Mon, 2pm: SF Press Conference About Central Park RNC Demo in NYC

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Not in Our Name Project
Media Contact: Marissa Quaranta
Media Cell Phone: (510) 978-6702
Press Advisory – August 16, 2004

Bay Area joins Nationwide battle for Central Park rally permit.
Our dissent will not be silenced!!

Press conferences nationwide will be held to announce details of the campaign for a permit to rally on the Great Lawn in Central Park. A press conference will be held Monday August 16th, in San Francisco at 2 p.m. on the steps of City Hall.

The Not in Our Name Project joins Code Pink, United for Peace and Justice, American Muslim Voice, Blue Triangle Network and many more to announce the launch of a massive campaign for a permit to rally on the Great Lawn of Central Park on August 29th, 2004. A permit for a rally on the West Side Highway granted by the city has been rejected by rally organizing group United for Peace and Justice, and a full scale battle is being waged with Mayor Bloomberg’s office for the rights of protesters to gather in Central Park on the eve of the Republican National Convention.

Protests in New York City during the Republican National Convention promise to draw unprecedented numbers from all around the nation and world – including many thousand from California. This is not simply a local New York issue. This is national in scope, international in interest, and will impact political discourse in the United States for years to come.

“Mayor Bloomberg said this isn’t about politics, but this whole battle for a permit couldn’t be more political,” argues Tanya Mayo, Bay Area Organizer and National Coordinator for the Not In Our Name project, “It’s a battle for our right to dissent in this country. We must win the permit for Central Park, because if we don’t, precedent will be set for protest to be severely marginalized from here on out. Ultimately, this is a battle for our collective futures, from the streets of New York City to Baghdad. We have a right to protest in this country, and we have the right to protest unjust wars on the people of the world.”

Details of the campaign, as well as local plans for support of nationwide efforts will be given at press conferences Monday in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, and San Francisco.

Visit http://www.notinourname.net/rnc for information updated daily on the fight for Central Park.