Judge Rules Against Occupy the Courts Lawsuit Over Permit in New York City, Event to Proceed
MEDIA ADVISORY FOR Friday, January 20, 2012
CONTACT:
Glenn Turner, 917-817-3396, glenn@ripplestrategies.com,
or Shayna Samuels, 718-541-4785, shayna@ripplestrategies.com
Judge Rules Against NYers Wanting to Protest at the Federal Courthouse as Part of National Day of Action
NYC Jan 20 “Occupy the Courts” Event Moved to Liberty Plaza/ Foley Square
Over 130 “Occupy the Courts” Events in 46 States to Take Place Nationwide Fighting Supreme Court Ruling that Corporations = People
Just one day before demonstrators will gather in 130 cities around the country to “Occupy the Courts,” a New York judge ruled that local demonstrators do not have a First Amendment right to protest Friday afternoon in front of a Manhattan federal courthouse. Only one other city – Bryson City, North Carolina – is also facing a permit denial for their demonstration. Occupy the Courts – NYC's direct action organizers have decided to focus on building tomorrow's mass actions in Liberty Plaza and Foley Square rather than filing an emergency appeal.
“This decision will only make our movement larger, stronger and better organized,” said David Cobb, spokesperson for Move to Amend, who is spearheading Occupy the Courts around the country and who will speak at tomorrow’s Supreme Court event. “This is a clear violation of our First Amendment rights, which is what this entire day of action is about.”
Tomorrow’s Occupy the Courts events will mark the second anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s infamous Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission decision that opened the floodgates to unlimited corporate money in elections.
WHAT: Occupy the Courts – New York City
WHEN/WHERE: Friday, January 20, 2012
5:30 pm – March begins from Liberty Plaza (Zuccotti Park) to Foley Square
6:00 pm – Rally and speakers at Foley Square (across from the Thurgood Marshall U.S. Courthouse at 40 Centre Street)
WHO: Speakers will include media-mogul/activist Russell Simmons; Reverend Billy; noted author/activist Christopher Hedges; Virgina Rasmussen of the Program on Corporations, Law and Democracy; NYC CouncilMembers Steve Levin and Jumaane Williams; and Amy Muldoon of Communication Workers of America.
“Corporations have freedom of speech, but human beings don’t,” said Jarret Wolfman, a member of the Occupy Wall Street Subgroup to End Corporate Personhood, who filed the permit request for tomorrow’s demonstration in New York City. “We will not let this decision, or the Citizens United decision, drown out the voice of the people.”
The Move to Amend coalition is working to grow grassroots support for a constitutional amendment that clearly and unequivocally states that: 1) Rights recognized under the Constitution belong to human beings only, not to artificial legal entities such as corporations or labor unions; and 2) Political campaign spending is not a form of speech protected under the First Amendment.
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