#NATO, The Bail Fund, and Chicago Today

Breaking News: 

National Lawyers Guild Condemns Preemptive Police Raids & Unlawful Searches on the Streets

This coming weekend I will be out on the street with Occupy Chicago. We are protesting the NATO summit here in Chicago. There are a number of reasons. 

This summit is costing Chicago money that it can ill afford at this time. The city has been neglected at the hands of privatized institutions far to long to make this kind of Public Relations investment. As of right now, there is a number of indications that the citizens of the city, and the county, will have to foot the bill for Rahm's showboat. That is sufficient reason to object to the NATO Summit. But, NATO itself is objectionable.

NATO was created to defend Western Europe, specifically Western Germany, against Soviet Expansion. Those days are long gone. This is not 1949. We are not frightened by a bomber gap, missile gap, tank gap, We are no longer digging up out back yards in fear of sprouting mushrooms clouds. As we got over all the past gaps, and the real threat of full scale nuclear war. It is way past time to get over NATO. The Soviet Union is gone!

NATO no longer makes us safer. NATO is not longer defending truth, justice, and the American way.  

While there are those who point to September 11, 2011 as a justifications for NATO to exist, it is worth support because it is protecting us. Is it really? We have spent billions on support for NATO since the fall of the Soviet Union. Yet, not one of NATO's member nations could, or would, give us warning about the attack. That alone makes the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as pointless as it is wasteful.

NATO is no longer needed.

Chicago Bail Fund  

The Chicago Bail Fund will assist those arrested in Chicago while protesting the war-machine of NATO, economic injustice, and related issues. It has been set up by Occupy Chicago, who will administer the funds with the help of its fiscal sponsors, the Crossroads Fund and 8th Day Center for Justice. All donations are tax-deductible.

To make a donation by check, make checks payable to "8th Day Center / Chicago Bail Fund", and mail (or drop off) to:

8th Day Center for Justice
205 W Monroe St # 500
Chicago, IL 60606

The Other Side of Chicago

THIS IS A CALL FOR ASSISTANCE on FRIDAY (5/18) and SATURDAY (5/19) that most Occupiers are able to provide. It is non-arrestable, safe for children and the elderly, and not particularly physically taxing.

On FRIDAY (tomorrow) and SATURDAY (day after tomorrow), we need people to cover shifts at the NW Clinic, 2354 N. Milwaukee. Various Chicago-area Occupy groups have adopted the Save Our Clinics action of the Mental Health Movement as an action to support with solidarity.

See below for an explanation of the issue.

The task that is needed is to be at the clinic throughout the day to hold the vigil down. We are low on participation for the next two days because there are major, NATO-related demonstrations happening in
other parts of the city that have pulled away our most loyal participants. This is a great chance for someone who wants to help, but hasn't found the right opportunity, to pitch in.

The task consists of simply being present at the clinic. There are chairs available, and a long sidewalk area to move around on. Local businesses are kindly providing bathrooms from early morning to late night. You could spend the time talking with other Occupiers, reading a book, or listening to an iPod. You will not be committing any crimes, simply sitting outdoors, lawfully on the sidewalk, babysitting our pile of supplies while others are away at other actions.

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Many of you will already know the issue, but for those who don't, very briefly:

Mayor Emanuel has opted to close six of the twelve Chicago Mental Health Clinics, with devastating effects on the patients in those clinics, whose therapist relationships will be destroyed or seriously disrupted. These patients are (in many cases) the most vulnerable among us. Fifteen people have already been hospitalized since the clinic closures began a few weeks ago.

The plan was originally presented as a cost-saving measure, and nominally it reduces the city budget by $3M. However, in the face of extensive evidence that this $3M reduction would cause a ballooning of costs in other places, the justification was switched to "improving care" by sending patients to private clinics. However, the private clinics that the city has named are full, losing funding, and in some cases, not qualified to provide the type of care needed.

The real reason is that Mayor Emanuel adheres to the same neoliberal economic theories that led to the mortgage crisis. These clinics are being closed because mental health is a politically unpopular cause, and he believes he can cut the programs while funneling money to campaign supporters who run private clinics.

From @OccupyRP

To all who support our right to protest:

Below is the press release issued by the National Lawyers Guild about the criminal actions of the Chicago Police Department against prominent Occupy Chicago activists.

CANG8 stands in solidarity with the victims of this violent police action.  They have done nothing wrong.  They have the right to protest against NATO.

As of this hour, the CPD have not admitted to the lawyers that they have the eight people in custody.

Call Mayor Emanuel 312-744-5000 and Police Superintendent McCarthy 312-744-4000:  Demand the immediate release of the activists.

If you see police misconduct, or are harassed or stopped, call the NLG Hotline:  312-913-0039

And remind all who want to protest with us on Sunday, May 20th:  The police acted last night under the cover of darkness, while we'll be marching in the light of day while the whole world will be watching.  Don't be afraid to come out and raise your voices!

Joe Iosbaker
Pat Hunt
Joe Lombardo

Coalition Against NATO/G8 War & Poverty Agenda


PRESS RELEASE: Chicago Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild

National Lawyers Guild Condemns Preemptive Police Raids & Unlawful Searches on the Streets. Early morning house raid in Bridgeport and harassment of activists indicates intolerance of free speech rights.

NOTE: Press conference to be held TODAY at 5:30pm at 3340 W. Fillmore Street, the Chicago Police Department's Organized Crime Division

Chicago, IL -- The National Lawyers Guild (NLG) condemns a preemptive police raid that took place at approximately 11:30pm Wednesday in the Bridgeport neighborhood, and instances of harassment on the street, in which Chicago police are unlawfully detaining, searching, and questioning NATO protesters. The Bridgeport raid was apparently conducted by the Organized Crime Division of the Chicago Police Department and resulted in as many as 8 arrests.

According to witnesses in Bridgeport, police broke down a door to access a 6-unit apartment building near 32nd & Morgan Streets without a search warrant. Police entered an apartment with guns drawn and tackled one of the tenants to the floor in his kitchen. Two tenants were handcuffed for more than 2 hours in their living room while police searched their apartment and a neighboring unit, repeatedly calling one of the tenants a "Commie faggot." A search warrant produced 4 hours after police broke into the apartment was missing a judge's signature, according to witnesses. Among items seized by police in the Bridgeport raid were beer-making supplies and at least one cell phone.

"Preemptive raids like this are a hallmark of National Special Security Events," said Sarah Gelsomino with the NLG and the People's Law Office. "The Chicago police and other law enforcement agencies should be aware that this behavior will not be tolerated and will result in real consequences for the city."

In another incident, 3 plainclothes police officers unlawfully stopped, handcuffed, and searched a NATO protester on Michigan Avenue and Wacker Drive at approximately 2pm today. According to the protester, he did not consent to a search and there was no probable cause to detain him. The police also photographed and questioned him about where he was from, how he got to Chicago, how long it took, what he was doing here, where he was staying, who he was with, and how long he was planning to say in Chicago. The protester refused to answer any questions and was eventually released.

The NLG has received reports that at least 20 people have been arrested so far this week, and two people are still in custody, not including the Bridgeport residents who are still unaccounted for. One of the protesters currently being detained, Danny Johnson of Los Angeles, has been accused of assaulting a police officer during an immigrant rights rally on Tuesday afternoon. However, multiple witnesses on the scene, including an NLG Legal Observer, recorded a version of events that contradict the accusations of police.

During the week of NATO demonstrations, the NLG is staffing a legal office and answering calls from activists on the streets and in jail. The NLG will also be dispatching scores of Legal Observers to record police misconduct and representing arrestees in the event the city pursues criminal prosecutions.

Contact: NLG Legal Worker Kris Hermes 510-681-6361 or NLG Attorney Sarah Gelsomino 773-520-8246

 See you on the Street!