SILENCING DISSENT:
Political Repression and the PATRIOT Act

A UIC forum & discussion sponsored by Students for Social Justice

Friday, Feb 20
12:00-2:00pm
RAFAEL CINTRON-ORTIZ LATINO CULTURAL CENTER
LECTURE CENTER B2
East of 803 S. Morgan St.
West of 750 S. Halstead St.

CONFIRMED SPEAKERS:

· Michel Shehadeh, L.A. 8 defendant, National Council of Arab Americans, Free Palestine Alliance
· James Fennerty, president of the National Lawyers Guild-Chicago
· A representative from Students for Social Justice

In the last two years, literally thousands of immigrants from Arab and Muslim countries have been harassed, intimidated, secretly incarcerated or deported as part of the Bush administration's ongoing efforts to curtail civil liberties and immigrant rights. In September 2003, the government renewed a decades long campaign to deport L.A. Eight defendants Michel Shehadeh and Khader Hamide - for distributing Palestinian literature and raising humanitarian aid in Los Angeles during the 1980's. The Bush administration claims that these constitutionally protected activities are 'retroactively' illegal under the USA PATRIOT Act. Despite growing public opposition, the Bush Administration has urged Congress to renew the recently expanded PATRIOT Act. The costs of this unbridled assault on basic liberties are potentially immense. Join us for a forum that explores the growing threat to our freedom -- and new strategies to build a movement to fight for and secure our rights.

Endorsed by: Muslim Student Action Network, Professor John Hagedorn (Criminal Justice), Chicago Coalition Against War and Racism, Palestine Solidarity Group, International Socialist Club, Campus Antiwar, South Asian Progressive Collective

Background articles:

Do Immigrants Have First Amendment Rights? - Jeanne Butterfield, MERIP Reports www.merip.org/mer/mer212/212_butterfield.html

The Latest New "War on Terrorism" - Michel Shahedeh, CounterPunch
www.counterpunch.org/shehadeh1203.html

9/11 and the LA 8 - David Cole, The Nation
www.thenation.com/doc.mhtml%3Fi=20031027&s=cole