Feature Archives

Around 2PM a large crowd gathered at 14th & Broadway. Family and friends of those who have been killed by law enforcement spoke about their loss, and the frustration of dealing with a corrupt system that often retaliates against those speaking out. Hundreds then took to the streets, going to law enforcement buildings throughout the city - the jail, county courthouse, BART administration building and federal building. Names of victims of police brutality were etched on buildings. Although the emotional protest ended in Frank Ogawa Plaza, the presence of the rising local movement against police violence was felt. Campaigns for justice for Idriss Stelley and Jamil Wheatfall, against the Alameda super-jail, UA homes in Berkeley and more are growing with a worldwide movement for social justice. Watch Video Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

Oct 22 protests were also held in LA, Portland, Chicago, Houston, NYC and cities across the country.

Among the latest reports is the LA Times' story that the US Government has ordered all libraries in the country to destroy countless government records and publications deemed to pose a "security threat"; librarians are to preserve only a shard of each CD-ROM as evidence of the destruction. See also VAN's timeline to keep track of the assault on civil liberties by the court-imposed Bush regime.

According to the US DOJ, a majority of the 1000+ post-9/11 detainees remain jailed. US citizen Tarek Abdelhamid Albasti, for instance, was taken away from his Evansville, IN, restaurant with his uncle and 7 other Muslim men after FBI agents showed up to inquire about his political beliefs and the flying lessons he had been given as a birthday present. The 9 men were flown to Chicago in shackles on a U.S. Marshal's Service jet. Albasti was eventually released after staging a hunger strike. Meanwhile, Mustafa Abu Jdai from Tyler, TX, remains in a Dallas jail after he and his wife, trying to help investigators, called the FBI's 800 tipline on 9/13. Abu Jdai answered a question "incorrectly" during an FBI polygraph test, was charged with a visa violation, and now faces indefinite detention.

Oct 26: President Bush signed USA PATRIOT Act (H.R.3162) into law on Friday, marking a new, draconian era in the civil rights legislation in the US. Passed in the House the USA Patriot Act (HR 3162) by a vote of 357 to 66, and the Senate 98 to 1, the bill gives enormous, unwarranted power to the executive branch which will be unchecked by meaningful judicial review. The ACLU has called the rushed legislative process "deeply flawed," and has outlined the impact that the bill will have on civil liberties and personal freedom. ACLU Chart

The bill grants the government extensive surveillance powers and the ability to detain US residents and immigrants with no judicial process or other oversight (beyond what it could already do). Read FAIR's reports on how the corporate media hasn't given this bill the coverage it demands. The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) had issued an action alert regarding the original proposed legislation, along with related legislation (presently 3 bills, including the Public Safety and Cyber Security Enhancement Act, PSCSEA).

On Oct 11, the EFF held a Forum on Civil Liberties at the SF Public Library (read their response to pro-surveillance criticism and learn 12 ways to protect your online privacy).

In an example of how the new laws will be used to punish suspected "terrorists," Long Island activist Connor Cash was officially charged with "providing material support to terrorists," in connection with property damage claimed by the Earth Liberation Front on Long Island late last year.

On Sept 13, the US Senate passed the Combating Terrorism Act of 2001 giving the police and FBI sweeping new powers of surveillance, and the FBI immediately began visiting ISP?s requesting that they install Carnivore. In efforts to expand its spying powers even more, the FBI is reportedly developing new surveillance architecture, which would allow more insidious snooping. Some believe 'electronic martial law' is the natural next step. Contact your own legislators to demand that they respect the all people's civil liberties.

Electronic Privacy Information Center | Electronic Frontier Foundation | ACLU

Oct 22:Around 2PM a large crowd gathered at 14th & Broadway. Family and friends of those who have been killed by law enforcement spoke about their loss, and the frustration of dealing with a corrupt system that often retaliates against those speaking out. Hundreds then took to the streets, going to law enforcement buildings throughout the city - the jail, county courthouse, BART administration building and federal building. Names of victims of police brutality were etched on buildings. Although the emotional protest ended in Frank Ogawa Plaza, the presence of the rising local movement against police violence was felt. Campaigns for justice for Idriss Stelley and Jamil Wheatfall, against the Alameda super-jail, UA homes in Berkeley and more are growing with a worldwide movement for social justice. Watch Video Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10

Oct 22 protests were also held in LA, Portland, Chicago, Houston, NYC and cities across the country.

October 9: A special hearing of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors' Rules Committee was held to address police misconduct and SFPD training for mental health crises. Friends, family and supporters of Idriss Stelley, killed by the SFPD in June, spoke to the Board. Supervisor Tom Ammiano announced that he would introduce a resolution to mandate that 25% of SFPD officers receive mental health training within the next two years (1 in 4 SFPD calls involve someone in a mental health-related crisis). Read a report from Poor Magazine on the hearing and watch video.

After 3 months of stonewalling by SFPD, the family of Idriss Stelley recently filed a police misconduct claim against the city. The claim will force the city to respond within 45 days and provide information (such as the names of witnesses) that has been so far withheld by the SFPD and Police Commission. At a press conference on the steps of City Hall to announce the claim, Idriss' mother, Mesha Monge-Irizarry, said her son was "murdered by police." After hundreds of community residents demanded answers at the two Police Commission meetings following Idriss' death, the SFPD continues to remain silent and create obstacles to uncovering what happened that night. Full Report. Read an excerpt from Idriss’ family Misconduct Claim against the city. Photos: 1 | 2 | 3

SF Bay View | PNN | Idriss One Love

Family members of Bruce Seward, a 42-year-old African American man who was killed by a BART police officer on May 28th, came to the Bay Area on July 17 from Illinois to demand information and meet with local police misconduct attorneys. Bruce's mother and brother spoke publicly at the Powell BART station. BART officials have refused the family's request for a meeting. Details

Oct 9: A special hearing of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors' Rules Committee was held to address police misconduct and SFPD training for mental health crises. Friends, family and supporters of Idriss Stelley, killed by the SFPD in June, spoke to the Board. Supervisor Tom Ammiano announced that he would introduce a resolution to mandate that 25% of SFPD officers receive mental health training within the next two years (1 in 4 SFPD calls involve someone in a mental health-related crisis). Read a report from Poor Magazine on the hearing and watch video.

After 3 months of stonewalling by SFPD, the family of Idriss Stelley recently filed a police misconduct claim against the city. The claim will force the city to respond within 45 days and provide information (such as the names of witnesses) that has been so far withheld by the SFPD and Police Commission. At a press conference on the steps of City Hall to announce the claim, Idriss' mother, Mesha Monge-Irizarry, said her son was "murdered by police." After hundreds of community residents demanded answers at the two Police Commission meetings following Idriss' death, the SFPD continues to remain silent and create obstacles to uncovering what happened that night. Full Report. Read an excerpt from Idriss’ family Misconduct Claim against the city. Photos: 1 | 2 | 3

Just before midnight on June 12, the young African-American man with a history of mental illness was gunned down and killed by at least eight cops, who shot him more than 20 times at the Sony Metreon theater. Full Report | SF Bay View | PNN | Idriss One Love

A free hip hop show and rally was held on Saturday, July 28 in front of City Hall in downtown Oakland to tell the powers that be that their plan to build a new super jail for youth is just plain wrong and that alternatives to incarceration need to be found. Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9. Books Not Bars

On July 23, nine youth and youth supporters were arrested on July 23, at the Alameda County Supervisor's meeting in a sit-in protesting the planned super jail for kids. The sit-in was a response to the Supervisor's voting against a study to assess the appropriate number of beds for the Alameda County Juvenile Hall.

In May, youth activists successfully convinced the California Board of Corrections to deny the pre-approved state funding for Alameda County's effort to build the biggest per capita juvenile hall in the country. Even after the funding defeat, Alameda County officials continue pushing to build a massive "Juvenile Complex."