[Onthebarricades] USA: Pro-democracy, human and civil rights protests, Aug-Sept 2008

[global resistance roundup]

* Transport workers oppose drug test crackdown
* Arizona - speed cameras protested
* Oregon, Olympia - medical marijuana activists protest caps
* Texas - faculty protest honour to politician
* Protest over jailing of peace protester
* Allegheny - tasers protested
* Pittsburgh - gun rights group protests arrest at Obama event
* Georgia, Atlanta - rally against Troy Davis execution
* North Dakota - protest for "self-defence rights"
* Alaska - "huge" protest against Sarah Palin
* Pennsylvania - Clarion students protest smoking ban
* New York - Pakistanis protest bogus terror case, torture
* PAKISTAN: US detention of Aafia Siddiqui protested
* West Virginia - coalminers strike over NRA visit
* CANADA/QUEBEC: Montreal - Cuba solidarity protesters target embassy
* Hawaii - protesters demand tourism chief quits
* Lee's Summit, Mo. - protesters want cop fired over corrupt affair
* Celebrities plan Miami Five protest
* UK: Journalists lead rally against US interference in Latin America
* Washington DC: Police checkpoints terrorise locals, spark protest
* GLOBAL: Wave of protests for Miami Five



http://wbz.com/pages/2839982.php?contentType=4&contentId=2634873

Posted: Sunday, 24 August 2008 7:00PM

MBTA workers protest drug testing regulation

Mia Carter

MBTA workers are protesting a new federal regulation requiring that they 
be monitored when giving urine samples for drug tests.

The Department of Transportation guidelines take effect in November and 
mandate the collection of urine from employees who have previously 
tested positive, be observed by another party.

The rule also applies to employees who have submitted past samples that 
appeared to have been tampered with.
Observers are required to be the same gender as the employee who is 
providing the sample.

Transportation officials say they need the rule to combat what they call 
a flourishing industry set up to help people beat the tests.

But Terrence Ward, who heads the MBTA's Concerned Minority Employees 
Group, tells the Globe the procedures violate workers' privacy.






http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2008/08/22/20080822cameraprotest0822ON.html

Speed-camera protesters say 'Honk for privacy'
235 comments by Jane Larson - Aug. 22, 2008 07:34 PM
The Arizona Republic
Waving signs calling for "Cops, Not Cameras" and asking drivers to "Honk 
for Privacy," a grass-roots group called CameraFraud.com gathered Friday 
in Scottsdale to protest the use of photo-enforcement cameras.
About 20 protesters waved anti-camera signs at Scottsdale and Thomas 
roads for about an hour starting at 5 p.m. They whooped whenever 
motorists honked their horns and whenever Scottsdale police vehicles 
cruised by. The intersection has photo-enforcement cameras.
Some drivers waved and gave the group thumbs-up signs.
"We encourage people to get involved and express their disapproval of 
these systems," spokesman D.T. Arneson said. The group's top concern is 
safety, adding that cameras cannot catch drunken drivers or spot stolen 
cars the way police do.
Arneson said the CameraFraud Web site has doubled its traffic daily 
since going live Sunday. Some at Friday's protest said they also heard 
about the event, the group's first, at the Meetup Web site for 
presidential candidate Ron Paul.
Protester Natalie Sharp of Scottsdale said privacy topped her list of 
concerns about the cameras. If drivers don't become aware of the issue, 
the intrusion will escalate, she said.
"I just want people to pay more attention to what's going on, instead of 
getting a ticket and not fighting it," she said.
Arneson said the group hoped that elected officials take up the cause. 
Otherwise, he said the group would press for a ballot proposition to 
determine the fate of photo-enforcement cameras.
A spokesman for American Traffic Solutions Inc., the Scottsdale company 
that operates the city's cameras, said polls indicate most Arizonans 
favor the cameras.
"This is an enhancement to safety," spokesman Josh Weiss said. "These 
cameras are proven to reduce violations, crashes and injuries, and they 
are overwhelmingly popular in Arizona and across the country."
Arneson said the group's efforts started in part because the Arizona 
Department of Public Safety is preparing to add up to 100 fixed and 
mobile speed-enforcement cameras to the state's freeways.






http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008136960_webpot25m.html?syndication=rss

August 25, 2008 at 12:00 AM
E-mail article Print view
Medical pot patients protest caps on supply
Medical marijuana activists plan to pack a state Health Department 
hearing to protest limits on how much pot a patient can have.
By The Associated Press

OLYMPIA — Medical marijuana activists plan to pack a state Health 
Department hearing to protest limits on how much pot a patient can have.
They're upset with the state's proposed caps, which will define the 
amount of marijuana and plants that are considered a legal two-month 
supply under state law.
State officials once wanted to propose 35 ounces and 100 square feet of 
plant-growing area. But Gov. Christine Gregoire thought that was too 
high, and ordered the Health Department to meet with law enforcement.
Afterward, the proposed limits dropped to 24 ounces of usable pot, along 
with six mature plants and 18 immature plants. Those are the same limits 
used in Oregon.





http://www.kvue.com/news/local/stories/082808kvuecharliewilson-ls.1de670c0.html

Plan to honor Charlie Wilson sparks faculty protest
07:08 AM CDT on Thursday, August 28, 2008
Associated Press
Faculty members at the University of Texas are objecting to plans to 
create an endowed chair in Pakistan studies in honor of former U.S. Rep. 
Charlie Wilson, the colorful Democrat who was portrayed in last year's 
movie "Charlie Wilson's War."
Wilson represented an East Texas district in the U.S. Congress from 1973 
to 1996.
He played a pivotal role in the funding of Islamic rebel fighters who 
opposed Soviet-occupied Afghanistan. His efforts were portrayed in the 
film.
In a letter to Randy Diehl, dean of UT's College of Liberal Arts, 12 
professors wrote that establishing a chair in Wilson's name would 
represent a "romanticized vision" of the congressman's legacy as well as 
the history of the conflict.
UT officials have said they want to raise $500,000 to match an identical 
amount pledged by the T.L.L. Temple Foundation in Lufkin, Wilson's 
hometown.








http://www.wcpo.com/news/local/story/Rally-To-Support-Jailed-Iraq-War-Protestor/ejtPyV7m7k6QBrIDKsFhow.cspx

Rally To Support Jailed Iraq War Protestor

Last Update: 9/06/2008 1:54 am
A group of Iraq war protestors stood outside the Hamilton County Justice 
Center Friday night, demanding the release of a local woman from jail.
"No justice, no peace! We want Barb released!," protestors chanted.
Barbara Wolf was one of seven people arrested nearly two years ago for 
protesting inside the local office of Congressman Steve Chabot.
She was charged with criminal trespass, and last week when she didn't 
agree to do community service, the judge sent Wolf to jail.
A crowd opposed to the war gathered Friday night, demanding that she be 
released.
"Barb's point is that this is an unjust sentence," said Kristen Barker, 
an anti-war protestor.
"Those who are trying to end this war, are not the people that should be 
put in jail," said Barker. "Those who are sitting peacefully in an 
office trying to get our congressman to do the right thing and stop the 
dying – we should not be in jail."
Wolf is scheduled to get out of jail at 6 p.m. Monday.







http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/breaking/s_586182.html?source=rss&feed=7

Protesters urge halt of Tasers, study by experts
By Bobby Kerlik
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Wednesday, September 3, 2008

A dozen protesters Tuesday called for a moratorium on Tasers in 
Allegheny County and asked District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. to 
quickly assemble a team of medical and law enforcement experts to 
publicly examine the weapon's use by police.
"We don't want some blue-ribbon committee. We want people to take a 
serious look at Tasers," said Celeste Taylor, a council member of the 
Black & White Reunion, a community group dedicated to ending racism.
"We want to see consistent use of force by the police. I'm particularly 
concerned about people with pre-existing physical and mental conditions 
who are tasered. More discretion is needed."
Zappala said last week that he plans to assemble a working group in the 
wake of Andre Thomas' death. Thomas, 37, died Aug. 5 about an hour after 
Swissvale police officers tasered him.
Police were called after neighbors complained that Thomas was running 
through his neighborhood, knocking on doors and screaming that people 
were trying to kill him.
Zappala's spokesman Mike Manko said yesterday that the working group 
still is being put together.
Manko said the district attorney "believes that if his investigation 
into the death of Mr. Thomas and plan to establish the working group 
helps increase dialogue within the community and helps to provide a 
forum for those who are concerned about this issue, then that is 
productive for everyone."
Zappala did not attend the protest, which occurred outside of his office 
in the county courthouse, Downtown.
Two men shared stories alleging they were unjustly tasered by police.
Elizabeth Pittinger, executive director of the city's Citizen Police 
Review Board, attended the gathering and said that police statewide 
might want to re-examine Taser use and training.
"I think any time the public is concerned about police tactics, they 
have an obligation to step back and look at it," Pittinger said. "I 
think police have to look at if the officers are trained enough or are 
Tasers just the easiest to use?"






http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/breaking/s_585890.html?source=rss&feed=7

Gun rights group protests arrest at Obama event
By The Tribune-Review
Monday, September 1, 2008

A gun rights group is calling on Gov. Ed Rendell to "order a halt to 
unlawful police-state tactics at presidential campaign events" after a 
Beaver County man was arrested Friday for openly carrying a gun near 
where Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama later made an appearance.
The group, OpenCarry.org, accused state police of suspending the right 
to bear arms in Beaver by arresting John Noble, 50, of Industry. State 
police said Noble would be charged with disorderly conduct for carrying 
a loaded, holstered and exposed 9 mm semiautomatic because he breached a 
secured perimeter of a presidential candidate rally, creating alarm and 
causing a breakdown in security.
OpenCarry.org says Noble was not at the Obama event, did not attempt to 
enter the event area and broke no law.

A representative of Rendell's office could not be reached for comment 
Sunday.






http://www.ajc.com/services/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2008/09/19/davis_execution_protest.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=13

ATLANTA
Protests held downtown over Troy Davis execution
Lethal injection scheduled for Tuesday; 7 witnesses have recanted in 
murder case
Associated Press
Friday, September 19, 2008
More than 250 anti-death penalty protesters marched Thursday in downtown 
Atlanta to call for a new hearing for Troy Anthony Davis, who is 
condemned to die next week for the murder of a Savannah police officer 
19 years ago. The group also held a prayer vigil at Ebenezer Baptist Church.

Steve Woodall (right) vows to hold a fast and remain in vigil downtown 
to protest what he believes is the wrongful execution of convicted 
police killer Troy Davis. Woodall prays with the Rev. Marvin Morgan 
early Friday morning.

In addition, one protestor has taken up a vigil in a chair at Marietta 
and Fairlie streets to fast and protest the planned execution.
Steve Woodall said he will remain at the chair until Davis is pardoned, 
his sentence is commuted, or until Tuesday, when Davis is due to be killed.
“I’m not just protesting the death penalty, I’m protesting because he’s 
an innocent man,” Woodall said, wearing a blue and white T-shirt that 
reads “I am Troy Davis.”
On Thursday night, demonstrators carried signs proclaiming “Innocence 
Matters” as they walked 12 blocks from Woodruff Park in the heart of 
downtown Atlanta to new Ebenezer Baptist Church.
The church is across Auburn Avenue from the historic sanctuary where the 
Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. preached. Ebenezer’s pastor, the Rev. 
Raphael Warnock, said it was appropriate the march should end there 
because King opposed the death penalty.
“This is the house of God, but it is also the house of a great servant 
of God whose voice echoes from the crypt,” Warnock said to the crowd, 
swollen to about 350 by the time they assembled in the church.
Supporters of Davis, who is scheduled for lethal injection Tuesday, say 
he should get a new trial because several witnesses who testified 
against him recanted or contradicted their statements. The Georgia Board 
of Pardons and Paroles denied Davis clemency last Friday but did not 
give a reason.
“We’re quite shocked that the board turned him down,” said Peggy 
Hendrix, an anti-death penalty activist from Atlanta who took part in 
the march organized by Amnesty International and the NAACP. “We’re 
trying to get them to reconsider.”
The case has taken on racial overtones because Davis is black. The slain 
officer, Mark McPhail, was white.
Edward Lee, an Asian-American marcher, said it was a matter of social 
justice.
“Any of us could be in the same situation, with the wrong skin color or 
whatever,” Lee said.
Eleanor Hunter of Atlanta noted that the United States is one of the few 
nations with capital punishment.
“We should be following the universal human rights proscribed by the 
United Nations,” Hunter said. “That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be 
punished, but each of us has the right to live.”
The Rev. Timothy McDonald, who spoke at the park to begin the march, 
noted that all types of people were present, “old, young, Asian, black 
and white.”
“This is what justice looks like,” McDonald proclaimed as he exhorted 
the throng to chant “justice matters” and “innocence matters” along the way.
At the church, Davis’ older sister, Martina Davis Correia, said she was 
gratified by the turnout.
“Everyone is here,” Correia told a reporter. “No matter what happens on 
the 23rd we win. People are getting involved. They’re not standing for 
executing people for no reason.”
She said she would not give up even if her brother is put to death on 
Tuesday. Rejection of his appeals so far has been on procedural grounds, 
she said.
“I’m taking this fight to the White House,” Correia said. “This is about 
a system of injustice that we have to expose.”
— AJC staff writer Marcus Garner contributed to this article.





http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/atlanta/stories/2008/09/19/davis_execution_protest.html

Protests held downtown over Troy Davis execution
Lethal injection scheduled for Tuesday; 7 witnesses have recanted in 
murder case
Associated Press
Friday, September 19, 2008
More than 250 anti-death penalty protesters marched Thursday in downtown 
Atlanta to call for a new hearing for Troy Anthony Davis, who is 
condemned to die next week for the murder of a Savannah police officer 
19 years ago. The group also held a prayer vigil at Ebenezer Baptist Church.





http://sayanythingblog.com/entry/university_of_north_dakota_students_protesting_removal_of_self_defense_righ/

September 17, 2008
University Of North Dakota Students Protesting Removal Of Self Defense 
Rights
By Rob on September 17, 2008 at 08:48 am
19 Comments

In the wake of the massacre at Virgina Tech the University of North 
Dakota, understandably, instituted a new security policy that will allow 
students and faculty to be notified of an attack on campus through text 
messages, emails and phone calls. But groups of students on campus are 
saying that it isn’t enough.
Here’s a television news report of the situation:
More from the Grand Forks Herald:
...Jae Baker, a senior majoring in accounting who started Females For 
Firearms on campus last October, criticized the new system Tuesday 
during a day she publicized her student group.
“I feel it’s another attempt at an illusion of proper security,” Baker 
said, citing the April 2007 case, in which a mad student shot to death 
32 students on campus, then killed himself. Her group, assisted by Young 
Americans For Freedom, drew 32 chalk outlines on sidewalks across campus 
Tuesday to publicize the need for allowing students to bear arms.
The NotiFind system appears that it would be too little, too late, if 
the worst happened, Baker said. She has protested UND’s policy of 
banning all weapons on campus as a violation of her own right to defend 
herself, as well as to carry a gun.
“I can’t even have pepper spray in my purse,” she said. She knows of 
women who have been assaulted near campus and thinks UND needs to allow 
students, faculty and staff to carry weapons if they choose.
I think Baker and her group have a point. A big reason why schools and 
universities are targets for crazies who want to go on a shooting spree 
is that they’re relatively unprotected. It is impractical to have armed 
security guards cover every inch of massive university and school 
grounds at all hours of the day, so shooters know that if they time 
their attacks correctly they can rack up a big body count among a group 
of citizens they know won’t be able to defend themselves.
If you allow people their right to bear arms on campus that campus 
because less of an attractive target for a crazy. And if said crazy does 
decide to try and shoot up the campus, he/she isn’t likely to be as 
successful.
But aside from common sense, I think some of UND’s anti-gun policies may 
actually be unconstitutional:
The new weapons checking policy, as of July, is extending the rule that 
no weapons are allowed to be kept in academic areas, offices and 
vehicles to include student apartments, Czapiewski said. His department 
has a climate-controlled storage space, with 24-hour access to students, 
staff and faculty, where shotguns, rifles, handguns, bows and knives can 
be kept. Mostly, it’s students who are hunters who use the storage 
space, he said, and the response has been positive, he said.
Students can’t keep firearms in their apartments? Granted, the 
apartments are on campus, but the campus itself is owned by the public. 
And these apartments are being rented to students as their residences. 
By denying students the right to keep arms in their apartments UND is 
denying them the right to keep arms in their homes.
And I don’t think you can get more unconstitutional than that.
After the landmark Washington DC vs. Heller case a wise gun-rights 
proponent said that while the case was important, additional lawsuits 
would be required to ensure that the point was driven home across the 
nation. I think UND, with its ban on guns in student apartments, is ripe 
for that.






http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/nationworld/2008178168_palinprotest14.html?syndication=rss

Anchorage protest draws a crowd
At least 500 protesters turned out Saturday for a rally against Gov. 
Sarah Palin's candidacy for vice president. At least 100 Palin 
supporters were on the other side of the street, showing support for the 
governor.
By McClatchy Newspapers

ERIK HILL / MCCLATCHY NEWSPAPERS
Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin signs autographs 
Saturday during a farewell rally at the new Dena'ina Civic & Convention 
Center in Anchorage. An estimated 1,500 people attended the event.
ANCHORAGE — At least 500 protesters turned out Saturday for a rally 
against Gov. Sarah Palin's candidacy for vice president.
At least 100 Palin supporters were on the other side of the street, 
showing support for the governor.
The protest, outside a public library, came hours after the governor 
held a morning rally attended by as many as 1,500 supporters in downtown 
Anchorage, then flew to Nevada to resume campaigning.
The public demonstration was the first against Palin since she accepted 
Republican presidential nominee John McCain's offer Aug. 29.
Protesters said they were surprised at the size of the crowd, crediting 
e-mails promoting the event.
At least a half-dozen police cars were at the scene, but no 
confrontations or traffic problems were reported.






http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/politics&id=6419029

Alaska protesters: Palin failed pledge
Sunday, September 28, 2008

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KABC) -- Several hundred voters in Alaska rallied 
against Governor Sarah Palin this weekend.
An anti-Palin protest was organized by a group called Alaskans for 
Truth. The group says it's upset that the Republican governor is 
fighting back in the investigation of her decision to fire the state's 
public safety commissioner.
Participants say Palin failed to honor her pledge of transparent 
government.







http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/node/36004

"Alaska Women Reject Palin" protest is huge!
Submitted by prissears on Mon, 2008-09-15 00:06.
• Activism
 From the Mudflats Blog we have a report on Sunday's rally that took 
place in response to the "Welcome home" rally in Anchorage.
"The rally was organized by a small group of women, talking over coffee. 
It made me wonder what other things have started with small groups of 
women talking over coffee. It’s probably an impressive list. These women 
hatched the plan, printed up flyers, posted them around town, and sent 
notices to local media outlets. One of those media outlets was KBYR 
radio, home of Eddie Burke, a long-time uber-conservative Anchorage talk 
show host. Turns out that Eddie Burke not only announced the rally, but 
called the people who planned to attend the rally “a bunch of socialist 
baby-killing maggots”, and read the home phone numbers of the organizers 
aloud over the air, urging listeners to call and tell them what they 
thought. The women, of course, received many nasty, harassing and 
threatening messages."
"Never, have I seen anything like it in my 17 and a half years living in 
Anchorage. The organizers had someone walk the rally with a counter, and 
they clicked off well over 1400 people (not including the 90 
counter-demonstrators). This was the biggest political rally ever, in 
the history of the state. I was absolutely stunned. The second most 
amazing thing is how many people honked and gave the thumbs up as they 
drove by. And even those that didn’t honk looked wide-eyed and 
awe-struck at the huge crowd that was growing by the minute. This just 
doesn’t happen here.
Then, the infamous Eddie Burke showed up. He tried to talk to the media, 
and was instantly surrounded by a group of 20 people who started 
shouting O-BA-MA so loud he couldn’t be heard. Then passing cars started 
honking in a rhythmic pattern of 3, like the Obama chant, while the 
crowd cheered, hooted and waved their signs high.
So, if you’ve been doing the math… Yes. The Alaska Women Reject Palin 
rally was significantly bigger than Palin’s rally that got all the 
national media coverage! So take heart, sit back, and enjoy the photo 
gallery. Feel free to spread the pictures around (links are appreciated) 
to anyone who needs to know that Sarah Palin most definitely does not 
speak for all Alaskans. The citizens of Alaska, who know her best, have 
things to say."
http://mudflats.wordpress.com/2008/09/14/alaska-women-reject-palin-rally-is-huge/
Visit the blog for more reporting, and video and many pictures!







http://www.mcclatchydc.com/251/story/53183.html

• Sunday, September 28, 2008

Hundreds of Alaskans rally to protest Palin on 'troopergate'
By Kyle Hopkins | Anchorage Daily News
ANCHORAGE — A protest rally blasting Gov. Sarah Palin's handling of the 
state's so-called troopergate investigation -- and calling for the 
attorney general to resign -- drew 1,000 or more people in Anchorage on 
Saturday.
Protesters chanted "Recall Palin!" as organizers told the crowd to push 
state legislators to keep after their investigation into the governor's 
firing of Public Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan.
The investigator hired by the Legislature is scheduled to present his 
report on Oct. 10.
"This report needs to be released. Not just for us ... it needs to be 
released for all those people in the Lower 48 who are going to make a 
decision on Nov. 4," Democratic blogger Linda Kellen Biegel told 
hundreds of protesters.
Earlier, hundreds of people lined a nearby street, waving signs that 
said "Steady on her heels, wobbly on her words" and "Tina Fey would do a 
better job" at passing cars. A group calling itself Alaskans for Truth 
organized the event, which at times resembled a Barack Obama campaign rally.
Anchorage singer-songwriter Libby Roderick led the crowd in a chorus of 
"We're gonna keep on moving forward" and "Stand tall for Obama," while 
Obama volunteers signed up supporters under a nearby tent.
Next to the Obama fliers sat petitions calling for Attorney General 
Talis Colberg to be removed from his job.
On July 28, the Legislative Council -- a bipartisan group of 12 state 
lawmakers -- voted to launch an abuse-of-power investigation into 
Palin's firing of Monegan.
Palin initially said she'd cooperate with the investigation. 
Presidential candidate Sen. John McCain announced Palin as his running 
mate Aug. 29, and the McCain camp has argued that the investigation 
became a partisan witchhunt spurred by Democrats.
Colberg is suing to quash the Legislature's subpoenas of Palin aides in 
what's become a turf battle between the state's executive and 
legislative branches of government.
Nicole McCullough came to the rally with her grand-niece and 
grand-nephew -- twins born the day before Palin's youngest son, Trig. 
McCullough wore a pitbull mask with large red lips, a reference to a 
Palin's joke about hockey moms at the Republican National Convention.
A Hillary Clinton supporter earlier in the election, McCullough called 
Palin "a female Dan Quayle" and carried a sign that read: "Gov. Pitbull, 
call off your McCain dogs.
It's a reference to the McCain spokespeople and attorneys, including the 
self-described "Truth Squad" that's been defending the governor in 
regular Anchorage press conferences.
"She's had a lot of outside lawyers coming into the state ... and I 
think they're just being in the way of our legislative process," 
McCullough said.









http://www.tobacco.org/news/271205.html

Clarion students protest state university smoking ban
Jump to full article: The Derrick (Oil City, PA), 2008-09-16
Author: From staff and wire reports

Intro:
The move to completely smoke-free campuses is apparently unprecedented 
among state-funded Pennsylvania universities, but the American Lung 
Association said more than 130 colleges and universities across the 
country have such policies.
Penn State, a public university that is not part of the state system, 
bans smoking inside buildings and university-owned vehicles and within a 
certain distance of building entrances, but allows smoking elsewhere at 
its flagship University Park campus in State College, a spokeswoman said.
Students who feel the policy is too extreme have organized peaceful 
protests of smokers and sympathetic nonsmokers on at least three of the 
14 campuses, including Clarion, and there is talk of a coordinated 
statewide demonstration later this week.
At Clarion's Gemmell Student Center, about 60 students gathered outside 
around lunchtime Monday, then marched to the grounds of the campus 
library, where they lit up, said Steve Dugan, a 20-year-old freshman 
from Pittsburgh who participated in the protest.






http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08259/912373-100.stm?cmpid=latest.xml

Clarion University students light up to protest ban
Monday, September 15, 2008
By Bill Schackner, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
CLARION, Pa. -- About 50 Clarion University of Pennsylvania students 
protested a new ban on smoking on state-owned campuses today, calling 
the prohibition that forbids lighting up even outdoors unfair and 
unenforceable.
Students rallied for an hour outside the Gemmell student union, then 
marched to the campus library with a pair of campus police officers in tow.
Many of the protestors lit up in a red-brick plaza outside Gemmell, 
openly defying the new policy across the 14 schools in the State System 
of Higher Education.
University officials handed them yellow cards warning them that they 
risk fines or disciplinary action. Some of the protesters responded by 
putting tobacco on the cards, rolling them up and lighting them so they 
could be smoked.
Some pointedly noted that the title of the state's new smoking ban is 
the Clean Indoor Air Act.
"I'm standing outside. I should have the right to smoke outside," said 
Jon DiSalvo, 23, a sophomore computer science major from Vandergrift.
State system officials say their new policy represents their reading of 
the new state anti-smoking law that took effect Thursday.
Other Western Pennsylvania campuses affected by the ban are Slippery 
Rock, California, Edinboro and Indiana.






http://www.workers.org/2008/us/siddiqui_0918/

Pakistani imprisoned in U.S.
Protesters demand: ‘Free Aafia Siddiqui!’
By Heather Cottin
Published Sep 11, 2008 9:22 PM
U.S. troops in Afghanistan shot Dr. Aafia Siddiqui and took her into 
custody in July. She lies in solitary confinement in the Manhattan 
Detention Center, with an open scar from her sternum to her lower 
abdomen. She has not seen her lawyer, Elizabeth Fink, because if she 
leaves her cell she faces an excruciating strip search.
New York’s Pakistani community protests
treatment of jailed Dr. Aafia Siddiqui.
WW photo: Heather Cottin
Aafia Siddiqui is a 36-year-old Pakistani national who is a graduate of 
MIT and holds a Ph.D. in neuroscience from Brandeis University. On a 
visit home to Karachi in 2003, she was disappeared along with her three 
children. Her family believes the U.S. government captured, tortured and 
incarcerated her.
The U.S. government claims Siddiqui is an Al Qaeda terrorist. Federal 
officials deny knowledge of her whereabouts for the last five years. But 
on July 17, U.S. troops arrested her outside the governor’s office in 
Afghanistan’s Ghazni province after police searched her handbag and 
allegedly found documents on making explosives as well as descriptions 
of New York City landmarks. This story is at odds with the one the 
Afghan police tell. According to the Afghan officials, Siddiqui was 
arrested with maps of Ghazni, a city in central Afghanistan, including 
one of the governor’s house.
When U.S. troops requested Siddiqui be handed over to them, Afghan 
police refused, so U.S. soldiers disarmed them. The U.S. troops, 
“thinking that she had explosives and would attack them as a suicide 
bomber, shot her and arrested her.” The U.S. troops claimed she somehow 
managed to grab an M-4 rifle in a police station and shot at them. 
(Reuters, Aug. 14)
Human rights groups said they believe Dr. Siddiqui had been secretly 
detained since 2003, much of the time in U.S. custody at the Bagram Air 
Base in Afghanistan. Dr. Siddiqui’s 12-year-old son is still in prison 
in Afghanistan. No one knows where her two youngest children are.
“We believe Aafia has been in custody ever since she disappeared,” said 
one of her lawyers, Elaine Whitfield Sharp. (New York Times, Aug. 5)
In Pakistan and the U.S., scores of protesters have condemned the 
detention and torture of Siddiqui and demanded her release. If there was 
to be a trial, Pakistanis claim that, “She should have faced a court of 
law here in her own country.” (Daily Times, Pakistan, Aug. 11)
Pakistan has been a client state of the U.S. for decades. Ex-dictator 
Musharraf allowed the U.S. and NATO to bomb civilians in its northern 
provinces, along with permitting the arrest, disappearance and detention 
of thousands of Pakistanis. Many Pakistanis are enraged over the U.S. 
claims of extraterritorial jurisdictions, which violate international laws.
After Dr. Siddiqui was shot, she was flown to the U.S. in the custody of 
FBI agents, in agony and confused. Her lawyer, Elizabeth Fink, explained 
at a trial on Sept. 4 in Manhattan that Dr. Siddiqui could not appear 
for trial because the strip search she must undergo each time she leaves 
her cell is physically unbearable. When Fink last saw her, on Aug. 11, 
Dr. Siddiqui was disoriented and begged Fink to send food she was given 
to her son in his prison in Afghanistan.
Hundreds came to the trial on Sept. 4 and gathered afterward to protest 
the unjust treatment of Dr. Siddiqui. Chanting, “Free, Free Aafia 
Siddiqui!” Pakistani, African-American and north American speakers 
called for an end to CIA torture prisons in Pakistan, Iraq, Afghanistan, 
Guantánamo in Cuba, and Somalia. They denounced the policies of the U.S. 
that have placed this young mother literally in the crosshairs of U.S. 
imperialism.
________________________________________
Articles copyright 1995-2009 Workers World. Verbatim copying and 
distribution of this entire article is permitted in any medium without 
royalty provided this notice is preserved.








http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=132832

Protesters demand early release of Dr Aafia Siddiqui Saturday, August 
30, 2008
Noor Aftab

Islamabad: Hundreds of protesters here on Friday demanded immediate 
release of Dr. Aafia Siddiqui and her children from the US custody and 
action against those responsible for her agony in line with the 
teachings of Islam.

The demand to this effect was made during a protest demonstration held 
at Markaz G-9 under the auspices of Hizbul Tahreer. A large number of 
protesters, holding placards and banners, marched on the roads of Markaz 
G-9 and staged a sit-in in the main market area.

Addressing the protesters, the speakers said Pakistan should withdraw 
from the war on terror, alleging that it was actually a war against 
Islam. They said that the war on terror was a war of the US and its 
objectives were occupation of Muslim lands and resources.

Later, the protesters staged a sit-in at Markaz G-9 and chanted slogans 
against the arrest of Dr. Afia Siddiqui and her children.






http://crooksandliars.com/2008/10/01/wv-coalminers-shut-down-mine-in-protest-over-anti-obama-nra-visit/

WV Coalminers Shut Down Mine In Protest Over Anti-Obama NRA Visit
By Logan Murphy Tuesday Sep 30, 2008 6:00pm
WBOY:
Coal production at a mine in Monongalia County came to a halt today when 
every union miner stayed home, as part of a political protest.
It was an idle day Monday at the Blacksville #2 Mine.
More than 440 workers who are members of the United Mine Workers of 
America took what's called a Memorial Day instead of going to work.
Union officials say they took the day to protest after a film crew from 
the National Rifle Association showed up at the Consol mine last week to 
interview union workers.
They say the crew tried to get union coal miners to speak out against 
Barack Obama. Read on...
The NRA didn't just show up at the coal mine, this was apparently an 
unprecedented move by mine management, who allowed them in and supported 
the manipulation and exploitation of their employees. Consol just 
learned a big lesson - don't f*#k with your union workers.
"Consol doesn't let anybody on their property - never," said Safety 
Committee Member Mark Dorsey, "And for them to let the NRA come on the 
property and solicit our membership was totally uncalled for. We made 
our endorsement to our political process and we didn't bother them and 
they shouldn't be harassing our membership over this."









http://www.mathaba.net/rss/?x=604988

Quebec Solidarity Organization Announces Protest Action in Montreal
Posted: 2008/09/04
From: MNN

The Table de Concertation de Solidarite Quebec-Cuba will picket in front 
of the US consulate, in Montreal on September 12 and 13.

HAVANA, Cuba (acn) -- The Table de Concertation de Solidarité 
Québec-Cuba and its Fabio Di Celmo Committee for the Release of the five 
Cuban antiterrorists held in US jails will stage a picket line in front 
of the US consulate, in Montreal next September 12 and 13, in the 
context of the Five's 10th year of unfair imprisonment.

The announcement was made by Fabio Di Celmo Committee member Arnold 
August as he read a message of greetings-- of which ACN received a 
copy--from the Table de Concertation de Solidarité Québec-Cuba to the 
4th Biennial Convention of the Canadian Network on Cuba (CNC), recently 
held in Toronto, Canada.

In his announcement, August said that the 4th Annual Montreal-Cuba 
Friendship Day takes place next September 6, and he invited CNC members 
to send a delegation to the event.

"For us all, Cuba is an example for the peoples of the world. An 
inspiration for us all is the Cuban people's courageous and unrelenting 
resistance to all attempts since 1959 by the US administrations to turn 
the clock back and reverse history so that Cuba once again becomes a 
colony of the US," the message read.

The message also highlighted common work between the CNC and the 
Quebecois organization, which included joint sponsoring of the Breaking 
the Silence Solidarity Conference for the Cuban Five, held last November 
in Toronto.

"The Table initiated the signing of 56 parliamentarian deputies in 
favour of the liberation of the Five, and the CNC then made its 
contribution. There is also the post-card campaign in favour of family 
visiting rights for the Cuban Five, one in English in Canada and another 
in French for Quebec as well as in many other languages from other 
countries," explained the message read by Arnold at the event and it 
concluded that " we also have to our joint credit the common work 
against the blockade with synchronized border crossings that continue 
year after year with Pastors for Peace, letter campaigns and responses 
to the mainstream media disinformation, work with Parliamentarians on 
Cuban issues and the list goes on."

The CNC Convention was attended the vice-president of the Cuban 
Friendship Institute Basilio Gutierrez; Cuban ambassador to Canada 
Teresa Vicente and the General Consul of Cuba in Toronto, Laureano Cardoso.




http://www.khon2.com/news/local/29852384.html

Protestors Demand Johnson Be Removed
By Andrew Pereira
Story Updated: Sep 27, 2008 at 6:53 PM HST

Carrying signs that read “enough already, just quit” and chanting “Rex 
Johnson has to go,” protestors who are demanding the head of the Hawaii 
Tourism Authority be fired marched down the heart of Waikiki Saturday 
afternoon.
HTA President and CEO Rex Johnson has been the focus of civil rights 
groups once it was revealed he received pornographic material on his 
state computer and forwarded sexist and racist e-mails to a group of 
friends.
“It's unacceptable to have Rex Johnson still be the CEO of the Hawaii 
Tourism Authority with the type of e-mails that he read from his friends 
and forwarded it onto others," said Daphne Barbee-Wooten, a civil rights 
attorney who participated in the march.
Alphonso Braggs, president of the Honolulu chapter of the NAACP which 
organized Saturday’s protest, said Johnson can no longer be an effective 
leader of the HTA.
“The economy is almost tanked out, we're looking at a $900 million 
deficit and unemployment is on the rise again,” said Braggs. “We cannot 
afford to have this negative cloud hanging over us.”
Johnson has already apologized for the content of the e-mails and issued 
another statement on Saturday.
“Forwarding offensive e-mails was a lack of judgment on my part and a 
terrible mistake,” Johnson wrote. “While it is not a reflection of my 
character or beliefs, I understand the seriousness of my actions. I am 
truly sorry for offending anyone as this was not my intent.”
In the statement Johnson said that he and the HTA board had already 
reached a resolution over the matter, a reference to Johnson’s earlier 
punishment after the state auditor found pornographic material in his 
e-mail account.
As a result, the HTA board cut Johnson’s $240,000 salary to $200,000 but 
voted to keep him as president and CEO.
The fact that Johnson forwarded racist and sexist e-mails was only 
reveled after the board’s initial reprimand.
“Given these new revelations,” said Braggs, “it's just inconceivable to 
anyone that he would still be permitted to stay. It is my absolute wish 
and hope that the board will relieve him of all of his duties.
Andrew may be reached at apereira at khon2.com or ph. 591-4263.






http://www.kctv5.com/news/17560848/detail.html?rss=kan&psp=news#-

Protesters Want Lee's Summit To Fire Officer
Man Freed After 5 Years In Prison Among Protesters
POSTED: 6:28 pm CDT September 25, 2008
UPDATED: 10:33 am CDT September 26, 2008

LEE'S SUMMIT, Mo. -- Protesters walked for three hours Thursday outside 
Lee's Summit City Hall, pleading with city officials to fire a police 
officer.
The protesters said they no longer trusted the officer, Richard 
McKinley, who was accused of having an affair with the wife of a man 
while the man was on trial, accused of sexually molesting the couple's 
daughter.
McKinley and Ted White's ex-wife, Tina, have been married for years and 
have said their relationship started after the allegations were made, 
not before.
Despite their denials of wrongdoing, White recently won a $16 million 
civil lawsuit against the city of Lee's Summit. Jurors said they 
believed White spent five years in prison for a crime he didn't commit.

Thursday night's protest was a peaceful one, but the people involved in 
it said they wouldn't rest until McKinley was fired.
The mayor of Lee's Summit said it was a frustrating issue, and while she 
understood how the people protesting felt, she said no decision would be 
made until after an internal investigation was complete.
White himself was among the protesters, and while he no longer lives in 
Lee's Summit, he said he would not be finished with Lee's Summit until 
McKinley was fired.







http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/sep/29/usa.cuba

Celebrities plan protest against detention of Miami Five
The men were sentenced in 2001 for allegedly acting as agents for the 
Cuban government
• Ed Pilkington in New York
• guardian.co.uk, Monday 29 September 2008 18.09 BST
• Article history
Nine Nobel Laureates, including the South African campaigner Desmond 
Tutu and the German novelist Gunter Grass, join forces tomorrow with 
more than 100 celebrities from the arts, law and media to protest the 
on-going detention by the US government of five Cubans imprisoned for 
allegedly spying on behalf of the Cuban government.
The so-called Miami Five were sentenced in 2001 to prison terms of 
between 15 and 25 years for allegedly acting as Cuban agents within the 
exile community in Miami.
The men and their supporters have consistently protested that they had 
come to the US to infiltrate and disrupt right-wing exile groups 
perpetrating acts of terrorism within Cuba.
To mark the 10th anniversary of the arrests of Gerardo Hernandez 
Nordelo, Ramon Labanino, Antonio Guerrero, Fernando Gonzalez and Rene 
Gonzalez, full-page adverts are being taken out in the Guardian and the 
Independent tomorrow.
They claim that the men were unjustly jailed, and protest against the 
refusal to allow the wives of two of the prisoners to visit them from 
Cuba for up to 10 years.
Signatories to the adverts include the designers Vivienne Westwood and 
Jasper Conran, artist Howard Hodgkin, writers Iain Banks and Harold 
Pinter and actors Julie Christie and Susannah York.
The case of the Miami Five has attracted the attention of international 
human rights groups. Amnesty International has repeatedly raised the 
issue with the US government, arguing the refusal to permit spousal 
visits is unnecessarily punitive.
The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has also found that the US 
failed to give the men a fair trial.







http://www.ukwatch.net/article/london_protesters_demand_an_end_to_us_coups

London Protesters Demand an End to US Coups
September 23rd, 2008
By Paul Haste Charley Allan
Scores of solidarity campaigners picketed the US embassy in London on 
Wednesday night before a huge rally at the National Union of Journalists 
head office to demand an end to US interference in Latin America.
Responding to ongoing coup attempts in Bolivia and Venezuela, NUJ 
general secretary Jeremy Dear said that it was ironic that he was 
protesting outside the US embassy when its government had nationalised 
more of its economy in the last few days than Venezuelan President Hugo 
Chavez had in the last decade.
“The US is standing up for privilege, for the interest of the few 
against the interest of the many and will go to any length to achieve 
it,” he stormed.
“It will go to the lengths that it did in Chile and will drown the 
revolution in blood if it gets the opportunity,” referring to the 
CIA-orchestrated coup against Salvadore Allende 35 years ago.
“But there is one big difference – we are prepared, we have learned the 
lessons and we are already organised.”
The 100-strong crowd chanted “No More Coups” and waved colourful 
solidarity banners as embassy workers left for the day.
Dozens of people made speeches in English and Spanish, with some making 
the point that, in the dying days of US President Bush’s regime, many 
people thought that he would attack Iran – yet it was clear that Latin 
America was the real target.
Loud cheers went up whenever speakers brought up the expulsion the US 
ambassador in Bolivia because of his links to coup-plotters and 
Venezuela doing the same in solidarity, with cries of “Yankee go home” 
filling Grosvenor Square.
At the NUJ headquarters, Bolivian ambassador Maria Beatriz Souviron 
explained how the traditional political system in Bolivia had been swept 
away with the election of Evo Morales.
“He has given people hope for the first time. There has not just been a 
change in who controls the state, but also a change in culture in a 
country that has been racist for so long.”
Bolivia Solidarity Campaign organiser Amancay Colque, who helped 
organise the actions with Hands Off Venezuela, brought harrowing news 
from the northern state of Pando, where the far-right governor 
threatened to split from Bolivia and had paid mercenaries to machine-gun 
rural workers loyal to Morales.
She explained how the elite was fuelling racism to try to divide 
Bolivians and that, in the right’s eastern stronghold of Santa Cruz, it 
was now impossible for an Aymara or Quechua indigenous Bolivian to walk 
down the street without being attacked.
John McDonnell MP pointed out that “what is happening is not a personal 
attack on Morales or Chavez but an attack on the seeds of socialism that 
they are spreading.
“What the US is terrified of is the prospect that socialism will catch 
light all across the Americas, so of course it has to go on the attack. 
But it is exactly for this moment that solidarity campaigns exist.”
Venezuelan charge d’affaires Felix Plasencia said that he was “honoured 
to stand with Bolivia as all Latin America struggles for dignity, 
sovereignty and independence. We have finally thrown off the US Monroe 
Doctrine that treated us as their ‘backyard’ for 200 years.
“The aim now is to extend this people’s power throughout Latin America 
and the solidarity shown to Bolivia as it fights back against 
counter-revolutionaries is a significant step in uniting our countries,” 
he added to great applause.






http://www.katu.com/news/local/28738779.html

Protesters: Oly. Peninsula checkpoints create 'fear'

Story Published: Sep 20, 2008 at 9:16 PM PST
Story Updated: Nov 21, 2008 at 1:34 AM PST
By Akiko Fujita
PORT ANGELES, Wash. - Demonstrators marched through this Olympic 
Peninsula community on Saturday demanding an end to checkpoints set up 
by U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

Border patrol agents have arrested 25 people since they began operating 
three checkpoints on the Olympic Peninsula one month ago, said spokesman 
Joe Guiliano.

The presence of 25 agents has sparked a loud debate in a quiet 
community, across the water from Victoria, B.C. Critics allege agents 
are unfairly targetting minorities and call the checkpoints "racial 
profiling."

"They have created terror, fear. It goes beyond the imaginable," said 
Manuela Vasquez, who marched with more than 100 protesters.

Guiliano says the checkpoints are part of a larger effort to clampdown 
on terrorism, illegal immigration and drug trafficking.

Agents slow down drivers along U.S. Highway 101 and State Route 104 to 
check their nationality and citizenship. Guiliano says 15 people have 
been detained for immigration violations while 10 people were arrested 
for minor drug violations.

His agency plans to make the checkpoints a permanent part of their 
operation.

But Lois Danks, founder of the "Stop the Checkpoints" committee is 
determined to fight back. She started organizing a rally last week and 
said she was overwhelemed by the response.

"It's the first time all cities on the peninsula have gotten together on 
anything like this," she said "It's affecting us all."

Forks teacher Laylan Iranshad says two of her students were detained by 
agents at checkpoints.

"I'm not crossing a border. I'm driving to work. You're holding up my 
day, and you're making me uncomfortable. I'm seeing you hurt people that 
I know," she said.

Guilano says agents will remain at checkpoints so long as the weather 
permits. Danks is organizing a meeting, to plan the next protest.







http://www.mathaba.net/news/?x=606298

Cuba: Worldwide Demonstrations Demand the Release of the Cuban Five
Posted: 2008/09/17
From: MNN

Various actions in solidarity with Cuba were carried out in different 
corners of the planet over the weekend.

HAVANA, Cuba, Sept 16 (acn) Participants demanded the release of the 
Cuban Five, unjustly incarcerated in the United States.

One of the main activities was held in Dili, the capital of East Timor, 
with a rally in the downtown park of Dissidere, highlighted Granma 
newspaper in its Monday edition. Three representatives at the rally 
delivered a declaration in front of the US embassy in that city 
demanding the release of the Cuban men.

During the closing ceremony of the third congress of the Womens 
Organization of East Timor, more than 200 delegates signed a document 
calling on US mothers and wives to join the universal appeal for Olga 
Salanueva and Adriana Pérez to be allowed to visit their jailed 
husbands, and for the five men to be set free.

In Seville, Spain, a vigil in solidarity with the Five was summoned, 
while in Japan, professionals from the mass media -such as Asahi, Kyodo 
News, NHK, NTV, digital publications and independent journalists- 
received information on the case of these five men during a conference 
in Tokyo. This was delivered by Cuban ambassador José Fernández de 
Cossío, who inaugurated the third campaign in that country for the 
release of the Cuban Five.

Likewise, friends of Cuba in Australia demanded the release of these 
anti-terrorist fighters. A demonstration was held in front of the US 
consulate in Perth, in the state of Western Australia, in which 
friendship groups, political organizations and people from all walks of 
life demanded justice for the Five, while freeing the same number of 
doves and demanding the release of the men from prison.

Simultaneously, the first public concert in solidarity with the Cuban 
Five was held in New York, which was attended by more than 600 people.

Ramón Labañino, Antonio Guerrero, René González, Gerardo Hernández and 
Fernando González, internationally known as "The Five," were arrested by 
US authorities 10 years ago after having monitored Miami-based extreme 
rightwing groups, which -with absolute impunity- have organized 
terrorist actions against the Cuban people for almost five decades.

The mission of these men was to warn the Cuban people of the activities 
of these groups. These organizations had committed acts of sabotage, 
terrorism and assassinations that resulted in thousands of people being 
killed, injured or disabled, as well as affecting extensive damage to 
the island's economy.

The Five were jailed for the only "crime" of warning Cubans of these 
criminal actions. They were later subjected to a biased trial in which 
they were given severe and unjust sentences, despite their being totally 
innocent. #







http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/09/408800.html

Miami 5 - London demonstrations
Peter Marshall | 15.09.2008 18:37 | Repression | London | World
Events took place around the world last weekend to mark the 10th 
anniversary of the arrest of the Miami 5, in prison in the USA. RATB 
held a demonstration in Trafalgar Square, and the Cuba Solidarity 
Campaign have a further demonstration planned for 7 Oct.
Trafalgar Square was booked for something called 'The Peace Concert', 
part of the London Week of Peace, endorsed by Gordon Brown, Jacqui 
Smith, David Cameron and Ian Blair.

(It's a misleading name as it not about peace in the wider sense but 
concerned with community cohesion, promoting justice, equality and 
respect between people, particularly Londoners, from all backgrounds. It 
may also be about defusing the kind of grass-roots movements we've seen 
in some parts of London about civil rights and in particular about knife 
and gun crime and channeling them into something more easily controlled. 
If you're not in Manchester you can join their peace march on Saturday 
20th.)

Because of this event, RATB's 'Free the Cuban 5' demonstration couldn't 
be held on the North Terrace in front of the National Gallery as they 
had planned and they had to set up in a rather less prominent location 
on the pavement to the east, a traditional site for demonstrations.

The case of the Cuban 5 has led to the United Nations Commission on 
Human Rights and Amnesty International criticsing the US government, and 
to movements in over a hundred countires around the world calling for 
their release,

The demonstration in Traflagar Square by Rock around the Blockade was 
one of a number of events around the world to mark the 10th anniversary 
of their arrest, including in East Timor, Spain, Japan, Australia and 
the United States.

A further event takes place next month in London, when the Cuba 
Solidarity Campaign plans a Miami 5 Vigil outside the US Embassy on 
Tuesday 7 October 2008.

More pictures from last Saturday's demonstration on My London Diary 
shortly:
http://mylondondiary.co.uk/2008/09/sep.htm
Peter Marshall
e-mail: petermarshall at cix.co.uk
Homepage: http://mylondondiary.co.uk