Shire Activism Never Sleeps

There were a few anarchists in the town where I grew up, and a lot more in the city nearby. But perhaps because these individuals were not as organized as Keeniacs, the activism in which I participated seemed to live or die with my action.

I could get a few of my friends together and shout from a megaphone and sign-wave in Rittenhouse Park. We would go “Robin-Hooding,” where individuals feed parking meters for strangers in an attempt to “cost” the State the “revenue” of the ticket. But even in a city of 1.5 million, there were only a handful of us doing activism on a regular basis. “What’s the deal?” I wondered.

(more…)

Judge Overrules Press Block by Chalking 8 Prosecutor

As published at freeconcord.org.

Judge William Lyons overruled an objection to a recording notice made by attorney Gregory Muller on Tuesday, November 15 just prior to the trial of Wesley Gilwreath. Wesley was among the first two arrests at the Manchester police department on June 4, 2011. He and Ademo Freeman were arrested for chalking on the building of the station during a police accountability rally. In the hours following the initial arrests, activists and their property were seized by police for a number of legally questionable reasons.

The day prior to the trial, I had submitted notice to record to the clerk. As is usual, just before the proceedings got underway, both parties were presented with the notice. With my name listed on the recording form as the correspondent, Gregory Muller objected, claiming that I had a ‘vested interest’ in Wesley’s trial. The judge failed to see how my ability to record a third party’s legal proceedings could cause any ill-gotten gain. To the objection, the judge asked, “Do you have any legal authority for the proposition that one vitiates their standing under the first amendment, by virtue of having charges arising out of the same incident?”

(more…)