Liberty, the greatest of all earthly blessings -- give us that precious jewel, and you may take every thing else! Guard with jealous attention the public liberty.
Suspect every one who approaches that jewel. - Patrick Henry
Endangered civil liberties:
Why It's Time to Support
the Bill of Rights
This Compilation on Civil Liberties I, v1.0
prepared by The Global Dialog Project
Santa Fe, New Mexico, September 27, 2002
HTTP://www.global-dialog.org EMAIL: democracy@global-dialog.orgThanks to: Valerie Gremillion, Todd Hochman, Moriah Williams, Larry Wang, Gifford Phillips, Lauri Hakola and Civlib Santa Fe participants
This report and its contents are under the copyright of their respective writers and agents – they are copied here for educational and nonprofit purposes, under Fair Use Provision 107 – please distribute widely with appropriate credit
Endangered civil liberties: why it's time to support the Bill of Rights
"The basis of a democratic state is liberty."
--Aristotle
TABLE OF CONTENTS
- EDITORIAL: In Support of the United States Constitution and the Bill of Rights
The Bill of Rights - the first ten amendments to the U.S. Constitution
SECTION I: Support of the Bill of Rights and civil liberties at the local level
- ABC News: Patriot Revolution? Cities From Cambridge to Berkeley Reject Anti-Terror Measure
- Citizens Resist War on the Bill of Rights - by Nat Hentoff
Local efforts in defense of the Bill of Rights:
- Nine cities have passed resolutions
- Cities with resolutions in process
Resolutions by other cities:
- Boulder Resolution Passed on July 23, 2002
- Leverett Resolution
- Amherst Resolution Accepted April 24, 2002
- Third draft of the proposed Santa Fe Resolution:In Support of Civil Liberties and the Bill of Rights
SECTION II: News and Editorials: On Civil Liberties and the War on Terrorism
- The Associated Press: How Our Rights Have Changed
- CNN: Terror attacks change the legal rights landscape after 9/11
- USA Today Blasts Feds' Anti-Terror Civil Liberties Violations
- Reuters: Sept. 11 Families Criticize Bush on Civil Rights
- What's So Patriotic About Trampling on the Bill of Rights? - Center for Constitutional Rights
- FBI targets protest groups A conservative view.
- Civil Disobedience Under Attack Just Dissent
- Moving Toward A Police State (Or Have We Arrived?)- Secret Military Tribunals, Mass Arrests and Disappearances, Wiretapping & Torture - by Michael Ratner, Center for Constitutional Rights
- Cops right to refuse cooperation by Ruben Navarrette Jr., Washington Post
- Even terrorist suspects must have access to courts First Amendment Cyber Tribune
"Either due process of law, as guaranteed by the Constitution, applies to all American citizens or it applies to none. When federal authorities can -- with impunity -- deny due process to one citizen, they can deny that right to any citizen."- The New York Times: Secrecy is our enemy
"The debate over terrorism is being framed as a trade-off between liberty and security. But protecting civil liberties can actually promote the ability of the government to defend the common good."
SECTION III: In-depth Analysis of the Patriot Act
- Layperson's Guide to the USA PATRIOT Act and Federal Executive Orders by the Northampton Bill of Rights Defense Committee
- Analysis of the Patriot Act by the Electronic Frontier Foundation
- ACLU: USA Patriot Act Boosts Government Powers While Cutting Back on Traditional Checks and Balances
"Democracies die behind closed doors," these judges said. "When the government begins closing doors, it selectively controls information rightfully belonging to the people. Selective information is misinformation." -Judge Damon J. Keith, of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.