April 29, 2004
More than 300 cities and states denounce the Patriot Act
Contact:
Nancy Talanian, Director
Bill of Rights Defense Committee
Northampton, Massachusetts
413-582-0110
info@bordc.org
April 29, 2004-On Tuesday, Tisbury voters on Martha's Vineyard became the 300th government body to denounce parts of the Patriot Act and other laws and policies that threaten civil liberties. On Monday and early on Tuesday, the city councils of Pittsburgh and El Paso, respectively, approved resolutions critical of the controversial Act. Voters in Chilmark, also on Martha's Vineyard, approved a ballot initiative yesterday.
More than 51 million people, or one in six U.S. residents, live in the 297 cities and counties and four states (Alaska, Hawaii, Maine, and Vermont) that have passed resolutions. Fifteen of the communities are among the country's 25 most populous cities. They include New York City and Washington, D.C., which were the sites of the September 11th attacks. Hundreds more communities and states are considering resolutions. Last December, the National League of Cities approved a resolution calling for amending the Patriot Act.
The continuing escalation of the nonpartisan grassroots movement challenges the Bush Administration's assertion that Americans overwhelmingly approve of the Patriot Act. "That approval lasts until people open the cover and see for themselves that we're all potentially under surveillance without probable cause," according to Nancy Talanian, director of the Bill of Rights Defense Committee.
Criminal justice experts agree. On Wednesday, Thomson Wadsworth released the results of its survey of criminal justice experts, which shows widespread disapproval of the Patriot Act.
- 95% of respondents felt that "the USA Patriot Act was passed too quickly and/or without adequate analysis on its impact on other laws and public policy."
- 74% believed that some of the act's provisions "violate individual rights."
- 68% felt that the government "use existing/regular laws
instead to protect the nation
from terrorism."
Talanian observes that it isn't only the Patriot Act that has people concerned, but other measures and policies carried out since September 11: "Americans become skeptical when they see people being held solely on the Administration's say-so, without any judicial oversight by U.S. or international courts." She cites as examples the roundups and detentions of Arab, Muslim, and South Asian men after September 11, and the continued detentions of 'enemy combatants'-including two U.S. citizens-without charges. "If the objective of these measures is to protect us from terrorism, then policies that deny people due process or humane treatment may have the opposite effect."
Talanian notes that people are crossing party lines in communities and in Congress to debate the Patriot Act and other measures, and to call for changes. Many candidates for public office, including the president, have been stating their positions on the Patriot Act on the campaign trail. Talanian believes that the grassroots movement will play a role in helping people make informed choices in this election year. "President Bush has warned the American people that the so-called war on terrorism could last for decades. That is a very long time to live without fundamental rights."
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NOTE: For more information about the Bill of Rights Defense Committee
and about other resolutions
passed or in progress nationally, visit www.bordc.org.
The 15 largest U.S. cities with resolutions are:
New York City (1)*
Los Angeles (2)
Chicago (3)
Philadelphia (5)
Dallas (8)
Detroit (10)
San Jose (11)
San Francisco (13)
Austin (16)
Baltimore (17)
Milwaukee (19)
Washington, D.C. (21)
El Paso (23)
Seattle (24)
Denver (25)
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* Numbers in parentheses ( ) indicate rank among most populous U.S. cities.