The Policing of Political Speech
Constraints on Mass Dissent in the U.S.
The Policing of Political SpeechConstraints on Mass Dissent in the U.S.A National Lawyers Guild ReportWritten by Heidi BoghosianEdited by Jamie MunroAdditional editing by Paige Cram, Dan Gregor, Michael Leonard and Suzanne-Juliette MobleyInterior layout by Paige Cram© 2010 National Lawyers Guild. Non-profit educational media are hereby granted permission to repro-duce or redistribute any part hereof, provided attribution to the National Lawyers Guild is included and acopy is furnished to the National Lawyers Guild free of charge within thirty days of publication. Advance permission is required for commercial use, including use as handouts or other materials at conferences or trainings for which a fee is charged. All other rights reserved.David Gespass, President ▪ Russell Bloom and Carol Sobel, Executive Vice Presidents ▪ Rachel Rosnick,Student Vice President ▪ Roxana Orrell, Treasurer ▪ Heidi Boghosian, Executive Director ISBN: 978-0-615-39888-4A copy of this report is available for download at www.nlg.orgAdditional copies can be obtained from: National Lawyers Guild132 Nassau Street, #922 New York, NY 10038(212) 679-5100, ext. 15
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Introduction
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An Inventory of Practices that Chill Free Speech
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Falsely Labeling Protest Rhetoric and Political HyperboleUsing Grand Juries for Information GatheringStigmatizing Activists as “Terrorists”False Police Reporting as Captured by Independent VisualDocumentationVideo TamperingPreemptive Actions Against Protesters by Police to Disrupt FreeSpeech and AssemblyPolice-Initiated Violence and Abuse of Less-Lethal MunitionsNegative Media Coverage as Cover for Police Violence
National Special Security Events
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The 2008 Republican National Convention
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Law Enforcement Targets Protest OrganizersRecruiting Law Enforcement from Around the CountryPre-Event Arrests and Raids of Independent MediaPre-Event Arrests and Raids of Organizers’ Space and Activists’ResidencesThe RNC 8Guilt by AssociationRNC 2008: The EventCivil Lawsuits
The 2009 G-20 Summit
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Local Media Hypes Fear of ViolenceLong Range Acoustic Devices as WeaponsNo Identification of OfficersCanine UnitsOC Vapor Police Use Text MessagingTweeting as Terrorism
Selected Successes in the Courtroom
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Conclusion
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A History of the National Lawyers Guild
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National Lawyers Guild Resources
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