“If we speak the truth, they will try to
silence us. If we act, they will to try to stop us. But we speak for
the majority, here and around the world, and as we get this going we
are going to reach out to the people who have been so badly fooled by
Bush and we are NOT going to stop.”
— from the Call to Drive Out the Bush Regime
At a time when the Bush regime spies on anyone it wants, passes
repressive laws like the Patriot Act, when rounds up immigrants in the
dead of night, and clamps down on dissent, it is important for those
organizing to drive out this regime to know our rights and not allow
fear to silence us. Check out the important information below. And let
us know about any instances of political repression – call
1-866-973-4463 or email info@worldcantwait.org
Stopping a Police State: A Pocket Guide from Refuse & Resist!
Some Important Points
Regarding World Can’t Wait and 501 (c) (3)
Tax-exempt Status
URGENTLY NEEDED: A Lawyers Network for World Can’t Wait – Drive Out the Bush Regime!
RESOURCES:
– Stopping a Police State: A Pocket Guide from Refuse & Resist! [pdf]
– Know Your Rights, pamphlet from the National Lawyers’ Guild [pdf]
Recommended Readings:
“War at Home : Covert action against U.S. activists and what we can do about it”, by Brian Glick, 1989, South End Press. [click here]
“Silencing Political Dissent: How Post-September 11 Anti-Terrorism Measures Threaten Our Civil Liberties”, by Nancy Chang, 2002, Open Media. [click here]
Stopping a Police State: A Pocket Guide from Refuse & Resist!
http://refuseandresist.org/about/art.php?aid=1524
You can get this pocket guide in PDF format here.
We have seen the round-up and secret detention of those from
Muslim and South Asian countries. We have seen the President order the
military to seize citizens and hold them incommunicado and without
charges. We have seen free speech marginalized and protest banned from
public spaces. We have seen the FBI questioning people planning
protests at the political conventions. We have seen the Patriot Act
give police agents vast new powers of secret search and surveillance.
We have seen a campaign to impose fundamentalist religious social
norms. And we have even heard government agencies talking about plans
to postpone national elections.
For many in this country, police state conditions are not new. And
since 9/11 millions more are threatened. It won�t do to count on others
to do something and hope that it will all go away. No! We see where
things are heading. The time to resist is now.
1. Build Communities of Resistance.
All across the country, local governments are refusing to cooperate
with the Patriot Act and people are beginning to organize. Hang-outs,
house parties, book clubs, film series, discussion groups, open mics
and other cultural scenes build communities of trust as well as the
networks to read the alternative press, discuss current events, raise
money, organize defense committees, and promote active resistance.
2. Stand with Those Under Attack.
The government seeks to scapegoat whole sections of people and go
after the leadership of any real resistance to their plans for empire.
Yet all across the country people went to the aid of their Muslim
neighbors and stood watch at local mosques after 9/11. The government�s
plan is to pick us off one at a time. Our response must be to recognize
that �It�s all one attack� and give aid and shelter all those under
attack.
3. Don�t Talk.
Never answer the questions of police or government agents beyond
identifying yourself where required by law. You should then state that
you do not consent to any search and that you wish to be represented by
an attorney. Do not say anything else, even if agents threaten you with
a grand jury subpoena or promise to leave you alone if you �cooperate.�
Recently activists at Drake University were called before a Grand Jury
to give testimony about an antiwar conference on campus. They refused
and public outcry forced the government to withdraw the subpoenas.
4. Defend Every Legal Right.
At the same time that the government invades other countries in the
name of democracy, there is a constant chipping away at every legal
right in this country. Follow the example of those who have videotaped
and exposed beatings by police. Every denial of a permit, every arrest,
every police raid on dissenters, every wire-tap, and every grand jury
subpoena must be fought both in court and in the court of public
opinion. This is part of the battle. Don�t let the police and media
decide what is �legitimate protest� and who are �legitimate
protesters.�
5. Handle Information Responsibly.
Choosing to keep your personal information and that of your
organization confidential does not mean you have something to hide. It
means you know what kind of country we live in! Librarians in
California now destroy the records of what books people read to protect
their patrons from government snoops. Unnecessary records should be
destroyed, the audience at meetings should not be videotaped, e-mail
should be encrypted with PGP, and vital information should be
duplicated and stored in a secure location.
6. Oppose the Climate of Fear and Compulsory Patriotism.
It is the policies of the U.S. government that have put the American
people in harm�s way. The leaders of the �new Rome� constantly seek to
ensnare us in a �devil�s bargain�: a false promise to keep us safe if
only we will give up all our rights to privacy and dissent, and hand
over to them our allegiance for their war plans. In Madison, WI, the
local school board refused a call from the federal government after
9/11 to compel school children to recite the Pledge of Allegiance in
unison.
7. Be Part of the National Resistance Network.
In Refuse & Resist! some of us strongly believe in the
principles and values to which this country has historically aspired,
while others of us find oppression and injustice to be rooted in those
same principles. But we are united as one in our determination to build
a culture, climate and community of resistance against the current
Ashcroft police-state measures with its imposition of Christian
fundamentalist social norms. Join Refuse & Resist!
Some Important Points
Regarding World Can’t Wait and 501 (c) (3)
Tax-exempt Status:
Groups and individuals have raised concerns that endorsing
or contributing money to World Can’t
Wait could jeopardize their 501 c 3 tax-exempt status. There is a lot of confusion about this that
we need to address. Some particular ways
this has come up are: “World Can’t Wait is about driving out
Bush, which is not permissible for 501 c 3 groups.” “World can’t Wait is an ‘advocacy’ group, which is not
permissible or is severely restricted (in the case of lobbying.)” People cite two cases
where the IRS has gone after organizations
on 501c3 grounds for speeches against Bush –
The All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, CA
and the NAACP. In fact, these cases do
not apply to World Can’t
Wait. These points are written to clear
up any confusion so we can all work together to get this movement to drive out
the Bush regime to a whole other level, urgently! The world can’t
wait!
their 501c3 status when they endorse the World Can’t Wait Call,
when they rent buses and speak as a group at Bush Step Down protests, and when
they contribute to World Can’t Wait through its fiscal
sponsor for its educational activities.
Doing any of these does not put
your 501c3 in violation of tax law.
This conclusion is based on consultation with an attorney familiar with
501c3 law.
World
Can’t Wait is a
not-for-profit corporation in good standing that has not itself filed for 501
(c)(3) tax-exempt status and does not have it.
However
it is not required that 501c3 groups only participate in or endorse activities
called by groups with 501c3 status.
501c3s can participate in a wide range of charitable and educational
activities, and do so all the time, including initiating and endorsing protests
of various sorts aimed at bringing to the attention of the public grievous
problems and outrages, like the waging of unjust wars, torture, ripping up of
the right to abortion, and many other things spoken to in the World Can’t Wait Call, and more.
What
501c3s are NOT allowed to do are:
1) support or oppose a candidate for political
office during an election campaign.
2) have a “substantial” part of its activities
involved in support of, or in opposition to, legislation (i.e., lobbying);
A
501 c 3 organization cannot support these prohibited activities. But endorsing the Call for to Drive out the
Bush regime, which puts before all the outrages of this administration program
and the need for people themselves to take responsibility for changing this
whole course by driving out the Bush regime does NOT fall within these
criteria.
Regarding
#1 above: Bush is very
clearly NOT a candidate for public office, nor is anyone in his
administration. This is not an election
campaign and nothing about World Can’t
Wait’s activities
relate to any election, including the 2006 election. It is not “partisan” in the sense that
Republicans or anyone else can be part of WCW.
The
All Saints and the NAACP cases do not apply to World Can’t Wait, except in the sense that the IRS,
no matter what the actual rules, may
politically target a group. But that is
a different question than what you are legally allowed to do. Both the All Saints and NAACP cases were
triggered by talks given in October 2004, during an electoral season. The IRS claims that the speeches were prohibited
because they were electioneering and opposing
Bush as a candidate, but in fact that is wrong. They were speaking against Bush’s policies (on the Iraq War
and other issues) which is allowed. Clear examples of this are given in the IRS’s own published booklet on
guidelines for Churches. These cases
need to be fought –
they were fully within their rights.
If
people are confused about this and believe All Saints or the NAACP were not
acting within their rights because they were “electioneering”, or that World Can’t Wait is about advocating
for or against a candidate –
it is important to clear up these misconceptions because it undermines people’s ability to fight for
their rights and against the broader policies of the Bush regime that need to
be brought to light and opposed. This
ends up ceding ground to Bush and the IRS.
2)
WCW is not about lobbying, the other activity prohibited by IRS
501c3 code. This is not an impeachment
movement, it is not lobbying for legislation.
It is about people, on the basis of looking at the reality of what is
going on, taking responsibility themselves to stop it through their own
independent action.
3)
Tax laws permit 501c3s to argue a point of view, without having to present both
sides of an issue. (This is something else that has come up.)
4)
While tax law also prohibits engaging in “propaganda” or inflammatory language,
this vague term has been interpreted to include only unsubstantiated rhetoric – as opposed to taking a
position and supporting it with facts.
The “your
governments” at the
beginning of the Call are true facts that need to be brought to the public’s attention, (as well as
the points in the rest of the Call –
for example “no
savior from the Democrats”
or “radically remaking
society in a fascist direction” or” people look at
Bush and think of Hitler”
or “that which you do
not resist you will learn or be forced to accept”
or “history is full of
examples where people who had right on their side….”).
Daily, new articles on the WCW website further help people see the truth
of these points, and the truth of the need to drive out the Bush regime if we
want to change this course.
For
purposes of making tax-deductible contributions, World Can’t Wait is a project
sponsored by another 501 c 3 (Alliance
for Global Justice) which allows it to receive tax-deductible contributions for
its educational activities.
Many
groups have endorsed, sponsored programs, contributed funds, participated in
protests with no question that this is within their legal rights as tax-exempt
organizations.
B. “That
which you do not resist and mobilize to stop you will learn to – or be forced – to
accept.”
The
government has historically used tax-investigations to target those who oppose
its policies, and this is going on today, perhaps in an accelerated way. OMB Watch (www.OMBwatch.org)
has written reports (“Death
by a Thousand Cuts”
series) exposing recent history on this, and there have been the
well-publicized cases of All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, and the NAACP
B both stemming from
October 2004 involving speeches that opposed Bush’s
policies but which did not speak directly to his candidacy (so it was
legal.) At the same time, we witnessed
Bush’s right-wing
church base do all kinds of things much more directly conveying their support
for his election.
This
use of the tax code for political repression has put a chill on churches and
other 501 c 3 groups. Too much their
approach has been to self-censor in the name of avoiding the possibility of
triggering an IRS investigation. They self-restrict and limit activities that
are legally protected in the 501 c 3
tax code — like legally protected speech against Bush’s policies and the direction he is leading
society. This has often been at the
advice of their attorneys – not
because the activity isn’t
allowed by the law, but because of the risk of triggering an investigation for
political reasons.
But
self-censoring with the false hope of trying to hold on to and protect ground
as it is cut from beneath you by intimidation and threats – or even by new laws and
legal interpretations (as we’ve
seen recently with the “legality
of torture” or Bush’s claim to the right to act
beyond laws to spy or do anything else in “a
time of war”) does no
good. It is a recipe for constantly
losing ground to the whole onslaught. It
is the process through which new police state precedents, laws and norms are
accommodated, and locked into place. It
does great harm. “That
which you will not resist and mobilize to stop, you will learn – or be forced – to accept.”
C. “There
is no escaping it: the whole disastrous course of the Bush regime must be
STOPPED. And we must take responsibility
to do it.”
As
opposed to curtailing activity and finding a way to “live with”
this increasingly shrinking ground, we need to go on the counter-offensive and
set terms in society that this is not acceptable, we will not tolerate it, it
must be stopped. We don’t want to repeat the error
Niemoeller regretted his whole life and strived to warn the world about. Every day this Bush regime remains in charge
there are new horrors committed here and around the world, and new structures
are being cemented into place that rapidly are taking things further toward his
fascist remaking of society. We must
drive out this regime –
the world really can’t
wait.
Right
now, there is a particular opportunity that is ours to seize — or ours to
leave to the acceleration of Bush’s program. The increased outrage throughout society in
response to the recent NSA spy revelations and Bush’s role, the
weight of public opinion, the real problems Bush is facing, and the conflict
inside government –
all these provide much more openings to mobilize millions to drive Bush from
power. January 31st, when
Bush gives his State of the Union Speech, and February 4 in Washington DC, the
demand “Bush:
Step down and take your program with you” – if powerfully
manifested by thousands and thousands and the focal point of millions — can
begin to turn the corner on this disastrous course and get a different dynamic
going. The agenda for 2006 must not be set by Bush but by the people taking
independent mass political action. It
will take an organized movement of millions, determined to stop this whole
disastrous course, to drive out the Bush regime.
People
and groups everywhere need to endorse, contribute, popularize, volunteer,
organize, and come to DC to demand Bush step down. (Not self-censor or try to finesse their
situation, in the false hopes of preserving some space for themselves while the
world hurtles toward a nightmare.)
“This will not be easy. If we speak the truth, they will try to
silence us. If we act, they will try to
stop us. But we speak for the majority,
here and around the world, and as we get this going we are going to reach out
to the people who have been so badly fooled by Bush and we are NOT going to
stop.
“The point is this: history
is full of examples where people who had right on their side fought against
tremendous odds and were victorious. And
it is also full of examples of people passively hoping to wait it out, only to
get swallowed up by a horror beyond what they ever imagined.
“The future is unwritten. Which one we get
is up to us.”
(WCW
Call)
WCW’s attorney is available to
speak with your organization’s
attorney if you have further questions about any of this. Please call the WCW National Office to get
his name and number.
1-866-973-4463
URGENTLY NEEDED: A Lawyers Network for WORLD CAN’T WAIT!
DRIVE OUT THE BUSH REGIME!
When
the Patriot Act was passed, among those sounding the loudest alarm were lawyers
who saw the unprecedented and repressive police state powers being hammered
into place.
When
the US
government dragooned people from Afghanistan
and locked them away
on an island thousands of miles from their home, lawyers braved death threats
to speak out for and fight for them, to document the use of torture and
violations of the Geneva convention, to keep this outrage before the public
eye, and to litigate and work for their release from detention.
When
the authorities decided they could lock people up for years, simply on the declaration enemy
combatants and without due process,
among the first people to jump into the fray were lawyers.
The
outrages keep mounting with revelations of Bush secretly and unlawfully
authorizing wiretaps on millions, the Congressional overturning of habeas corpus
relief for detainees at Guantanamo, and the almost certain confirmation of
Samuel Alito who would ban abortion, deny basic rights to the people and wipe
out the separation of church and state.
WE ARE IN A STATE OF EMERGENCY!
‘The Bush regime is setting out to radically remake society very
quickly, in a fascist way, and for generations to come.’
As lawyers many of you have warned that the
ominous changes being made in the judicial system and in society as a whole are
being cemented into place and will not be easily dislodged. You are right. The future is on the line and
the people must act! What is needed is
massive political resistance against the entire program, galvanizing a determined society-wide
movement that will not quit until the Bush regime is driven from office. And
lawyers have a crucial role to play in this movement, joining your voices with
hundreds of thousands of others to denounce the whole Bush program and
defending all who step out to oppose it.
The
next huge step which this movement will take is powerful political protests to
denounce Bush’s State of the Union. On the evening of Tuesday, January 31, in
cities across the country, thousands will gather to bring the noise and drown
out Bush=s State of
the Union address, making ‘Drive out the
Bush Regime’ the political message of the day.
On the following Saturday, February 4th, many thousands will
protest at the White House, bringing our demand right to the seat of power in Washington
DC: “BUSH STEP DOWN AND TAKE
YOUR PROGRAM WITH YOU!”
‘If we speak the truth, they will try to
silence us. If we act, they will try to
stop us. But we speak for the majority,
here and around the world…’
* In the 60’s and in decades since, those who
opposed and resisted government
oppression found themselves in turn the target of that same government, through
arrests, harassment and slander, both official and unofficial. And the same thing is happening today. Every day more of this is revealed in the
news.
* When high school and college students
stepped out on November 2 some faced expulsion and criminal charges and World
Can’t Wait activists are continuing to be harassed. Lawyers are needed to defend all who are
daring to take responsibility for the future.
* When the call for ABUSH STEP DOWN@
was published as a full-page ad in the New York Times, Bill O’Reilly on his Fox
TV program ‘The O’Reilly Factor,’ joined by right-wing pointman David Horowitz,
went on the attack –falsely claiming that World Can=t Wait is urging Americans to disrupt the
State of the Union address. Lies and
misrepresentations about World Can’t Wait can only pave the way for repression
and persecution and need to be refuted.
The legal front can be an important component of turning around these
kinds of attacks.
JOIN WITH THIS MOVEMENT! HELP DEVELOP A LAWYERS NETWORK FOR WORLD
CAN’T WAIT!
There
are many ways you can get involved:
* Sign
the Call and spread the word ( E-mail the Call to your colleagues and friends.
* Tell
everyone you know to visit www.worldcantwait.org.
* Get
word out to bar associations and law schools about plans for the January 31st
nation-wide protests during the State of the Union address and to organize
people to go to Washington D.C.
on Saturday, February 4th .
* Volunteer to help with permit fights and
other legal battles for the movement.
* Volunteer
to defend this movement and those who dare to help launch and lead it. Serious
harassment or persecution of leaders and organizers and those walking out of
school or work, demonstrating, and rallying, should not go unanswered.
* Speak out!
Write an op ed or informational piece for the website and for legal
journals and newsletters.
* Volunteer
to help document cases of harassment and repression of activists.
* Become
a legal observer at the January 31st and February 4th
demonstrations and rallies and organize others.
* Develop Aknow
your rights@ materials
and lawyer contact information for activists which could be posted on the
website.
* DONATE FUNDS TO SUPPORT WORLD CAN’T WAIT
“THE
FUTURE IS UNWRITTEN. WHICH ONE WE GET IS
UP TO US.”
BE
PART OF MAKING HISTORY
Contact
us at info@worldcantwait.org or call 1-866-973-4463.