Cops' Treatment of Protesters Will Get Legal Eagle Eyes

Source: Denver Post

Cops' treatment of protesters will get legal eagle eyes
By Felisa Cardona
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 07/18/2008 01:15:34 AM MDT

A group of Denver lawyers has joined together to provide protesters at the Democratic National Convention with both pre-confrontation training and post-arrest legal services if necessary. For several months, Denver attorney Brian Vicente has dressed up like a police officer and conducted mock protests with advocacy groups that plan to demonstrate at the convention in the last week of August. Legal observers wearing neon green hats have videotaped the mock protests and written down what went right and what went wrong.

The Colorado Chapter of the National Lawyer's Guild formed the DNC-People's Law Project shortly after the city announced the convention would be held in Denver. "We want to have peaceful protests where messages of social justice can flourish," said Vicente, the project's executive director. "Everybody we've talked to is very passionate, and they feel that their issues are not being addressed by the two-party system."

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Lawyers and others interested in volunteering for the People's Law Project may contact the organization at www.dnc-plp.org The group will run a 24-hour legal office and a hotline in Capitol Hill during the convention, providing legal assistance to demonstrators and the public who run into constitutional violations.

In 2004, police arrested 1,800 people at the Republican National Convention in New York and many were held for more than 50 hours in jail, according to the People's Law Project. At the Democratic National Convention in Boston that same year, free-speech advocates were outraged by the caged distance between them and the delegates. Vicente said that in Denver, past arrests of Columbus Day protesters were not handled well by police. "People were arrested and detained for an unreasonable amount of time," Vicente said. "It's crucial that people educate themselves."

Read more: http://www.denverpost.com/nationalpolitics/ci_9916357

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Having had the chance to avail myself of their services in the past.

Loved the protest education sessions, too. There's really nothing like being in a sit-in group while the riot police pull you off one or two at a time. You hold on to the one they're pulling until it becomes impossible, then quickly lock arms with those closer to the center. You know you're next. Go limp, and make sure you have the lawyer's number written in ink on your arm (the cops will try to cover it with fingerprinting ink if its on your hand).

Ah, the nineties...

People like Phelps and his Westboro Baptist Church? The Klan? Limbaugh fans? And they're going to be doing their real protests in the arena with rifles. Yes, I know that it's being fairer to the right wing than they'd be with us, the same bend-over philosophy Democrats perform in Congress, but is it right that people be trained to properly end our democracy for good?

And that means "progressives" - Republican operatives in gay/lesbian outfits - who are saying that Obama is "too black" or "not gay enough" or whatever will split the Democratic Party apart. Having a popular candidate is too dangerous for the rich, powerful and fascist.

Nobody who hopes for a better America - unless they mean better for the Bushies - would protest Obama.

Obama is selling his progressive positions out as fast as he can to Wall Street and the military information security complex.

For real change we can believe in, real progressives will have to keep the pressure on, no matter the party in power.

Rest assured, the protests in Minnesota will be even more powerful.

It shows that Democrats are dissentious, that they have nuts and kooks in their party that are determining their agenda, and that Dem's can't be trusted. Whereas Republicans are united and have a solid, firm mob of people standing behind their candidate. (It doesn't matter that they don't completely trust their candidate; they're not going to protest. He's senile and can be whipped into whatever shape the party wants. Bush already did that, in fact.)

You protest at Denver, and you'll stab Obama in the back.

Too much of that already.

The protests in Minnesota will be bigger and more dynamic.

BTW, I won't be protesting, but working on a documentary about both conventions.

then we allow everyone's rights to be denied. The first amendment applies to everyone irregardless of the position/message. We can't just support people who have the same opinion, we have to support everyone's right to speak!

The Democratic party is centrist at best and will be protested in Denver by real progressives.

I'd be sickened if only the Democratic Party's convention was scrutinized.

And that's part of the point. The left only eats their own. They never attack their true opponents, because they'll never get satisfaction out of them. But beat on someone like Obama and diminish his chances, for the noble cause of free car washes for gays or whatever the cause is, makes the cause monkeys extremely happy. "We're making our party more progressive!" they yell, as the party goes down to defeat.

Remember that in 1968, nobody protested the Republican convention that nominated Nixon. Everyone protested weak ol' Hubert Humphrey.

But don't let facts get in the way of your propaganda.

Us "cause monkeys" won civil rights for blacks, women and gays, stopped a war and changed America and the world, despite the Democratic party's foot dragging.

Your sainted party has not done much to stop the war, criminality in the white house or to change energy policy in the last congress, either.

"Free car washes for gays", "cause monkeys"?!?!? Your agenda is not too hidden.