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Dissent NewsWire
Anti-Protest Legislation Still Pending in Legislatures Across the Country
The fact that they were introduced is troublesome and dangerous. It is through protest, an essential part of American life,that we are given the abilityto speak out and challenge events and injustices. That power should be protected, not infringed upon, so that it can continue to shape and influence our American polity.
So Now They Want Us to Pay to Protest on the National Mall?
The National Park Service wants to start charging fees to hold protests on the National Mall as part of a new set of regulations the agency is proposing. They are also eyeing new restrictions on several public sidewalks in DC overseen by the Park Service, including in front of the White House and in front of the Trump hotel.
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It’s Constitution Day! It’s only as strong as the will of the people to demand our rights.
We at Defending Rights & Dissent believe in the tradition of popular constitutionalism, which looks to movements for defending, expanding, and enriching our democracy, for leadership in making our Constitution real. The promise of our Constitution is still powerful, but only if we seek to fulfil it.
Artists, Poets, Activists Ask “Is Truth Melting Away?” In a Series of Events Sept. 21-23
DRAD has teamed up with PEN America, the Corcoran School of Art and Design and artists Nora Ligarono and Marshall Reese to host a weekend of For Freedoms programming as part of a 50 State Initiative in which concurrent decentralized public events across the country will reflect a multiplicity of voices and spark a national dialogue about art, education, commerce, and politics.
Trump’s Department of Education Is Trying to Turn Support for Palestine Into A Civil Rights Violation
Kenneth Marcus, Trump’s choice to head the Department of Education’s Office of Civil Right (OCR), is moving forward with perverting civil rights law to silence student activism he opposes: advocacy for Palestine and Palestinian human rights.
State Bureau of Investigation unit prepared “threat assessment” of Atlantic Coast Pipeline protestors
The state’s surveillance and counter-terrorism unit, the Information Sharing and Analysis Center (ISAAC), warned law enforcement officials that the Atlantic Coast Pipeline could attract “violent extremists” who are opposed to the natural gas project in North Carolina, a document obtained by Policy Watch shows.
Human rights groups urge speakers to pull out of Salesforce conference over Border Patrol contract
DRAD has joined with several advocacy groups calling on Will.i.am, Andre Iguodala, Al Gore, and Adrian Grenier to pull out of Salesforce’s upcoming conference, Dreamforce.
Why Are 31 US Civil Society & Tech Orgs So Concerned About an Australian Anti-Encryption Draft Bill?
The drafters of this bill sprinkled-in some pro-encryption language, but that doesn’t mask the fact that, if enacted, it would seriously threaten everyone’s digital security by allowing the Australian government to demand that companies redesign their secure products to facilitate surveillance.
Protest works. That’s why they don’t want you to do it
A historic level of activism and protest has come to define this era. A recent survey found one in five Americans either protested in the streets or attended a political rally since early 2016, with 19 percent having never done so before. It is proving to be the ultimate disrupter in an age of disruption.