Data collection on WI voting admin, new FISA law as 4th amendment insult and ACLU on The Mic

Here are a couple of tidbits for today...

In a direct critique of Senator Obama's FISA vote, Truthout's Director Marc Ash writes, "The problem is that what was at stake in the FISA legislation vote was more than a political ideal; it was the rule of law. You ratified an unconstitutional and egregious degradation of the Fourth Amendment. That won't go away easily. The United States's Constitution is not merely the security blanket for 'civil liberties groups.' It is the birthright of all Americans. It is our national treasure... The alternative to the rule of law is the law of rule."

Did you know that of about 9000 election clerks nationwide, about 2000 are in Wisconsin? Our highly decentralized voting administration system is great for localized registration and voting, yet a challenge to get a clear picture of whether or not we have uniformity in the system. Check out this story about data that will be collected this fall on how we do elections.

And check out the Madison Area ACLU Community Advocate Stacy Harbaugh on the progressive radio morning show yesterday morning:

Defend free speech - become a legal observer

Legal Observer Trainings Scheduled for Summer!

The following free workshops are for anyone who wants to defend free speech and assembly by becoming a volunteer legal observer for the ACLU of Wisconsin. Three workshops are offered this summer: volunteers only have to participate in one workshop to be trained. Bilingual volunteers are especially encouraged to get involved.

Monday, July 14th – 6-8pm; Madison Public Library, Central (downtown) location, 2nd floor, room 202 - WORKSHOP FULL!

Thursday, July 24th - 6-8pm; Madison Public Library, Central (downtown) location, 2nd floor, room 202

Monday, August 18th - 6-8pm; Madison Public Library, Central (downtown) location, 2nd floor, room 204

RSVP required: email the Madison Area Office or call (608) 469-5540 if you plan on attending a workshop. Please forward this announcement to friends who are also interested in supporting everyone’s right (even if not always the content) of people’s right to freedom of speech, assembly and protest.

For more on the ACLU of Wisconsin’s legal observer program and for pictures of observers in action, visit our blog entry on a recent downtown protest.

What Are Legal Observers?
Legal Observers are trained volunteers who are legal witnesses to political demonstrations and who document the events of public protests, including any incidents of police misconduct or violations of the rights of protesters. Legal Observers are committed to defending free speech in a way that is as objective as possible so that their documentation of public protests can be used as evidence if police misconduct or obstructions to Constitutionally-protected free speech are challenged in court. As a Legal Observer, volunteers can commit to being among others who are free speech defenders, but also aren’t expected to be at every rally – volunteers pick which protests to observe with neutrality and can choose not to volunteer at protests where they wish to be participants.

They failed democracy, so we're suing

From the national ACLU on the FISA vote:
Yesterday, elected officials in Washington sold out the Constitution -- again.

Cowed by the Bush administration’s pre-election scare tactics, the Senate passed freedom-stealing FISA legislation undermining your Fourth Amendment rights.

This is not a “compromise,” as some in Congress would have us believe. The only thing they compromised is your freedom. Become an ACLU monthly donor, and stand up for your rights.

The FISA Amendments Act allows for mass, untargeted and warrantless surveillance of all communications coming into and out of the United States. And to top it off, it hands immunity to telecom companies for their role in domestic spying. This means your phone calls can be tapped and emails read with virtually no proof of threat, and there's no chance to learn how the telecoms invaded your privacy.

It’s outrageous, unconstitutional and un-American. That’s why the ACLU is prepared to challenge this unconstitutional law the moment President Bush signs it.

Now is an especially important time for you to act. Not only can you help fund essential work fighting this unconstitutional legislation but your decision to make a monthly pledge can move us a giant step closer to our target of 2,000 new monthly supporters this month. If we reach that goal by July 31st, the ACLU will earn a $100,000 Matching Gift further strengthening our efforts to stand up for freedom as no other organization in America can.

As a Guardian of Liberty, you can join tens of thousands of your fellow citizens in donating a small amount each month to help the ACLU’s critical work in defense of the Constitution and Bill of Rights.

Donate now to help the ACLU fight for freedom and move closer to our $100,000 Matching Gift goal.

In one fell swoop, Congress has not only legalized the Bush administration’s secret NSA spying program, it has given the government even more power to listen to our phone calls and read our emails than even the Bush administration illegally claimed for itself under its secret program. And, by granting telecoms immunity, it has greatly harmed the chances of ever learning the extent of the administration’s lawless actions.

While politicians lack resolve, the ACLU and its supporters do not. Stand with the ACLU by becoming a monthly supporter of the ACLU today.

In defense of freedom,
Anthony D. Romero
Executive Director
ACLU

And in other news...
We are all getting really used to showing our ID for everything these days, yes? Now people buying alcohol near the UW campus will be asked to scan their drivers licenses for authenticity verification. Getting fake IDs off the street is a great thing, but using drivers licenses for non-driving purposes is on the rise.

Want the update on where Wisconsin legislators stand on reproductive rights issues? NARAL just issued their scorecard.

FISA votes fail, WI state GOP resignation letter cites civil liberties concerns, ACLU LGBT event

In the news...
Wisconsin State Rep. Jeff Wood's GOP party resignation letter could be a call to action on civil liberties protections.

Watch the headlines for the results of the FISA bill vote in the US Senate - while Senator Kohl didn't support Feingold's amendment that would have stripped retroactive immunity for telecoms for handing over phone records, both Wisconsin Senators voted yes on the failed Bingaman's amendment that would have held off suits until an Inspector General's report on the President's warrantless wiretapping program was completed. Today, the US Senate failed the American public in the effort to protect privacy and transparency in our government. For more updates on the FISA issue, visit the national ACLU website.


And for our Milwaukee area readers...

WORT today! National ACLU Legislative Director talks about taking action on FISA

Need the update on issues regarding domestic spying, telecom immunity and what we can do to clean up the FISA mess? Tune into WORT-FM community radio today (Tuesday) at noon to get the scoop from Caroline Fredrickson, National ACLU Legislative Director.

Chris Dols will host this episode of A Public Affair with Fredrickson to ask her more about the FISA Amendments Act, which the US Senate will more than likely be passing today and sending to Bush to sign into law. The bill guts the oversight authority of the FISA Court which was set up to limit the government's spying in the aftermath of the FBI's Counter Intelligence Programs (COINTELPRO) and Watergate.

Madison folks can tune into 89.9 on their dials or anyone can stream the show live at noon, central time. Please call in with your questions.

Today, Fredrickson grilled the Washington Post about their support for the flawed FISA bill.

p.s. Reading this blog post too late? You can still hear the interview over the next two weeks on WORT's archive. Look for June 8th's A Public Affair show for download or listen.

FISA action alert, news on privacy, voting rights

Privacy
Viacom goes after illegal posts to YouTube, but judge orders Google/YouTube to turn over ALL user IDs and IP addresses. If a judge demanded all of the names of people who had checked out any video in our public library, citizens would be mad as hell. Google acquired YouTube at the end of 2006.


Voting Rights
Curious about how redistricting impacts voters decisions? Not a fancy Sociologist? Population numbers give you a headache? Don't fear! Our friends at the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign passed along a link to the new Brennan Center's Citizen's Guide to Redistricting. You can download the PDF for the primer on how lines are drawn, how they impact an election and suggestions for reform that emphasize equality and transparency. You can also check out what the ACLU has done on this issue and more on voting rights in an episode of the first season of the Freedom Files.

Another article about the myth of voter fraud. This one points out the idea that "fighting voter fraud" is code for "not letting black people vote." While I agree that the perpetuation of myths around so-called voter fraud has consequences in our continued discussion about politics and race, it is always a shame when the simple, Constitutionally-granted right to vote is made into a partisan issue. All citizens have the right to vote. Period.


Domestic Spying
Here is an article from the Denver Post on a trend of local eyes doing federal domestic spying work. Wisconsin has also deployed "Terrorism Liaison Officers" to be trained to spot suspicious behavior. Civil liberties and privacy concerns are obvious - legal behavior of citizens could be misinterpreted as criminal or pre-criminal acts and ensnare innocent people in this domestic spy game.


And a word from the national ACLU on FISA:
On Tuesday, July 8th, the Senate will consider an unconstitutional FISA bill that lets lawbreaking phone companies off the hook.

It is vital you contact your senators today and ask them to vote against this bill. Demand they protect your privacy and the rule of law.

This July 8, senators will make a crucial decision: whether or not to eviscerate our treasured right to privacy in our own homes and let lawbreaking telecom companies off the hook for handing over private information without a warrant.

The bottom line is that no president should have the power to monitor the phones and emails of Americans without getting a warrant. And no president should be given the power to pardon companies that broke the law.

Contact your senators today. Tell them what the 4th of July means to you and ask them to defend your freedom by opposing the unconstitutional FISA bill.

Sincerely,
Caroline Fredrickson, Director
ACLU Washington Legislative Office
P.S. Some senators, like Chris Dodd and Russ Feingold, are trying to improve this horrible legislation. And while we greatly appreciate these valiant efforts, these efforts should not -- and will not -- provide political cover for any senator who votes ‘yes’ on a final bill with warrantless wiretapping or immunity for telecommunications companies that broke the law. Let your senators know the bottom line: no bill with warrantless wiretapping or telecom immunity.

Check out a commentary from Amy Goodman on what Dodd and Feingold are doing and how other Senators' distancing themselves from controversial issues won't work in the long run.

As always, to get the scoop on national issues like restoring real FISA protections and Habeus Corpus, closing Guantanamo and stopping rendition and torture, visit the national ACLU website.

Privacy in the news, ACLU is "blog famous"

Welcome back Cap City Liberty readers! The Madison Area Office is happily back in gear for the summer, organizing legal observer trainings and working with our fabulous interns on our Know Your Rights workshop development. Read on for today's news in review, upcoming events and more.

While this isn't about governmental intrusion in our privacy, this story is too interesting to ignore. A Wisconsin Court of Appeals will be hearing a case about a guy who videotaped his girlfriend naked without her knowledge or permission. The article provides some thought-provoking dialogue about what a reasonable expectation of privacy means when it gets tangled in legal precident and language.

Update on the electronics at the boarder issue. This article shows again that racism and bigotry can be a replacement for "reasonable suspicion."

Here's a shameless ACLU plug from the Canadian feminist blog, ShamelessMag.com! The ACLU of Wisconsin got a mention by a young woman who I believe is the same perosn who asked the ACLU's national Executive Director Anthony Romero, a good question at the national ACLU conference about youth involvement in activism and the ACLU's work on Native (north)American rights. Go girl! Check out the Cap City Liberty Blog entries from early June to read more about our group trip to DC.

The second season of the Freedom Files is out! Check out the previews at http://aclu.tv/ and you can see more about important issues the ACLU is working on nationally. The Freedom Files television series draws on the power of true stories to highlight vital civil liberties issues of our time and inspire viewers to take action. These half-hour documentaries feature the firsthand accounts of real people who have taken on the powers that be, often at great risk to themselves, in order to preserve their precious constitutional rights. Drop us a line at the ACLU of Wisconsin Madison Area Office if you would like to know more about the Freedom Files or have ideas for screening them for free in our community.

Event: Wednesday, July 2nd 7:00 p.m.
Escape Java Joint (916 Williamson St.)
- Comedian Will Durst, last year's entertainment at the ACLU of Wisconsin's Bill of Rights event, is coming to Madison tomorrow night! -
The All-American Sport of Bipartisan Bashing: Common Sense Rantings from a Raging Moderate – an evening with political satirist, Will Durst, just in time for the July Fourth Holiday! Join Rainbow Bookstore and the Progressive Magazine in welcoming to Madison a comic with a far ranging monologue on the State of Our Union and provocative words of wisdom on the absurdities of the established order.