct Action Meeting
    4:00pm ** Comedy: Barry Crimmins
    4:00pmSafety meeting
    4:30pm**Concert:Chadwick Stokes from State Radio/Dispatch
    5:00pm Facilitation
    5:30pm Winterizing meeting
    5:30pm** Ecumenical Communion Servics
    6:00pm FSU Workshop: The Practice of Nonviolence and Civil Disobedience
    6:00pm **FSU: The Howard Zinn Memorial Lecture Series, Elaine Bernard
    7:00pm Media Working Group Meeting
    7:00pm Open Facilitation Workshop
    7:00pm **FSU: Film Screening
    Questions or concerns? Please e-mail InfoTent@OccupyBoston.org and we can help you with whatever you need.

    Today at Dewey: Music and Comedy

    Chad Stokes of the bands Dispatch and State Radio will play Occupy Boston today, Wednesdat Nov. 9 at 5 p.m. on the main stage, following political satirist and comedian Barry Crimmins who will begin at 4 p.m.

    Contact us

    Occupy Boston Media <Media@occupyboston.org> • <Info@occupyboston.org> • @Occupy_Boston