[Lowdown] Stop watching us! Rally and Panel in Washington, DC

Jamie McClelland jm at mayfirst.org
Wed Oct 23 09:32:29 EDT 2013


AN IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT TWO UPCOMING ACTIONS TO CHALLENGE NSA
SURVEILLANCE.  

The NSA is watching us online and tracking who we call. It's creating a
climate of fear, chilling free speech and violating our basic human
rights. And the NSA is conducting its surveillance without any
meaningful oversight.

A movement is building to change all of this. Please read for updates on
a panel discussion featuring Alfredo Lopez from May First/People Link on
Thursday and a large scale rally planning for this coming Saturday. 

* THE PANEL: ENEMIES OF THE STATE? GOVERNMENT SURVEILLANCE OF
COMMUNITIES OF COLOR[1]

WHEN: Thursday, October 24, 2013 from 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM (EDT) 

WHERE: Busboys and Poets (Langston Room) 2021 14th St NW, Washington, DC
20009 

RSVP: The event is free and open to the public but you must RSVP[1] to
reserve your seat. Space is limited. 

The federal government has a long history of spying on people of color
to discredit racial justice movements. During the 1970s, the government
passed legislation to rein in these programs. But since Sept. 11, those
safeguards have been eroded, and many in these communities are now under
both digital and_ _physical surveillance. 

Join a lively and wide-ranging panel discussion on how local and federal
spying operations impact movements for social and racial justice. The
conversation will also explore ways to fight back to protect our online
digital rights and Internet freedom. 

Morgan State University Professor JARED BALL, the host of the radio
program _Super Funky Soul Power Hour_, will moderate the discussion.
Panelists include former political prisoner and Black Panther Party
leader DHORUBA BIN-WAHAD, filmmaker, lawyer and ACLU organizer SEEMA
SADANANDAN, communications specialist and media activist ADWOA MASOZI of
the Bill of Rights Defense Committee, the legal and policy director of
Desis Rising Up and Moving FHAD AHMED, the American Indian
Movement's BILL MEANS and ALFREDO LOPEZ of May First/People Link. 

This event is presented by FREE PRESS, the CENTER FOR MEDIA JUSTICE and
VOICES FOR INTERNET FREEDOM. 

* THE RALLY: STOP WATCHING US: RALLY AGAINST MASS SURVEILLANCE

Right now the NSA is spying on everyone's personal communications, and
they're operating without any meaningful oversight. Since the Snowden
leaks started, MORE THAN 571,000 PEOPLE FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE HAVE
SIGNED THE STOPWATCHING.US PETITION[2] telling the U.S. Congress that
we want them to rein in the NSA. 

On October 26th, the 12th anniversary of the signing of the US Patriot
Act, THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE FROM ACROSS THE POLITICAL SPECTRUM WILL UNITE
IN WASHINGTON, D.C., TO SAY:  

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH. STOP WATCHING US.

 WHEN: Sat., Oct. 26, 12 p.m.  WHERE: Gather at Columbus Circle in front
 of Union Station, then march to the Capitol Reflecting Pool   If you
 need transportation assistance, Free Press has reserved 3 buses to
 leave from NYC, Saturday October 26th for the Rally Against Mass
 Surveillance. For details and to purchase a ticket go here:
 https://stopwatchingusnyc.eventbrite.com/ [3] 

STOPWATCHING.US is a diverse coalition of more than 100 public advocacy
organizations and businesses, including the ACLU, Access, the Electronic
Frontier Foundation, Free Press, Mozilla, MAG-Net and May First/People
Link. 

Links:
------
[1] https://voices4netfreedom.eventbrite.com/
[2] https://optin.stopwatching.us
[3] https://stopwatchingusnyc.eventbrite.com/


-- 
May First/People Link
Growing networks to build a just world
http://www.mayfirst.org
https://support.mayfirst.org

OpenPGP Key: http://current.workingdirectory.net/pages/identity/ 
xmpp: jamie at im.mayfirst.org
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