Monday's decision by the circuit court effectively rejected the latest ploy in a pattern of City of Chicago harassment of anti-war activists through permit denials and other legal entanglements. For example:

+++ During an earlier Administrative Law hearing, Department of Transportation Assistant Director Mike Simon noted that over his 9-year career at the DOT, he had processed approximately 18,000+ permit applications, of which he had rejected only 20 to 25. Of those 20 to 25 rejections, he testified that six or more were of applications submitted by anti-war organizers involved in the current effort to win a permit;

+++ On the night the war started, Chicago police illegally surrounded and arrested over 800 protesters and passersby in the single largest mass arrest in Chicago history. All of the charges were later disposed of in a manner indicating innocence of the accused, and the whole incident, including injuries and deliberate destruction of protesters' property by the police, is subject of a class action lawsuit that will be going to trial soon;

and,

+++ Arrests of anti-war organizers on bogus misdemeanor or wildly inflated felony charges, apparently aimed at intimidating people from exercising their 1st Amendment rights.

In early January activists in what later became known as CAIRC applied to hold a march in the city's Pilsen neighborhood on March 14th, roughly the 6th anniversary of the Iraq invasion. When the Daley administration didn't respond within the time required by its own parade permit ordinance, the activists assumed that they would automatically get the permit, as required under the ordinance.

Monday's court victory was just the latest round in a permit battle that saw the activists literally win a permit twice, only to lose it twice, only to now apparently win it for good.

The City of Chicago has rejected the parade permit applications for every march marking the anniversary of the Iraq war. This year they again tried to defeat the application — but by rejecting it after the deadline required for the City's response. CAIRC was thus forced in mid-January to appeal to the City's administrative law courts, a forum in which plaintiffs rarely prevail. But prevail they did, and on January 28th Administrator Law Officer Jerome Prosser ruled that "the parade permit at issue must be granted."

But on February 1st the Chicago fought back again, suing the activists to overturn the Administrative Law Court's decision. On February 4th they served the activists with the suit and with an emergency motion demanding that the activists appear in court the next day. If granted, the emergency motion would have prevented CAIRC from going ahead with publicizing their March 14 protest, effectively gutting the victory they had won in the lower court and thwarting their 1st amendment right of speech and assembly.

While most of the activist defendants did appear court the next day, they did not have time to secure legal representation. At the hearing the Chicago pressed to have their emergency motion heard and adjudicated — despite the activists lacking any professional legal representation — but were rejected by Circuit Court Judge Sconza.

As for now, Chicago peace and immigrant rights activists are savoring Monday's sweet victory, and moving full speed ahead to organize the March 14th protest. Oh, and just to make sure the City of Chicago gets the message that they're not intimidated, tomorrow morning the activists will host a press conference announcing their victory right outside the door of the Mayor's office.

Chicago's march on the 6th anniversary of the Iraq invasion will be conducted as follows:

Saturday, March 14
12 noon — rally at Marshall Blvd & Cermak Road
(2 blocks from the "California" Pink Line stop)

1 pm march in the street via Cermak, Damen and 18th Street to 18th/Blue Island/Loomis for a closing rally in the street (on Loomis between 18th & 19th).

CAIRC consists of more than 50 community organizations working for peace and immigrant rights. They were assisted by attorneys from the Chicago Chapter of National Lawyers Guild — Jeff Frank, Melinda Power, Jim Fennerty and Chris Kruger. For more information about the March 14th protest and on-going civil liberties battles in Chicago, email CCAWR@aol.com