Resist SLAPP lawsuits

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 Join protectors of the environment and the defenders of the First Amendment Thursday in federal court in San Francisco, CA for a hearing on the motion to dismiss the amended complaint in the Resolute Forest Products vs. Greenpeace lawsuit.  

Resolute v. Greenpeace is a Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP), meant to intimidate dissent and divert time and money from the essential work of fighting to save our planet. Resolute's frivolous and bullying lawsuit is brought by Kasowitz Benson Torres, the law firm behind the Energy Transfer Equity, et al, v. Greenpeace, Earth First! et al, which Frontlines' readers will already be familiar.

Both SLAPPs attempt to recast activism as a criminal conspiracy. In Resolute, a logging company furious at being called a "forest destroyer," has sued Greenpeace and STAND for racketeering. In Energy Transfer Equity, the same lawyers outlandishly allege that the inspirational resistance led by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe against the Dakota Access Pipeline was actually a Greenpeace-led conspiracy to defraud donors about the environmental impacts of the fossil fuel industry, and the risks posed by pipelines. Resolute and Energy Transfer Equity are filing these SLAPPs in an attempt to stop advocacy groups from calling out activities that harm communities and the planet.

To support free speech and stand against SLAPP lawsuits, join Greenpeace and partners at 2 p.m. PT at the United States District Court, 450 Golden Gate Ave. San Francisco, CA.  Follow #WeWillNotBeSilenced on social media.

The Activist Files: bonus episode

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How does it feel like to walk through the National Memorial for Peace and Justice in Montgomery, AL? That's only a part of the story Pardiss Kebriaei, Center for Constitutional Rights senior staff attorney, shares in a bonus episode of The Activist Files, titled "Examining the History of Lynching through a Present-Day Lens."

In an interview with Center for Constitutional Rights Communications Director Chandra Hayslett, Pardiss talks about a space, created by the Equal Justice Initiative, which memorializes the more than 4,400 African-Americans lynched in 12 states between 1877 and 1950.

Pardiss connects America's brutal past to today’s ongoing inequality, highlighting a parallel between past discrimination and violence and present-day abuses hidden behind the bars of places like Guantànamo.

Save the date: podcast party

Save the date and join the staff at the Center for Constitutional Rights from 6-9 p.m., June 21, 2018 as we celebrate our new podcast, The Activist Files and its official launch on iTunes!

The Activist Files features stories of people on the front lines fighting for justice, including activists, lawyers, and artists. We’re interviewing movement partners, clients, and people using storytelling to create change.

Mingle with change makers who have been featured on The Activist Files, dive into past episodes with our silent party headsets, and win a few great prizes with our raffle.

Mark your calendars and we'll see you from 6-9 p.m., June 21, 2018. More details to come.

Palestine is everywhere

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A group of predominantly U.S. Black and Brown social justice leaders - dubbed the #JusticeDelegation - recently returned from Israel/Palestine where they experienced Israel's occupation of Palestine first-hand. They met with amazing activists fighting back under extreme pressures, working for the rights of Palestinian people to self-determination, freedom, and dignity.

On June 1, the #JusticeDelegation will be sharing their experiences with friends and allies at 'The Flat NYC' (23 W. 24th St.) from 6 p.m. - 9 p.m. The #JusticeDelegation will also call on allies to take their own actions to support the Palestinian people, because as our elders have taught us before, "we know that our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of Palestinians." #PalestineIsEverywhere

Join the #JusticeDelegation for a night of cultural resistance and a celebration of committing to work in the U.S. to support the realization of the rights of Palestinians.

Register for this event.