Will Potter's Blog, page 2

Here’s How One Activist Convinced the FBI to Leave Him Alone

Newly released FBI documents confirm what some activist groups have argued for years: when FBI agents come knocking, the best response is to shut the door and call the press.

Leslie Pickering is no stranger to FBI harassment. Years ago, he was a spokesperson for the radical environmental group the Earth Liberation Front. By publicly making statements in support of militant tactics like property destruction, he immediately drew the attention of law enforcement. Today, he helps run an anarchist bookstore — and has found that the government is still monitoring his mail and First Amendment activity.

Pickering has been working with his attorney, Michael Kuzma, to obtain FBI documents about him. The court has ordered the FBI to process and release 30,000+ pages of his FBI file. In the first batch of those documents he has received, there is an account of the FBI’s decision to “forego an interview” and not visit Pickering.

The reason?

Pickering never talked, and future visits could result in bad press for the FBI.

“In previous investigations, Pickering was not cooperative with interviewers,” the document says. “Additionally, Pickering has used a possible FBI investigation against him to gain publicity in the local and national press. SSA concurrence was obtained to forego an interview.”

Author Kristian Williams says Pickering’s documents are a good example of the power and importance of non-cooperation and public exposure. Williams is the author of Our Enemies in Blue: Police and Power in America, and has also written about FBI harassment.

“The FBI’s decision not to approach Pickering shows that, one, if you refuse to talk it reduces the likelihood that they’ll approach you again (and conversely, talking at all only increases the likelihood they’ll come back),” Williams told me. “And two, the FBI really doesn’t like it when the people they’re investigating publicize the fact, and if they think you will, they’re less likely to try to approach you in the first place.”

This often runs counter to activists’ instincts in these situations, which is to attempt to talk their way out of it. And activists sometimes don’t want to publicize the FBI visit, Williams said, because it could make other activists afraid to continue organizing, or it could be perceived as self-promotion.

Pickering says he understands those feelings, but documents like this show that non-cooperation, combined with media outreach, is the best response.

“It’s never been easy resisting federal investigators or dealing with the mainstream media,” Pickering said. “However, I have no doubt that full and consistent resistance of all these investigations and extensive media exposure have both been essential in providing the best possible defense on a personal level, but more importantly for the struggle as a whole.”

Here’s How One Activist Convinced the FBI to Leave Him Alone from Green Is The New Red

A Brief History of Secret Prisons in the United States

My latest for TED is an expansion of my recent TED Talk, about Communications Management Units, and a look at a dark history in the United States that has been either ignored or forgotten.

Here’s an excerpt:

Secret prisons are operating in the United States today. Many Americans I speak with don’t believe this could possibly be true, and think that such human rights abuses only occur in foreign countries. But the reality is that the United States has a dark history of disproportionately punishing people because of their political views, a history that has largely been ignored or forgotten.

Today, under the ever-growing banner of national security and the “War on Terrorism,” that trend has continued in secrecy.

Let me be clear about the term “secret prisons,” though. I don’t mean facilities the public has absolutely zero knowledge about. After all, even Soviet gulags were known both within the country and internationally. Secret prisons are those that operate under a separate standard from traditional prisons. They reflect a parallel legal system for prisoners who, whether because of their race, religion, or political beliefs, are denied access to communications, deprived of their due process rights, and hidden from public scrutiny.

Here, then, is a brief look at that history, from institutions started in the 1940s to those that are operating today.

You can read the full article at TED.

A Brief History of Secret Prisons in the United States from Green Is The New Red

One Million Views!

Great news! My latest TED talk just hit 1 million views! And it’s still climbing. Thank you to everyone who has been sharing and retweeting the talk!

It’s incredible that it has been seen by so many people in just over a month.

And my previous talk is reaching that milestone as well. You can watch it here.

Thanks everyone!

One Million Views! from Green Is The New Red

New TED Talk Goes Inside Secretive Prison Units on U.S. Soil

Very happy to announce that my new TED talk is featured on the TED homepage today!

Here’s more from TED:

The secret US prisons you’ve never heard of before

Investigative journalist Will Potter is the only reporter who has been inside a Communications Management Unit, or CMU, within a US prison. These units were opened secretly, and radically alter how prisoners are treated — even preventing them from hugging their children. Potter, a TED Fellow, shows us who is imprisoned here, and how the government is trying to keep them hidden. “The message was clear,” he says. “Don’t talk about this place.”

New TED Talk Goes Inside Secretive Prison Units on U.S. Soil from Green Is The New Red

It’s us against the war machine.

I’m late to this, but I had to share. I’ve been listening to as much political spoken word that I can get my hands on, as research for a new collaboration with a band (more soon!). And this speech by Killer Mike of Run the Jewels was suggested to me.

Killer Mike spoke just hours after the Ferguson grand jury decision, and put all of his sadness and rage into it. Incredible. Especially how the room explodes going into their first song. Watch it below…

It’s us against the war machine. from Green Is The New Red

Edward Snowden Will Be Interviewed at this Tech Conference, Keynote by Will Potter

I‘ve been invited to deliver a keynote address at the 2015 Computers, Freedom, and Privacy conference. I’m really looking forward to the event, and also to Mike German’s interview with NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden.

From the organizers:

The Computers, Freedom, and Privacy Conference is the premier event examining the intersection of policy, technology, and action. The 25th anniversary CFP 2015 will feature events bringing together technologists, policy experts, and activists in forums designed to engage the public and policymakers in discussions about the information society and the future of technology, innovation, and freedom.

CFP 2015 will focus on the growing tensions between, on the one hand, maturing information technology and its benefit to innovation and free speech online and, on the other, the threat that technology poses in areas as diverse as consumer privacy, racially biased policing, political dissent worldwide and, indeed, to the teeming marketplace of digital speech and association enabled by that very technology.

We are pleased to announce the following keynotes for CFP 2015:

Edward Snowden and Mike German will open the conference with a historical comparison of surveillance programs and their impact on civil liberties, from COINTELPRO to the Snowden revelations.
Malkia Cyril, Executive Director of the Center for Media Justice, will discuss the history of surveillance of people of color in America as well as her work with Black Lives Matter and the “new era of civil action.”
John Gosier, an inventor, data-scientist, and serial tech entrepreneur, will discuss “trickle down techonomics,” the unintended consequences of technology in the face of a digital divide, and how increased attention to “outcome design” can help address this issue and spread global wealth.
Will Potter, investigative journalist and TED senior fellow, will discuss government surveillance of activists, particularly in environmentalist movements, and the chilling effect these practices have on our First Amendment rights.

The conference is October 13th and 14th in Washington, DC. If you’ll be there, message me on Twitter so we can meet up!

Edward Snowden Will Be Interviewed at this Tech Conference, Keynote by Will Potter from Green Is The New Red

The Writing Life, Burnout, and What it Means to Keep Fighting

I had a great time chatting with Ray Harkins for his podcast, 100 Words or Less. If you haven’t heard Ray’s show before, please check it out. He interviews folks involved in independent culture, especially those connected to punk and hardcore, but the conversations are much broader and deeper than that.

We talked a bit about how those subcultures are connected to the social movements I write about, and also looked at burnout, dealing with high-stress situations, and why I still find reasons to be inspired.

From Ray:

Will Potter is on the show this week and he’s incredibly smart. He’s a published author with a great book (called Green Is The New Red) on the animal agriculture industry and how the people who rally against it are considered domestic terrorists as well as an accomplished public speaker with two TED talks underneath his belt. In this episode Will and I discuss the romantic notions of some professions, high pressure situations and activism in general. It’s a chat I am proud to present to you fine folk.

You can listen to the show here.

The Writing Life, Burnout, and What it Means to Keep Fighting from Green Is The New Red

I’ll Be Speaking at the Michigan Animal Law Symposium This Weekend

I’ll be speaking at the Michigan Animal Law Symposium this weekend, addressing the constitutional concerns with ag-gag laws that target journalists and whistleblowers.

It’s organized by University of Michigan Law School, Michigan State University College of Law, Western Michigan University Cooley Law School, and Wayne State University College of Law. Other speakers include Matt Dominguez of the Humane Society of the United States, and Jill Fritz, the Michigan Senior State Director of HSUS.

It’s from 10 am to 4pm on Saturday, October 3rd. More information is on this flier. Hope to see you there!

I’ll Be Speaking at the Michigan Animal Law Symposium This Weekend from Green Is The New Red

BREAKING: 2 Animal Activists Facing 6 Months in Jail for Protesting on the Sidewalk

Two animal rights activists in Utah are facing six months in jail for holding peaceful protests against an amusement park’s treatment of animals without first paying $50 and completing a “Free Expression Permit Application.”

On Tuesday evening, activists Jeremy Beckham and Lexie Levitt were visited at their homes by Salt Lake City Police detectives with court orders from nearby Farmington City.

Beckham says that when he saw a Salt Lake City detective at his door, his heart started racing and his body tensed; he quickly started filming, because he is familiar with animal activists being prosecuted as “terrorists” for things like chalking on the sidewalk.

He didn’t know what was about to happen, but he thought it could be serious.

“I’ve been an activist a really long time,” says Beckham, who is a board member with the Utah Animal Rights Coalition. “And I’m honestly shocked” at the charges.

The detective attempted to ask Beckham about other protesters, so they too could be served court orders, but Beckham remained silent and continued filming. He then said “I don’t have anything further to say.”

Lexie Levitt, an organizer with the animal rights group Direct Action Everywhere, says that when police arrived at her home, they pounded on her doors and windows. She didn’t know what was happening, she said, and at first she was too afraid to answer. When police returned, she learned she was being charged with protesting without a permit as well.

The charges say that the activists “did conduct, promote, manage, aid, solicit attendance at or participate in any advanced planned free speech expression activity without first obtaining a permit for the event.” [View the criminal complaint]

They are class B misdemeanors, punishable by up to six months in jail.

The Blackfish Effect

The activists had been protesting animal cruelty at Lagoon Amusement Park, where lions, pumas, elks, kangaroo, zebra, leopards, tigers, and other wild animals are kept in metal cages with concrete floors, without enrichment or stimulation.

Photos taken by the activists revealed animals in barren, filthy conditions as the “Wild Animal Kingdom” train ride passed by their cages.

And in 2013, an amusement park employee was gored by a wildebeest there.

Activists said that the award-winning film Blackfish, which exposed conditions that are dangerous to both animals and humans at Sea World, has resulted in a surge of public awareness about the dangers of animals in captivity.

As Sea World’s profits have plummeted by 84%, they resorted to using spies to infiltrate protest groups like PETA.

Lagoon Amusement Park has done it’s best to keep protesters away as well. When activists gathered outside their corporate headquarters with signs, Lagoon turned on their sprinklers — in the midst of a drought.

“No one should have to fear that the police will pound on your door at 8 o’clock at night to hand you criminal charges in connection with a peaceful protest,” Beckham said. “It is astounding the lengths that Lagoon is willing to go in order to shut up the caring people who are speaking out against their abysmal ‘zoo.'”

Jumping Through All The Hoops

Beckham says what surprises him most about the criminal charges is that the activists had gone to great lengths to ensure they complied with the law.

At the July 18th protest at the amusement park, for which Levitt is being prosecuted, there were about 20 protesters. They all stood across the street, because they did not want to accidentally trespass. They even went down to the courthouse and got a plat map to ensure they would be on public property.

At the July 16th protest at Lagoon offices, for which Beckham is being prosecuted, there were only four people in attendance, and they chose the protest location specifically because it had a public sidewalk where they could stand. (One of the other attendees was Levitt, and the other two were afraid of being identified for this story because they might be prosecuted as well.)

They held signs that said “Stop imprisoning animals,” “Sanctuaries not cages,” and “Lagoon abuses animals.”

The activists occasionally chanted, but never used megaphones or amplified sound.

During their many protests this year, police have driven past and taken photos of protesters, but they have never asked them to leave or threatened them with prosecution.

It appears their abundance of caution might have actually been used by the police against the activists. Beckham and Levitt had both been in contact with the city, alerting them about their protests in advance, and they suspect that’s why they were singled out for criminal charges.

“Free Expression Claim”

Just a few months after the September 11th attacks, Farmington City leaders used public safety concerns to justify a “Free Expression Activities Ordinance.”

The ordinance requires protesters to obtain a “Free Expression Activities Permit,” pay a $50 fee, and obtain insurance before engage in constitutionally protected speech.

The form the city requires asks protesters to explain “reasons for your activity” and also their “free expression claim.”

At the time, the American Civil Liberties Union of Idaho said the proposal was full of “constitutional defects.” The city passed it anyway.

As the Deseret News noted, the ordinance was passed in advance of animal rights activists protesting the rodeo, in a clear attempt to stifle their speech.

Misguided Priorities

The prosecution—for purely First Amendment activity— was coordinated with multiple police departments in different cities, which is a rare occurrence for a class B misdemeanor.

A Salt Lake City Police Department detective visited the activists at their homes, multiple times, to serve them in person, when the paperwork could have been sent in the mail

And the investigation was led by the Farmington City Chief of Police himself. Chief Wayne Hansen, who was named Utah’s police  in 2014, authored the probable cause affidavit used in the prosecution, and noted it was based on his “personal observations” of the protesters.

“It’s sad that the Davis County Attorney and the police apparently care more about shielding Lagoon from criticism than they do the First Amendment,” Levitt said.

The police treatment of animal rights activists is radically different than the treatment of animal abusers. Recently, Utah animal rights activists made international news when they disrupted a “pig wrestling” competition, and some of the confederate-flag-waiving wrestlers attacked them and slammed them to the ground.

Those individuals are not being prosecuted.

As for Beckham and Levitt, they had another protest planned at Lagoon this Saturday. After speaking with their attorneys, they’ve decided to cancel that demonstration rather than risk additional criminal charges.

BREAKING: 2 Animal Activists Facing 6 Months in Jail for Protesting on the Sidewalk from Green Is The New Red

Animal Activists’ Chalking Charges Have Been Dropped!

The criminal charges against four animal rights activists who chalked slogans on the public street have been dropped, and they’re now free to continue with their protests against a new animal testing lab.

At their arraignment this week, the activists with the No New Animal Lab campaign were told the district attorney will not be filing charges.

Perhaps the district attorney noted that, on the same day as the arraignment, the city was sponsoring a chalking event.

Encouraging non-political chalking, while prosecuting people who do the exact same thing with a political message, would clearly not withstand constitutional scrutiny.

“We are very pleased that these absurd charges were not filed by the DA,” the activists said in a joint statement. “Clearly Skanska and Beaverton police are reaching for anything to disrupt the campaign, but their efforts have been unsuccessful. No New Animal Lab will continue to organize and build momentum against Skanska for choosing to build this lab. We look forward to the March on the University of Washington on October 2nd.”

The story of their arrest, which was first reported here at GreenIsTheNewRed.com, is just one component of the backlash against the growing movement to shut down this controversial lab.

The activists were accused of using washable sidewalk chalk to write slogans such as “Save the animals.”

News of their arrest prompted solidarity “chalkings” in other cities, including the one pictured here from Berlin.

 

Animal Activists’ Chalking Charges Have Been Dropped! from Green Is The New Red