Johns and Janes Celebrate Release

Thanks for the pics Liz. It is good to see that the Doe family has been freed, even after they were forced to give their names. At least the charges were dropped first. What the lawyers, folks outside, and Doe's inside were able to do collectively was great. Thanks for collectively throwing a wrench in the system at 850 Bryant. They definitely deserve it and hopefully we will be able to see some more Class Action shortly, against the SFPD and 850.

solidarity forever - upton sinclair

ps - I will post pics later tonight(Thursday)of the bullshit harrassment of all folks who went to court today at 850 in solidarity with the Doe family, including a few Doe momma's who came to support from out of the city...

The Jane and John Does that have been held since Tuesday night's Anti-G8 Reclaim the Streets have finally been released from 850 Bryant late Thursday afternoon. The street party was organized by San Francisco Reclaim the Streets and West Coast G8 in solidarity with the G8 protests in Georgia. More than 100 people were illegaly arrested as the mobile street party reached the corner of 5th and Market, without first being given an audible order to disperse. Most people were cited, charged for jaywalking, and released, but some of the arrestees refused to give their names. The 20 John Does and 17 Jane Does were finally released after making an agreement with the district attorney, giving their names in exchange for getting their charges dropped. The 37 jailed street partyers left 850 Bryant to the cheers of supporters that had been waiting outside and at the courthouse.

Many people had shown their support for the prisoners doing jail solidarity. Wednesday night, more than 50 people gathered outside of 850 Bryant to dance and express their solidarity with the prisoners. Police responded by barricading the entrance. Many supporters went before the police commissioners at city hall late Wednesday night to demand the prisoners' release and condemn the illegal mass arrest on 5th and Market. San Francisco residents passing by the jail expressed their support by honking their horns and delivering food. Some supporters even stayed the night in front of the jail.

The prisoners are giving disturbing reports of their experiences. The women were reporting that the police had left the windows to their bathroom open, allowing male inmatess and guards to peer inside. The men report being threatened with rape. There are many reports of police violence, brutality, and psychological torture. Many prisoners were hurt when police forcibly removed them from their holding cells or when police drove them violently to the ground. One of the John Does reports passing out after being attacked by the police. At least one prisoner has a broken thumb from when police tried to fingerprint him. Many of the prisoners have bruises and other visible signs of police brutalization.

Folks were getting down to Dead Prez(Revolutionary but Gansta), the Coup(Party Music), a little Asian Dub Foundation, a brief sampling of Dead Kennedys, and then a little This Bike is a Pipe Bomb and NWA on the way to the Police Review Commission at City Hall.

I would have never imagined being able to have a nice little impromptu dance party like that on the sidewalk next to 850 Bryant(7th St side), but it was amazing to see folks so into the tunes that were bumping, and hopefully some of the folks inside 850 were able to enjoy the beats too.

Thanks so much for everyone in Solidarity with us on the inside! It made all of us so much stronger knowing our comrades were outside keeping the party alive. See you tonight at the party tonight in Berkley!

this is an eyewitness account concerning police violence and deception
durring the jail solidarity in 850.
I was one of the 37 john and jane doe's locked up for 2 days because of jay walking charges durring the anti-G8 reclaim the streets party on tues.

while imprisoned I was subjected to intimidation, deception, psycological tourture, huge amounts of physical violence and pain compliance. I was held because I refused to give my name as an act of solidaity with those people among us who may have been targeted for futher imprisonment or deportation because of age, nation, or past exprience with state repression and as a way to resist the S.F.P.D.'s increasing use of mass arrest as a tactic to finger print, identify and intimidate voices of dissent.

Through out the course of our imprisonment we demanded that we all be treated equally, that we be released with all charges dropped and that we be kept together. Because of our resistance the officers of the sheriffs department intimidated us by telling indivduals that they would be put in general population and raped. They used psycologial tourture by opening the window to the women's cell and allowing guards and inmates to watch the women use the bathroom. They also used deception to devide us by twice lieing to us about our charges, and telling us that we couldn't do basic things like speak to medical personel or get blankets with out being individualized and processed. They used pain complience and physically assulted non-violent jane and john doe's who were clinging to one another to resist being seperated. Over a over a nine hour period from 6 pm wed till 2am in tuesday they attacked us, tearing peoples ears, pulling hair, twisting arms, legs, fingers and necks to the breaking point, picking uncouncious john does up by pain complience points in thier jaws, and sitting on john does chests untill they cut off air supply and forced them uncouncious.(this is only a list of things that I watched and does not account for every attack experenced or the situation in the womens cell.)

Because of our collective resistance it took them 9 hours to process and finger print all 37 of us, a procss which would have normally taken about 20 min. We forced them to pay guards overtime and take guards from other parts of the prison to deal with us all. We were all released with all charges dissmissed and in such a way that we recived equal treatment and no one could be singled out for further imprisonment because of special status. These things are all a great victory, however we were unable to resist their attempts to finger print us and in order to be released together and protect those with special status we did have to give up our names and dates of birth, this means were unable to prevent the SFPD from using mass arrests as a way to identify and finger print voices of dissent.

Solidarity Forever...
The real Jon

Good for you..
You stood by your principles..
Did the other prisoners in there also receive your special treatment?
Are you proud of yourself?
You should be as you forced the city to buckle to your demands..
Too bad your a fucking idiot and got arrested unlike myself who managed to fuck up some cops and get away with it..
I left you to take the blame..Thanks!!

I was one of the John Does. I'd like to report on some of the things that I experienced taking part in the jail solidarity over the past few days.

The aspect that stands out the most to me about the experience is not the physical violence directed against us, it's not the emotional and psychological shit they put us through, but rather the thing that stands out most for me was the feeling of solidarity. I've heard the term jail solidarity before, but I don't think I have ever felt such a feeling of solidarity with a group of people (most of which I didn't know) before. I walked out of there feeling like I had 36 new friends. Close friends. People who I had experienced an amazing amount of bonding with.

Another amazing aspect was the sensitivity, in all its best ways, that I felt from the Johns around me. There was none of that macho bullshit going on. When we were locked down, clinging to each other, trying to resist being separated, there were some Johns who chose to step out of our lockdown circle and go quietly with the cops (for various personal reasons). There wasn't any attempt to make them feel bad, guilty, or 'less manly' for such decisions. In fact, quite the opposite. There was immediate reassurance that they need to decide was best for them and that we'd all support them.

Another aspect of things that I learned from the experience was about appearance. Amongst the twenty of us, we sported a wide variety of looks and styles. Some looked relatively punkish, others more hippie-ish, others more mainstream looking, and still others kinda yuppie-ish (all in my standard of classifying looks). If I was walking down the streets and saw many of these Johns, I would never have thought, hey now there is someone who I would share so much in common with, share such basic life-philosophies with, or who would take the stands that they did, etc. I feel like so many of us have such a tendency to make all of these assumptions about people just by what they look like, how they dress, etc. I hope I learn from this how incredibly inaccurate such assumptions can be.

We shared a lot in common, but we also had a lot of differences between us. The fact that I often hear such animosity between punks and hippies, or anarchists and communists, or whatever, really upsets me. We need to understand that our commonalities far outweigh any of our differences. That regardless of whether we want to recognize it or not, while each of our smaller movements may be separate from each other, each of our smaller movements are in fact part of a larger movement which we all fight against. If the twenty of us can see past these differences in face of state repression inside of jail, and come together to stand up against our common enemy, I can only hope that our different movements can one day do that same. Remember: It starts with you. As we sang repeatedly throughout those 48 hours:
Solidarity forever
Solidarity forever
Solidarity forever
cuz that's what makes us strong!

Another aspect that stands out for me was going thru a 37 person consensus process to determine what we were going to fight for in court, while under incredible time constraints. We were in an intense emotional state, we had differing ideas as to what we should be doing, fighting for, and what terms we should accept, we had very limited time to make a decision. And yet, we did it. Beautiful.

You gals/guys rule.

my brain is so conflicted.
as a jane, i spent three of the most horrific days of my life in the s.f. jail.
as a jane, i spent three of the most amazing days of my life in the s.f. jail.
do i focus on the brutality, the intimidation, dehumanization, physical and emtional pain, or do i concentrate on the support, solidarity, love, and power the i felt while on the inside?
you have already heard, and i'm sure will hear again, acounts of the horrors that myself and my brothers and sisters encountered. these horrors are real, and have made an indelible mark on my spirit. however, i choose, at this point, to concentrate and share the positive things that i experienced.
myself and my sister janes were held, for a majority of our stay, in a freezing cold tile and concrete holding cell. one of the toilets overflowed onto the floor, which was our bed. video cameras were set up to watch us thru the glass wall at all times. the wall where our toilets were located had a small window thru which passing inmates and gaurds could watch us relieve ourselves. flourescent lights shone constantly. we were not given blankets or soap. did my sisters let this get us down? incredibly, no! we had a meeting of some of the greatest female minds i have ever seen. we sat down and came up with a list of goals, strategies for getting our basic human needs met, decided on the most effective attitudes to take, planned what to do in case of imminant separation, and basically took matters into our own hands, calmly, rationally, and lovingly. we decided to work on consensus. whenever a cop came to speak to us, we had one predetermined, rotating woman speak for the group. before she said anything to the cop, she would reiterate our list of demands,and our need for blankets. if the women were given any sort of choice, the speaker would ask the cop to leave so we could speak as a group before giving an answer. our demands for blankets were never answered, but we chanted for hours on a rotating basis to make the cops understand how truely cold we were, and how much we really needed something between us and the floor covered in raw sewage. we asked the cops to keep the window to our bathroom area closed, as it is strong sexual harrassment to allow inmates and gaurgs to watch us pee. we were ignored, but these strong women again took matters into their own hands. we took the bread and cheese from our desgusting lunches and built what we called the "breadcheesewall." this was essentially the window completely baracaded with moistened cheeze, toilet tissue, and bread. our room was depressing and lacked beauty or sunlight. we had a contrband pen and some paper, and used these to make "windows" which looked out on the sun and trees and animals. we hung these on the walls using wet toilet tissue as adhesive. we made paper planes and oragami and "no gmo" signs to make our space more beautiful. to keep ourselves from going crazy we tought each other songs and cheers and discussed star signs and past protests. we spent hours chanting to the cops. we danced. we shouted messages to the john does next door. we gave each other massages and told each other how strong we were, how we loved each other, how we were powerful and right. i had never met any of these women before, and now i feel that they are my family, truely and completely.
after this point, things in my mind are harder to separate. the powerful solidarity of my brothers and sisters gets stronger, but so does the brutality and dehumanization by the cops. i'm trying, at this point, to focus and the amazing power i gained by being incarcerated with such wonderful women. their power got even stronger as the separation of the janes began, but i cannot get into it without also getting into the hateful acts of violence exacted on us by the police. i will come back to this anouther day, then.
solidarity forever!

I too was one of the Johns, and I'd like to agree with the poster who pointed out that despite the physical, emotional, and mental abuse we took, despite the sexual harassment, intimidation tactics, pain holds, and all the rest, it was the overwhelming feeling of solidarity amongst all the John's and Jane's that really defined my experience. I came away from my 3 days in jail with friendships that I'm sure will last a lifetime.

I couldn't have asked to be with a better group of people. Each of you is unique and special and really, really cool; I really enjoyed all of your company, and learned much from each of you. To all the Johns and Janes - you guys ROCK!

"We the people fight for freedom, but the cops just fight for pay."

I love you guys! Solidarity FOREVER!

james (the minor)

let's not forget out bros. and sisters in georgia who are going through the same shit:

*urgent* yesterday, 15 people were arrested on charges of disorderly conduct. They were told they would be arrested if they crossed police lines, which they did not do. Now, 12 of them are being charged with giving false names, although they gave no names. At a solidarity protest outisde of the jail, 2 more people were arrested less than 10 minutes ago. Urgent help is needed. Call the authorities - the work week ends at 5 EST.
Their demands:

*Immediate release

*All demands, such as vegan meals, to be met

Numbers to call:

Rich Taylor Solicitor for Brunswick 912-264-2347

Tim Barton Chief Magistrate 912 554 7250

Mention how the charges are totally bogus!

Is anybody willing to be interviewed on camera about the abuse the Doe family recieved in 850 Byrant street?
I am a public access producer who was also subjected to torture and abuse while visiting that jail and am currently a part of a larger class action suit against this city.
I would like to document and maybe air comments about what is going on in that jail.
My contact email is sexyts [at] hotmail.com
Thanks

I'm not that sure what the comment was refering to.

Either way, it was hidden. Please folks, watch the threats.

probably the wrong place to post a missed connection but yea, write california erik-christopher if you please

GERM WARFARE
South End to biodefense lab: Bug off
BY KRISTEN LOMBARDI
http://www.bostonphoenix.com/boston/news_features/this_just_


Yet another group has formed this week to rally against a Boston University proposal to build a $1.6 billion "biosafety laboratory" at Boston University Medical Center, in the heart of the South End. And the Boston University Germ Biodefense Lab Opposition Committee, or BUGBLOC, as it’s called, is gearing up for a loud and visible fight.

"Not enough is being done to stop this proposal," says Rasheed Khalid, a biology professor at Bunker Hill Community College and a Medford resident. He and a dozen of his BUGBLOC colleagues will host a forum on the proposed biodefense lab this Thursday. "If we can stir up some dust," he explains, "maybe we can delay this project."

BUGBLOC is the latest in a long list of people and organizations opposing the university’s proposal — a list that includes Boston city councilors-at-large Chuck Turner, Felix Arroyo, and Maura Hennigan, as well as the Cambridge-based Council for Responsible Genetics. Currently, BU Medical Center is seeking a grant from the federal National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) to build a high-level biosafety laboratory, at which scientists would study treatments and vaccines for a host of lethal agents — from smallpox and anthrax to the plague. Under the plan, the university would construct the facility in an area known as "Biosquare," adjacent to the medical center, where the South End and Roxbury neighborhoods intersect.

To opponents, such a facility brings with it too many health and safety risks. According to Penn Loh, of Alternatives for Community and Environment (ACE), a Roxbury-based environmental-justice group working with BUGBLOC, community activists and residents alike worry about the "very deadly bioweapons agents" that BU scientists would handle at the lab — particularly in light of the densely populated surroundings. Indeed, ACE estimates that 25,000 people live within one mile of BU Medical Center, while another one million live within 10 miles. At the same time, opponents doubt that the project would offer Roxbury and South End residents much in the way of economic benefits, since many don’t have the advanced science degrees necessary to find employment in a high-end lab.

Above all, however, opponents complain that BU has been less than forthcoming about its NIAID grant application. The more that activists have pressed university officials for answers, the more reticent those officials have become. As Loh puts it, "There has been this whole air of secrecy about what BU is doing."

But Ellen Berlin, head of communications at BU Medical Center, defended the university’s efforts at community outreach. Since BU applied to the NIAID in January, she says, it has held 13 meetings with various South End groups to outline its lab proposal. Berlin adds, "We have tried very hard to reach out to the community."

Berlin contends that opponents have little to fear from the BU lab. The NIAID, which will select a grant winner in September, operates five biosafety laboratories throughout the country, most of which are located in cities such as Atlanta, San Antonio, and Bethesda, Maryland. The facilities have existed for a total of 72 years and not one has ever experienced an environmental leak or other type of safety hazard. "So the track record is quite good," she says.

As for the economic benefits, Berlin notes that the lab, if it were built, would create 1300 construction jobs, half of which are slated for Boston residents. In addition, it would yield 660 permanent positions, some of which would go to administrative assistants, lab technicians, security guards — in other words, jobs that don’t require advanced degrees. "While I know folks think the jobs need such degrees," Berlin says, "it’s just not the case."

But opponents remain unconvinced. Khalid, Loh, and other neighborhood activists have already written to the NIAID, urging it to reject BU’s application. They have held forums to generate opposition. They are even pushing the Boston City Council to pass an ordinance that would ban the construction of biosafety laboratories within the city limits; the ordinance, sponsored by Councilor Turner, will be the topic of a council hearing in September.

Now that BUGBLOC has arrived on the scene, opponents aim to become even more visible. "My main goal is to jump-start a dialogue," Khalid explains. "This is serious business, and we only have a short time to act."

Posted: Thu Feb 26, 2004 5:12 pm Post subject: Opposition grows to BU's biodefense lab plan

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Opposition grows to BU's biodefense lab plan

Facility could house pathogens

By Katherine Lutz, Globe Correspondent

Community opposition is mounting to Boston University Medical Center's proposed $1.6 billion biodefense laboratory, a facility designed to house the deadliest agents known to man, including Ebola and smallpox, in the South End.

Fifty Boston residents from Dorchester to Jamaica Plain protested in front of the Medical Center recently, concerned with the safety risks to adjacent neighborhoods and what they said was BU's lack of community outreach. Over the last month, local politicians, including Boston City Councilor Chuck Turner and state Representative Gloria Fox, have come out against the research lab, joining a growing list of community groups and leaders.

"We have at least 500 to 800 signatures from folks around the city who don't want to see this built in the heart of the city," said Klare X. Allen, a member of The Safety Net, a Roxbury neighborhood group that organized the protest. Allen is particularly concerned with the transport of hazardous materials though Boston neighborhoods.

Community leaders say BU has not done enough to inform neighbors about the project, failing to properly advertise meetings about a lab that would play a key role in the defense against terrorism.

"I think what they're doing is minimal, barely meeting the requirement of community outreach," said Lucky Devlin, a South Boston community activist. She said a meeting BU held with the Andrew Square Civic Association was relatively unknown to South Boston residents since it was not advertised in community papers.

BU officials say they held 13 community meetings attended by 300 people at the Medical Center and in the South End, Dudley, and South Boston. "We will continue to work with the community to discuss why this project is important and beneficial," said Ellen Berlin, spokeswoman for Boston University Medical Center, who added that the protest "says to me we need to keep communicating."

BU announced last February its application to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to build a Biosafety Level 4 laboratory in BU's BioSquare complex in the South End. Staff at the facility would be first responders to a bioterrorist attack, and they would work in high-security labs capable of housing pathogens deemed highly transmissible and deadly.

Mayor Thomas M. Menino supports the proposed lab, saying that it "does not pose any risk to the community and does have the potential for significant community benefit, including prominence for the city," said Michael Kelley, spokesman for the mayor's office.

"The mayor has always said that BU should be available to respond to questions and he thinks that they're doing that," said Kelley. "Many of the folks who are saying they are not having their issues responded to have been at community meetings. There's kind of a contradiction there."

Boston University is one of six known institutions across the country vying for the lucrative biodefense lab, although federal officials will not disclose all candidates. The NIAID expects to make a final decision on who gets the lab in September.

Currently, the United States has three working Biosafety Level 4 facilities, the only labs secure enough to hold the world's deadliest pathogens, according to NIAID's website. The NIAID and other government agencies believe there is a "serious shortage of high-level biocontainment facilities," a shortage that could hinder development of new treatments and vaccines.

In June, a dozen community groups and local politicians led by Alternatives for Community & Environment sent a letter to NIAID, concerned with the public health threat posed by the facility.

As part of its application, BU must demonstrate "community acceptance" of the project before construction begins, according to NIAID's request for applications.

But some South End neighborhood groups, whose residents live closest to the proposed the facility, say BU never contacted them.

Dan Loughlin, vice president of the South End Neighborhood Coalition and coordinator for the Union Park Street Neighborhood Association, said BU contacted neither group about the lab.

But Loughlin supports the new facility, which he hopes will infuse the neighborhood with needed capital and jobs. "I think people really need to shift their focus and stop this knee-jerk reaction," said Loughlin, who believes "the best scientists in the world" will work at the new lab. "This is not some rinky dink proposal."

Loughlin wants BU to invest in his community along with the lab and hopes parks, street lights, and housing developments can stand next to security fences and guards.

But BU's promise of 1,960 new jobs, 1,300 of which will be for construction, gives little assurance to South Boston's Devlin. "Who are the jobs for? These are short-lived construction jobs," said Devlin. "Are they for the layperson? You know what? We can get jobs cleaning floors anywhere."


Scientists Warn on Bush Bioweapons Push
Associated Press

Saturday March 29, 2003 12:00 AM

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A Bush administration program to add at least three bioweapons labs is troubling many scientists and arms control experts, who say it can't be good to train more microbiologists in the black art of bioterror.

The field is suddenly awash with billions of dollars to combat bioterrorism and much more ispromised under President Bush's Project BioShield plan. The money will fund a building boom of at least three new airtight laboratories where scientists in space suits handle the world's deadliest diseases.

At least six universities and the New York State Department of Health are competing for contracts to build one or two labs, where scientists can infect research monkeys and other animals with such lethal agents as the Ebola, Marburg and Lassa viruses. Those African hemorrhagic diseases are often fatal and always painful, marked by severe bleeding.

They'll also likely create new classes of toxins - including genetically engineered ones - as part of the process of constructing weapons they want to defeat. Developing antidotes or vaccines for those toxins might take years.

``It's perversely increasing the risk of exposure,'' said Richard Ebright, a Rutgers University chemistry professor and bioweapons expert who believes one additional lab is all that is needed.

Ebright and others believe labs managed by universities could prove less secure than government facilities, which have had their own security lapses.

Many believe the anthrax attacks that killed five people and briefly paralyzed Capitol Hill in 2001 were launched by a scientist with access to one of the government's high-security facilities - called Biosafety Level 4 labs, or BSL-4 for short.

Federal investigators searched a former apartment of one such microbiologist, Steven Hatfill, but never stated publicly that he was a suspect. Hatfill has denied involvement.

In his state of the union speech in January, President Bush called for nearly $6 billion to make vaccines and treatments against potential bioterror pathogens. The National Institutes of Health bioterrorism budget, meanwhile, has increased 500 percent this year to $1.3 billion - a large part of which will be used to build at least three labs.

Government officials and leaders of universities vying for the bioterrorism largesse are unapologetic.

NIH officials say that only two of the five U.S. facilities equipped do such work are effectively in use today, and they're overburdened. One is at the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta - the only place in the United States that handles live smallpox.

The other full-scale lab is the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases at Maryland's Fort Detrick. The government is already going ahead with additional labs at Fort Detrick and in Hamilton, Mont.

``What we have is not adequate to meet the current biodefense efforts,'' said Rona Hirschberg of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease. Officials said they don't know how many scientists work in the biosafety labs, but that the number is tiny and many more trained researchers are needed.

One of the byproducts of such endeavors will be the study of emerging diseases like the West Nile virus, which has infected 4,000 people and killed 274.

``The emerging diseases that we have to deal with are intense,'' said Virginia Hinshaw, provost of the University of California-Davis, which hopes to build one of the new labs. ``The public health need is very large.''

But mistrust runs deep, especially in the California college town of Davis. Lobbied intensely by vocal residents, the city council voted to oppose the school's application to build a lab.

The Davis protests reached a crescendo in February with the escape of a lab monkey, which is still missing. Davis officials said it was disease-free and probably now dead. Still, the school's $200 million bid for a BSL-4 lab has been jeopardized.

Government officials insist that the labs will be secure and serve only defensive purposes. But the U.S. military has a history of dabbling in biological agent programs that push up against a 30-year-old international treaty banning them.

Most recently, it was revealed that researchers at the Dugway Proving Ground in Utah have been developing anthrax for use in testing biological defense systems.

The $1.6 billion dollar secret; BU's plan for a bioterrorism lab in densely populated Boston
A CALL FOR PUBLIC PARTICIPATION
http://www.gene-watch.org/bubiodefense/

Boston University is planning to build a $1.6 billion bioterrorism research facility in the heart of the city’s South End community. Much of this spending will be allocated toward medical research to develop diagnostics, vaccines and therapeutics against a select list of potential biological weapons: anthrax, smallpox, plague, botulism, tularemia, and viral hemorrhagic fevers. Portions of the proposed network of laboratories will be designated as “Biosafety Level 4,” a level of security designed for research on the most dangerous and exotic category of disease-causing organisms. The public has a right to know about the potential risks that this facility could pose to its health and safety.

While the BU Medical Center claims that it “has been reaching out to community leaders, business leaders and others local residents to open communications about the project,” its behavior suggests otherwise. In a letter to the Council for Responsible Genetics, university officials said they would not disclose details of any research and construction plans despite the fact that competing bids from other universities have been made available to the public.


WHY AREA RESIDENTS SHOULD BE CONCERNED

Labs within two miles of downtown Boston will house many of the world’s most dangerous pathogens. B.U. has argued, with little evidence, that defense facilities would help the city respond to a biological weapons attack. But the risks to security may be more substantial. Since investigators traced the September 2001 anthrax mailings to a former defense lab scientist at Fort Detrick, Maryland, the nation has learned firsthand of the potential for biological weapons research to generate home-grown terrorism. Although Biosafety Level 4 facilities have a good historical track record, Boston University needs to provide assurance of strong security measures, including background checks and high-scrutiny clearances.


Pathogens and infectious agents will constantly move through the greater Boston area in transit to and from B.U. Medical Center. Recent events have highlighted the risk of an accident resulting in disease outbreaks and infection of local residents. On March 20th, 2003, a package containing the West Nile virus exploded in a Federal Express building in Columbus, Ohio, exposing workers to the possible infection and causing offices to be evacuated.

Researchers exposed to biological agents could pose a public health risk to residents. A Biosafety Level 4 lab, by definition, handles highly infectious diseases with no known vaccines or treatments. According the federal guidelines, Level 4 pathogens pose a “high risk of exposure and infection to personnel, the community and the environment.” The deaths in 2001of two biologists exposed to meningitis bacteria at the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta demonstrate the reality of these infection risks.


Boston residents and city government will not have a say in the facility. A national coalition of activists and community groups has called on Boston University to commit to full public disclosure and active community oversight over its planned biodefense laboratory (http://www.gene-watch.org/bubiodefense/). The university has not agreed to any demands for transparency. In the past, however, community pressures convinced city governments to impose restrictions and oversight on high-security research. Similar pressures recently forced the University of Texas and the University of California at Davis to make their proposals for biological weapons research available to the public.


Secrecy in biodefense research raises suspicion in the international community. The federal government carries out a substantial amount of classified research in its biological defense laboratories. Evidence suggests that B.U. may be continuing the current pattern of secrecy. The Bush Administration recently blocked the enforcement of the Biological Weapons Convention, which would have mandated inspections of U.S. biological defense facilities. B.U.’s refusal to commit to public disclosure raises questions about the peaceful intent of its research and further undermines global arms control.


WHAT YOU CAN DO


Contact local representatives: the Boston City Council has the power to regulate or prohibit research on biological weapons agents within its municipal boundaries. Let the representative from your district know your views, and organize letter writing and call-in campaigns (see contact list below).

Call for and hold public meetings: widely-publicized meetings will provide members of the Boston community the opportunity to learn more about the B.U. project and to voice their concerns. Call your local churches and community groups to set up a meeting.


Contact Boston University: B.U. Medical Center’s spokeswoman recently told the press that B.U. wants to “hear local concerns” and that "the community is a very important part of the process." Officials have yet to put those words into action. Make phone calls, send e-mails, and mail letters to the address below to make sure B.U. hears from the city of Boston.

Contact the Council for Responsible Genetics (CRG): CRG has a wealth of information on biological weapons and defense research that may be useful to you, your organization, your neighbors and community members. To join our BU Biodefense mailing list, just send us an email with "join BU biodefense" in the subject line.


City Council of Boston
Paul J. Scapicchio
District 1
5th Floor
1 City Hall Plaza
Boston, MA 02201
Telephone: 617.635.3200
Facsimile: 617.635.4203
Paul.Scapicchio [at] ci.boston.ma.us
James M. Kelly
District 2
5th Floor
1 City Hall Plaza
Boston, MA 02201
Telephone: 617.635.3203
Facsimile: 617.635.3332
James.Kelly [at] ci.boston.ma.us
Maureen E. Feeney
District 3
5th Floor
1 City Hall Plaza
Boston, MA 02201
Telephone: 617.635.3455
Facsimile: 617.635.3734
Maureen.Feeney [at] ci.boston.ma.us
Charles C. Yancey
District 4
5th Floor
1 City Hall Plaza
Boston, MA 02201
Telephone: 617.635.3131
Facsimile: 617.635.4203
Charles.Yancey [at] ci.boston.ma.us
Robert Consalvo
District 5
5th Floor
1 City Hall Plaza
Boston, MA 02201
Telephone: 617.635.4210
Facsimile: 617.635.4203
Rob.Consalvo [at] ci.boston.ma.us
John Tobin
District 6
5th Floor
1 City Hall Plaza
Boston, MA 02201
Telephone: 617.635.4220
Facsimile: 617.635.4203
John.Tobin [at] ci.boston.ma.us
Chuck Turner
District 7
5th Floor
1 City Hall Plaza
Boston, MA 02201
Telephone: 617.635.3510
Facsimile: 617.635.4203
Chuck.Turner [at] ci.boston.ma.us
Michael Ross
District 8
5th Floor
1 City Hall Plaza
Boston, MA 02201
Telephone: 617.635.4225
Facsimile: 617.635.4203
Michael.Ross [at] ci.boston.ma.us
Jerry P. McDermott
District 9
5th Floor
1 City Hall Plaza
Boston, MA 02201
Telephone: 617.635.3113
Facsimile: 617.635.4203
Jerry.McDermott [at] ci.boston.ma.us Michael F. Flaherty
5th Floor
1 City Hall Plaza
Boston, MA 02201
Telephone: 617.635.4205
Facsimile: 617.635.4203
Michael.F.Flaherty [at] ci.boston.ma.us
Felix D. Arroyo
At-Large Member
5th Floor
1 City Hall Plaza
Boston, MA 02201
Telephone: 617.635.3115
Facsimile: 617.635.4203
FelixD.Arroyo [at] ci.boston.ma.us Maura Hennigan
At-Large Member
5th Floor
1 City Hall Plaza
Boston, MA 02201
Telephone: 617.635.4217
Facsimile: 617.635.3734
MauraH [at] ci.boston.ma.us
Stephen J. Murphy
At-Large Member
5th Floor
1 City Hall Plaza
Boston, MA 02201
Telephone: 617.635.4376
Facsimile: 617.635.4203
Stephen.Murphy [at] ci.boston.ma.us
http://www.gene-watch.org/bubiodefense/

i am one with the johns and janes who say how powerful were our feelings of solidarity, love and resistance.

i am thinking of where arundati roy ends a speech with something like: "another world is not only possible, but on quiet days, if you listen hard, you can even hear her breathing."

in jail, with my beautiful brothers and sisters, i didn't just hear her breathe -- i saw her stretch her wings, laugh, and shout with joy.

I'm not trying to be condescending. I'm not even trying to spell correctly. In fact, I don't know what I'm trying, but I'll start here;

I am in solidarity (as much as I can be) with any one protesting against what they perceive to be tyrannical actions geared toward limiting life, liberty, happiness, and the pursuit thereof.

And I don't deny that our so-called justice system is beyond faulty. I don't pretend that what happens to protestors between process and release is harrowing at best and humiliating in the least. And I will always stand on the side of the accuser before the accused is vindicated or convicted.

With this preamble typed, I have two things to point out. One, it is not only stylisticly tired, but extremely (look up that word) offensive (also look that one up) to turn an incident of ultimate shock and abborhence into a cliche to describe circumstances that don't, will never meet the aforementioned criteria.

Two; that we try to use media catch phrases to our advantage is a symptom of our subjugation - certainly not a cure - to media infiltration. We can not presume that to invert the propoganda used to subjugate us will somehow free us. That thinking is better left to intellectuals that never leave their books.

With all that said, I will say more. Kindly re-evaluate your idea of torture. If you mean to liken yourselve(s) to POW's recently scandalized by the US media, (by yourselves I mean those represented in this Indybay headline), then I suggest looking at where you came from and where you are.

It is no coincidence that the words 'psychological torture' were used in this article. A great many of twentieth century politicos used this turn of the phrase to further their causes. Woodrow Wilson and Joseph Goebbels are two of many.

In essence, I say be creative. In life I say fight, but leave the dirt to the worms.

If you need to discredit me, I'm what liberals will call a minority, but in thinking, I think I'm a majority. I've been arrested, had police badges pull their guns on me, oh, and I'm not white (that last one was a defense mechanism. Sorry).

Be the exception, and try really hard (ie stop!) sensationalizing what people go through.

Sorry for reading like a dick.

shakes, the amalgam, and beer

as a jane doe in the incident i would like to mention that the reason I myself talk about what happened is not to gain sympathy from people or to escalate what happened but to put it pretty simply...just letting people be aware of what can happen if you are disobediant in this society. This is not to minimalize what happens in other places that are by far more horrible but so that people are prepared. Before this happened i had no idea what jail solidarity meant. I had no idea how it worked. a month ago you could Doe out of jail without having your idently be known and only do maybe something like 2 days...now it's 30? things will keep getting worse and if you arent prepared then things will be worse for you if you close your eyes to the experiances of others. On a personal note, i would like to mention that i was never "tortured". i think i endured alot more than i ever should have for something as silly as dancing in the street. I think people need to know what to do in such situations and what to expect.
that is all.

I too, was practicing solidarity with my comrades. It was a decision that led to three days in jail, we were so strong and supported each other, and had amazing experiences there.
It was also brutal, with what I would say is physical and pshycological torture, and the most pain I have ever been in. I want to remind people to do after care, for as long as it takes, to deal with our emotions after what happened.

I know I am still proccessing and dealing, and I know that other people are to. Please, recocnize that that's where your at right now and to listen to and honor yourself. What are you're needs? Are there people around to support you? Talk about it, talk about it, talk about it, please. CRY ABOUT IT, LAUGH ABOUT IT, let it go. Ask for back rubs from your friends, give them, too. drink lots of water. do what you need, and what feels good for yourselves.

I personally want to see us take care of each other and see everyone feel safe and loved.


I was also wondering if anyone had other peoples contact info or just wanted to email me their own. I would love to be able to get ahold of everyone for follow-up legal stuff, as well as to say hi.

I appreciate your taking the time to respond. Again, I really hope that it appeared I was making any sort of comparison or parallels (ie, my pain is worse than yours" type shit.) I guess I really wish we could be more creative, or more direct about what happens to us out there. I spent a week in jail after refusing to give my identity, and I thought I had certain rights that I was told in the pokie I didn't have, and was told when I got out that I certainly did have. It not only taxed my brain, it taxed my sense of justice, what is right wrong and human even.
Again, I salute your solidarity, I wish there was more of it in the world.

I would suggest to anyone else who might read this and is thinking in terms of solidarity - that if you find the po-po's treatment of protestors and inmates deplorable, don't forget and get over what happened, bang the damn gongs and stretch your solidarity flanked wings toward the people who will be there for a lot longer.

Thanks again Janes and Johns...

I have been raised in Dixon/Vacaville, Ca area and know very well the tactics used by nazi conservative cops!!!! Fuck em!!!! You don't have to provide a fingerprint or even a name without a lwayer present, that is not only a california law, but a federal law (For right now anyway, until Ashcroft reverses that right too). So you did right by hanging together and not letting them intimidate you.That is what cops do. Lying, deception, fear and pain are what modern Law enforement is all about. Thugs with badges and no more. They are mere little people with guns and the only way to justify their sexuality to themselves is by flashing a gun and threatening common citizens. Exercise your right to protest, it is your right!!!

It's been a couple weeks now, and the whole incident has found it's place in my long-term, set aside memory.

I'm so glad to see that you other Does were equally inspired as I about the solidarity. We're trained to have this conception of the 'mom mentality' with people weilding pitch-forks and hanging up black people on trees or buring witches, all mass-hysteria. They don't want us finding real community, a kind the transcends words and actions.

I felt two different notions of self when I was in that jail with you Johns. I felt my ordinary self, and I felt another self as a collective John. This John made decisions and had motivations, existed as a real personality. It was made up out of all 20 of us Johns, so all of us were represented. This group self (or "pod mind" as I like to call it) allowed us to make every decision with consensus and ease. There were no real divisions between us, everything was for the common good.

I think we need to learn to use this state of being outside of the jail if we are to ever make real communities, if we are ever to exist without the state. After the jail I have gotten along with strangers and crouds much better than before, and I owe a lot of that to the experience of opening myself up to the whole group as a necessary mode of survival.

The pod mind is the very thing that makes our non-centralized actions work. The best protests I've ever been in were the ones with no leaders, just the frenzied chaos of a mob that somehow makes decisions no police captain can predict. As we lower our fears and strengthen the connections to our non-local egos we will do the things necessary for our ultimate goals.

I'd like to add one thing that may sound cynical, but to me is plainly realistic. We did not win our political goals. During the initial round of citations they let all minors go and did no INS checks. As far as I know they didn't look for warrants either, or even if they did not of us had any. It is my belief all the charges will be dropped against everyone, solidarity or not. We ended up giving our names AND our fingerprints, something the rest didn't have to do. Looking back it seems we let them weaken us to to a place of bad decisions. They tricked us. They wouldn't have held us for 30 days. Bullshit. And if they did it may have been worth it, this John Doe thing might have had some meaningful precident. As it stands now they know that if they hold us long enough and fuck with us enough we'll give in.

I think that remaining anonymous is a very noble goal. It's too bad we didn't make it. Still, it was a worthwhile experience and I will never forget the many inspirations and lessons and love shared with John and Jane Doe.