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Hundreds rally in Chicago as nine anti-war and solidarity activists prepare to defy grand jury

Sarah Chambers - January 29, 2011

More than 350 people gathered in front of the Dirksen Federal Building in Chicago on January 25, 2011, to oppose the grand jury and FBI repression. This two-hour rally was organized to support the nine activists that were subpoenaed to appear before the grand jury for providing “material support of terrorism.”

Some of the more than 300 people who protested the grand jury attack on solidarity and anti-war activists in Chicago on January 25, 2011 with the Chicago Board of Education building in the far background. Substance photo by Garth Liebhaber. What is the background? In June 2010, the federal court decision of Holder vs. Humanitarian Law Project expanded the statute of “material support for terrorism” to include one’s First Amendment rights of free speech and association. With this court decision, opposing the United States’s foreign policy with the war on terror is to provide material support of terrorism. In total, FBI has subpoenaed 23 people and raided multiple houses of those subpoenaed. All 23 of these activists have refused to participate in this undemocratic fishing expedition where they are not allowed to have a lawyer present or present their own evidence, and the jury is not screened for biases.

According to Bill Chambers, the Master of Ceremonies of the rally and a member of Palestine Solidarity-Chicago, over 50 organizations and unions, including the Chicago Teachers Union and the Caucus of Rank and File Educators (CORE), endorsed the rally. The rally began with picketing outside of the Dirksen Federal Building (219 S. Dearborn in Chicago) and a press conference being set up inside.

Chicago Teachers Union Vice President Jesse Sharkey told the rally that the CTU had voted to support the activists in their opposition to the grand jury subpoenas. Substance photo by Garth Liebhaber. The media set up their cameras for the press conference and Maureen Murphy and Sarah Smith, who were subpoenaed, prepared to speak while around 10-20 supporters stood by. Problems arose when a federal marshal started to threaten a trade unionist with a citation for taking a picture of the speakers in the Federal building. After the federal marshals demanded to see all of the press credential of the media, they stated that only the media with “approved press credentials” could record the press conference.

The rally organizers refused to exclude important media outlets and decided that the press conference would be moved outside.

During the press conference, Maureen Murphy, the editor of “Electronic Intifada” subpoenaed, spoke about how the FBI has subpoenaed activists that went on delegations to Palestine to learn about the atrocities occurring in Palestine. Maureen stated, “Hearing the realities about the US military aid is not a crime and yet this appears to be the target of this investigation.” The last 9 subpoenaed were all Palestinian Americans or Palestinian activists.

Christine Boardman, President of Local 73 of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), lower left, was one of the labor leaders who spoke in support of the activists on January 25, 2011. Boardman's local is the second largest labor union representing CPS workers; CTU represents the largest number. Substance photo by Garth Liebhaber. Other activists and union leaders spoke during the rally in support of the activists, including Jesse Sharkey, vice president of the Chicago Teachers Union; president Christine Boardman of SEIU Local 73; Ricardo Jimenez, a Puerto Rican activists for the release of political prisoner Oscar Lopez Rivera. Also, 20-30 Students from Pedro Albizu Campos high school also came to the rally and chanted for the Puerto Rican prisoner who has been in jail for 30 years due to an unfair grand jury. Carrying Puerto Rican flags and petitions to free Oscar, the energetic students chanted, “FBI’s a monster, they won’t let Oscar prosper.”

Other chants that rang through the crowds include “From Iraq to Palestine, solidarity is not a crime!” and “Stop the witch hunt, stop the grand jury.”

The push back against this witch-hunt has been unprecedented and it will not end until the grand jury is destroyed, the activists say. According to www.stopfbi.net, the next action against this fishing expedition is on Tuesday, February 1st, the National Call-In Day to Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald to “call those in charge of the repression aimed against anti-war leaders and the growing Palestine solidarity movement”.

Fitzgerald’s number is 312-353-5300 and you should dial zero for the operator and ask to leave a message with the Duty Clerk. The Regional Organizing Conference of the Committee to stop FBI Repression will be on February 12th at 300 S. Ashland.

The consensus of the rally: Keep the momentum going by joining in these actions to stand in solidarity with these peaceful anti-war activists and denounce Fitzgerald’s grand jury.

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