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  • From: <cstalberg AT earthlink.net>
  • To: <internetworkers AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [internetworkers] Urgent: Ral. PATRIOT Resolution, City Council June 15
  • Date: Mon, 7 Jun 2004 18:53:20 -0400

To all Raleigh Patriot Act Resolution Cosigners and supporters:

     Public Hearing Scheduled June 15th. Crucial Vote Expected to Follow.


Mark your calendar now. Attend to support adoption of PATRIOT Resolution ! 

    
         Raleigh City Council Meeting - Tuesday, June 15th - 1:00 Session
  City Council Chamber, 2nd Floor, Municipal Building, 222 W. Hargett Street

Supporters, we really need your presence to succeed. Councilors who may vote "yes" need to see broad public support for a Raleigh Resolution. Giving a few hours of your time June 15th can make the difference.

We know it's difficult for you to leave work for an afternoon meeting, but please arrange to be there. Supporters are likely to be asked to stand again. And we may need several representatives of Coalition groups to speak at the hearing. 

The Council will allow each "side" 15 minutes total to present their comments. Proponents will speak first. The Resolution hearing will be scheduled following the Consent Agenda - it will be the first public hearing of the afternoon, probably near 2:00.

Please share this with your members, staff, colleagues, and friends, and ask them to come.
Please write the Councilors on behalf of your organization and urge them to adopt the resolution.


Progress & Problems:
     At the June 1st Council meeting, the Human Relations Commission reported their three month review of PATRIOT Act issues and the Coalition's resolution. They recommended to the Council that they adopt the resolution with revisions. On behalf of the Coalition, Wake Co. ACLU reps had notified the HRC and the Mayor that we supported the revisions.

     After the HRC report, the Council seemed prepared to vote, but three Councilors tried to paint the resolution as nothing more than a politicized statement by the ACLU. They ignored the fact that over 40 public interest organizations and individuals have united to speak out on this, as well as the concerns of the NC Academy of Trial Lawyers, the NC Council of Churches, and the Raleigh Human Relations Commission. They claimed that "opponents" had been excluded from the process by not being given notice of the Council meeting.

     By "opponents", it seemed that they meant the local representative of the US Department of Justice. The reality is the Human Relations Commission conducted a balanced review and invited the Assistant US Attorney to three reviews to represent the DoJ position. Both the Assistant US Attorney and Coalition representatives were present May 25th when the HRC finalized their revisions, and heard the revisions would be presented to the Council on June 1st.

  
   No one has been excluded. The City Council Agenda is posted online Fridays prior to every meeting, and the public is welcome to attend every meeting. Though there didn't appear to be any opponents in the Chamber on June 1st, we expect the opposition will make sure to have several there on the 15th. Councilor Isley insisted that the US Attorney and the NC Attorney General be invited to speak.
     Interestingly, the N&O did not mention the resolution in their Council report Wednesday, but did print an Op-ed piece by a contributor that said the Raleigh Resolution would nullify democracy and was imprudent and irresponsible.

Help get Raleigh to urge Congress to revise the PATRIOT Act.  
     You confirmed you think the excessive provisions of the PATRIOT Act, and the Executive Orders listed in the Resolution must be revised - indeed many of you have said that you are frightened and alarmed by many of the measures our federal government has taken. If we do not speak out about the PATRIOT Act, worse will come. The recently exposed detainee abuses and torture, in US prisons and US camps abroad, are a prime example of what can happen when government secrecy and lack of due process occur together. 
     Just as alarming is the federal government's increasing tendency to bypass 4th Amendment rights, and use "preemptive" surveillance technology on ordinary Americans to detect "suspicious patterns" in our transactions.
    "The General Accounting Office has issued a report that identifies almost 200 data mining projects throughout the federal government that are either operational or in the planning stage. Many of them make use of personally identifiable data obtained from private sector databases..."  (EPIC, May 27, www.epic.org  )

     The Community Resolution movement does not "nullify democracy", it confirms that Americans dearly want their democracy. Over 325 local governments in 41 states as well as 4 state governments have adopted resolutions urging Congress to fix the PATRIOT Act.

The text of the Coalition resolution, and the HRC revisions are available on www.acluofnorthcarolina.org










  • [internetworkers] Urgent: Ral. PATRIOT Resolution, City Council June 15, cstalberg, 06/07/2004

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