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Eleven Walkers - Two Weeks: L.A. to San Francisco So Far... The walkers have walked about ten miles a day for almost two weeks. From Santa Barbara, they joined the monthly vigil at Vandenberg Air Force Base (Global Command Center for flying weapons of mass destruction), and then supported work for a civil-liberties safe zone in San Luis Obispo. After car troubles, they went up the coast, through Morro Bay and Big Sur, and on to Santa Cruz. They were in Half Moon Bay on Tuesday, then went on to the Bay Area for a busy few days of peace marches. A huge thank you for everyone who has supported the walkers along the way so far. Every little bit helps - food, enthusiastic sharing, monetary donations, phone calls and emails for logistics help, media contacts, eveything. We hope that your efforts have been returned by encouragement for the work you are doing in your community. There will be details filled in from the walkers when they have time to get the information back. Anyone with news reports, photos, or your own experiences, please send them to us in an email, and we will put those on the site. |
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A Few of the Walkers:
Get Informed!
Native American Veteran:
Durwin WhiteLightning
Nepalese Buddhist:
Monk Krishnaman
Rights Activist:
Eddie Sankovich
Earth First! Activist:
Four Winds
High School Student:
Joshwa WhiteLightning
Peacewalker:
Judah
A lover of life:
Faith
Another woman for:
Peace
Learn about the
U.S.A.P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Act (and more)
through these links:
Civil Liberties -
The Issues
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About the issues:
(From the Bill of Rights Defense Committee "Issues" page)What follows is a summary of key provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act and Executive Orders that threaten rights guaranteed by the Bill of Rights of the U.S. Constitution. To learn how the new legislation infringes on rights guaranteed by the Bill of Rights, read AP's one-page Overview of Changes to Legal Rights and BORDC's A Guide to the USA PATRIOT Act and Federal Executive Orders (Requires PDF). You may also order it as a 16-page booklet. You will also find many good articles and editorials on our Links page.
On October
26, 2001, President Bush signed into law the USA PATRIOT Act
(acronym for "Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate
Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism"). Passed hurriedly
(many Congressmen stated later they had not even had time to read
the law) it creates a new crime, "domestic terrorism," so broadly
defined that it could conceivably apply to acts of civil disobedience.
The USA
PATRIOT Act gives the FBI and the CIA greater rights to wiretap
phones, monitor e-mail, survey medical, financial and
student records, and break into homes and offices without prior
notification.
Under
this Act and other legislation, noncitizens are being deported or detained
indefinitely without judicial appeal.
The dangers
of the USA PATRIOT Act are augmented by a Bureau of Prisons order
allowing federal agents to abridge the attorney-client privilege
by eavesdropping on conversations between lawyers and their clients
held in federal custody.
The Justice Department
has dismantled regulations against COINTELPRO
operations that were enacted following abuses of the civil rights
and peace movements of the 50's, 60's and 70's.
The Administration has ordered secret military tribunals for suspected terrorists. In addition to being unfair and unnecessary, the U.S. threat of using military tribunals increases the likelihood that U.S. citizens will be treated accordingly overseas, and decreases the likelihood that other governments will be willing to extradite suspected terrorists or other parties wanted by the U.S.
Other resources
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Massachusetts
Op-Ed columns by Bill Newman, Director, ACLU of Western Massachusetts:
Especially for students:
