Further Developments in the Maryland State Police political surveillance scandal

Oct 1, 2008

Yesterday (9/30) the great folks at the Maryland ACLU filed a new round of Maryland Public Information Act requests.  The new requests, made in the name of 32 groups and more than 250 individuals, are intended to reveal the full extent of the recently revealed political surveillance in Maryland (read our last post about the spying scandal here) - which agencies were involved, which laws were broken, which activists and groups were targeted.  It's pretty clear that what we already know about police spying on anti-death penalty and anti-war groups may potentially be the tip of the iceberg here, and we're grateful to the ACLU for following through with this new round of requests.  Red Emma's is proud to be one of the 32 groups on whose behalf these new requests were being filed, and we hope that you'll join us in demanding full disclosure from the State of Maryland and other agencies regarding these troubling programs of infilitration, intimidation, and surveillance.

For more information, check out:

Maryland ACLU Press Release on the new round of filings       

Spying may have started earlier than police said (Baltimore Sun)

ACLU Seeks Data on Spying for 32 Groups (Washington Post)

FBI and Police raid Infoshop and Community Centers

Aug 30, 2008

UPDATES: 

Donate to help RNC arrestees here: Cold Snap Legal Collective

Donate to help the Long Haul here: Long Haul Infoshop

Long Haul Infoshop Raid

From Indybay

On August 27th at around 10:30am, 5-6 police officers from three agencies made their way into the Long Haul Infoshop in Berkeley, broke down every door, and confiscated all computers on the property. Computers taken included those used by the Slingshot Collective and East Bay Prisoner Support. Police also broke into cabinets, cut locks, and went through mail.

People arrived after being informed of the situation, and demanded that the police show a warrant. The police said they would show one once they were done, and they did. Both CopWatch and The Berkeley Daily Planet were there to cover the incident. The raid was conducted by the UC Berkeley Police, Alameda County Sheriff, and the FBI. The police stated that the computer equipment "may have been used to commit a felony." This is the first time there has been a raid since the infoshop opened 15 years ago.

More Info:

http://thelonghaul.org/

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/08/27/18530407.php

Twin Cities Raid

From Twin Cities Indymedia

At 9:15 Friday night, the Saint Paul Police entered all doors of the RNC Convergence Space in St. Paul, MN with guns drawn. The Space serves as a community center and organizing space for the upcoming protests against the Republican National Convention. At the time of the raid, people were sitting down to dinner and watching a movie.

The police presented no warrant at the time of the raid, but claim that they have a warrant to search the space for "bomb-making" materials. No "bomb-making" materials were found. Rather, the police barked orders for everyone, including a 5 year old child, to get on the floor with their faces to the ground. Everyone inside was put in handcuffs.

In the hours following, the police photographed everyone inside the space and recorded information from their Identification cards. The police took all personal laptops and hard drives. One female activist was sexually harassed by a cop who groped her crotch.

At around 11pm, after a crowd had gathered outside the space, the police began releasing detainees one by one. Corporate media showed up eventually. By midnight, the last detainees were being released. As of the most recent reports, there have been NO ARRESTS. The police are claiming that the space must be closed down due to "fire code" violations. According to City Council member Dave Thune, the police do not have the authority to enforce fire code. Only the Fire Department has the power to enforce this code.

More Info:

http://twincities.indymedia.org/

Get ready for the Radical Bookfair Pavilion at the Baltimore Book Festival!

Aug 13, 2008

From September 26th through 28th, Red Emma's is going to be hosting what's shaping up to be an amazing Radical Bookfair Pavilion at the annual Baltimore Book Festival in Mt. Vernon Square.  With close to 20 tablers, and a full weekend of speakers including Amy Goodman, Dave Zirin, Iraq Veterans Against the War, Seth Tobocman, Michael Muhummad Knight, China Martens, Jessica Mills, MK Asante Jr., and more - all outdoors in the middle of the Book Festival - it's looking like a great weekend.  Head over to the bookfair website for more info.... more >>

Getatchew Mekuria & The Ex!

Jul 29, 2008

What happens when the alltime foremost saxaphonist from Ethiopia teams up with one of the most awesome punk rock bands in existence?  Madness, we're sure, which is why Red Emma's will probably all be at the Getatchew Mekurya and the Ex show at the Ottobar on August 14th.  We've got a limited number of discount, $10 tickets available for the show down at the store - get them before they're gone. more >>

Police infilitration and surveillance of Baltimore Activists

Jul 19, 2008

Thanks to the Maryland ACLU, an extensive program of police surveillance and infilitration against Baltimore-area antiwar and anti-death penalty activists has been revealed.  There's 46 pages of newly released and utterly chilling documents available online.

For the Red Emma's collective, these documents were especially interesting - the picture attached to this article shows the portion of the released material in which we found out that, at a January 2006 public informational event about the Death Penalty in Maryland we hosted at our storefront, an undercover agent from the Maryland State Police's Homeland Security and Intelligence Division was in attendance. 

The police reports, which document surveillance of nonviolent protestors and organizers, show that the investigation was aimed at gathering intelligence regarding "anti-war terrorism" and "anti-government terrorism" (p. 36).  For anyone who knows the activists who were victims of this program of state surveillance and infilitration, this could not be a more ridiculous concern, and we are deeply disappointed (although not entirely surprised) that the apparatus of "Homeland Security" is being used against constitutionally protected dissent. 

 If you're concerned about this situation, and would like to learn more, there's going to be a speak-out with some of activists named at 2640 on Thursday the 24th - see the events listing in the right column for more information.

Audio and Video from Bill Fletcher Jr.'s talk on Solidarity Divided

Jul 11, 2008

VIDEO: Bill Fletcher Jr. speaks about his book

AUDIO: Bill Fletcher + Updates from UNITE-HERE and the United Workers

Who's got the power? We've got the power! (Very short video of the 7/10 UNITE-HERE picket at the City Center Sheraton)

Grassroots Journalism: Youth Media Summer Course @ 2640

Jun 21, 2008

Starting July 1st, 2640 will be hosting a Grassroots Journalism Course for Youth.  This 6-week course is a pilot for what we hope will be a more regular series - this first run will focus on print reporting, and will be taught by Ron Kipling Williams, Nick Petr, and Bobby Marvin (with special guest speakers bringing various social justice and media perspectives to the table).   After the intro on Tuesday July 1st, at 6PM,  the course will happen on Mondays from July 7th through August 11th, with extra sessions on Tuesday the 8th, Tuesday the 15th, August 5th and August 12th.  Each session costs just $5.  For more info, contact awareandoutraged@yahoo.com.  Spread the word! more >>

The Baltimore Zine & DIY Fest @ 2640: Now accepting tabling registrations!

May 27, 2008

Ready for another round of do-it-yourself workshops? The Second Annual DIY Fest is back in Baltimore! On Saturday, June 14th head on over to 2640 to learn a new skill or to check out some of the best DIY crafters & zinesters that our fair Charm City has to offer! Never been to a DIY Fest? The Baltimore Zine & DIY Fest (Do It Yourself Festival) is an annual one day event featuring workshops of self-sufficient, low-budget strategies for making stuff and doing things. Why should learning important skills always revolve around your wallet??? DIY Fest is a free event!

AND, join us as a tabler!  Tables are just $5 for the whole day.  Red Emma's will be on hand with delicious coffee drinks & vegan baked goods courtesy of the Baltimore Baking Brigade - don't miss it, it should be a blast!  If you want to table, send an email to diyfest (at) gmail.com with your name, the name of your project, what you plan to sell/give away at your table, and anything else we should know; and let us know SOON, space is filling up!

New Indyreader available!

May 16, 2008

Hot off the presses, and available now at Red Emma's and elsewhere around town, issue 8 of the excellent (and free) Indypendent Reader looks at the (sorry) state of transportation in Baltimore.  The exchange between a city official and a former Baltimore transit planner on the proposed Red Line is fantastic, and there's great stuff on the day-to-day experience of riding the MTA from teens involved with Kids on the Hill and the Algebra Project (who incidentally occupied City Hall's lawn for three days this week to demand more funding for peer to peer educational programs), a sweet article on biking in Baltimore by Thoughtworm's Sean Stewart, and lots more. The Indyreader also launched a new website with this issue at indyreader.org, with full back issues available, plus supplementary news reporting from Baltimore's grassroots. more >>

Two radical history tours of Baltimore in May

Apr 30, 2008

First up, check out the IWW's May Day Roll: The Baltimore Labor History Bike Tour. Starting May 1st at 9:30 AM (don't worry, you can hook up with the tour at Red Emma's at 10:30 if that sounds a little early). More info over at Baltimore Indymedia.

If that's too short notice, or you can't get off work, or don't bike, don't worry! On May 18th there'll be a Baltimore People's Bus Tour: Commemorating the Catonsville Nine Anniversary, which will be touring sites of struggle from the 60's in the area, with a focus on anti-war activism and the Black Panthers. $10 tickets are available at Red Emma's, click through for the full details. more >>

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