Jeffrey Free Luers – Prison Dispatch February 15, 2009
Massive wildfires consume Australia, fed by prolonged drought. Snow is falling
in the desert in Dubai. Bizarre weather patterns across the United States
causing floods. The climate is no longer just changing, it has changed. Average
global temperatures have risen year after year for over a decade. The
international consensus is that human-caused greenhouse gases are responsible
for global warming and that we must immediately reduce these gases if we have
any hope of stemming the rising temperatures.
Global warming is no longer a future threat waiting on the horizon. Human
societies across the globe are already suffering as a result of climate change.
The very world as we know it is endangered. Each day, untold species go extinct
to never be seen again. Thousands of people go hungry because of crop failure
and drought wrought by climate change.
Still, day after day we continue to pump greenhouse gases into the air, making
the problem worse. As a society we have completely disassociated our actions
with their consequences. We have become lemmings leaping from a cliff, our
smiles still firmly in place.
The bottom line is that we must change our lives. Not switch to greener fuels
or recycle more. These are good steps but in and of themselves are not
solutions. There is but one solution. We must stop releasing greenhouse gases
into the air. Period.
Sadly, few people comprehend the severity of the danger we are in. If more
people grasped the true peril of the situation, coal power plants would be shut
down and their CEO’s likely drug out and hung.
Our world’s top scientists, humanity’s smartest people from across the
globe are screaming for us to stop emitting greenhouse gases. No one is
listening.
In fact, rather than create a paradigm shift, world leaders, including
so-called progressive politicians – like Obama – are pushing for
“clean” coal and nuclear power.
Hello. Coal can not, in any form, burn clean of carbon. Nuclear power creates
radioactive waste that lasts millions of years and can not be stored safely at
any location. The people of Hanford, Washington and those across the river in
Oregon have had to learn their lesson the hard way as the site continues to
leak radioactive waste from the former power plant and nuclear waste storage
site.
Other climate change solutions actually being considered include launching
mirrors into space, dumping iron into oceans, and spraying sulfites into the
sky in order to create unnatural cloud cover. (More ridiculously true and
dangerous suggestions may be viewed at “Techno-fixes report” at
http://www.corporatewatch.org/?lid=3126)
All of these ideas are being put forward in an effort by wealthy nations, as
well as mega multinational corporations, to avoid the reality (and
responsibility) of the situation. We must fundamentally change our lifestyle.
Globalization of markets has failed us. One need only look at global warming
and the current economic crash for proof. Poor nations are still poor and
exploited, rich nations are still growing richer with more and more wealth
being consolidated in the hands of a few.
The world is a frightening place right now. Across the globe, dissent is being
crushed under the guise of suppressing terrorism. Here in the states,
activists are being rounded up and convicted of terrorism charges for actions
that injured no one. People are in prison for running website or giving
speeches.
But it isn’t just oppression that is frightening. The arctic is melting, icon
species like the polar bear are threatened with extinction, the economy has
crashed leaving people across the globe hungry, homeless, and scared.
We need change. We need real solutions and real action and we need it now.
Our society rests on the cusp of catastrophe. We are riding a speeding ship
headed straight toward and iceberg (no doubt from some collapsed ice shelf). We
have two choices before us: sink with the ship or abandon it.
Global governments have been meeting for climate talks since Toronto in 1988.
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change was created in 1990
to help facilitate these meetings. For twenty years those in power have been
aware of climate change, for twenty years they have ducked, dodged and avoided
the problem until it became the global threat it is today.
Twenty years of failure is unacceptable. Now these very same national
governments are twenty years later still trying to avoid taking responsibility
and enforcing the necessary changed to industry.
We need massive action on an international scale never before seen in human
history. We have the ability to create such a massive mobilization. In the past
we have achieved international days of action that have rocked the world. We
must go beyond those past days of international solidarity however. We must
reach for something never before achieved. We must shut the system down in its
entirety and force our governments and multinationals to listen and change.
We need an international global strike. For one day we must stop all work and
labor. We must shut down the factories, the ship yards, shut down
transportation. We must bring everything to a grinding halt. And demand
immediate action on climate change. Demand an immediate shift from fossil fuels
to alternative energies. Demand accountability from wealthy nations and help
for poorer ones.
It is an ambitious goal and a necessary one. We have to act ourselves. We have
to demand our governments take action. There is no time to leave the process to
governments that have already failed the world for twenty years!
In December 2009 world powers will again meet to discuss climate change and
global warming in Copenhagen, Denmark. The likely outcome will be yet another
unfair toothless agreement to reduce greenhouse emissions, much like Kyoto in
which, after much hype, actually led to increased worldwide emissions.
In December we must show the world governments that they are not in power
except by the grace of their citizens. We must remind world governments that
they exist solely at our discretion and to serve us, not line the pocketbooks
of the rich.
In December we must mobilize to shut the system down with a massive worldwide
general strike. Global warming is the greatest threat humanity has ever faced.
We must address the threat decisively and immediately. We must confront those
that would obstruct such actions overwhelmingly.
In December 2009 it is time for more than just international solidarity, more
than just pleading for change. It is time for a united front; it’s time to
reclaim our power. It is time for a general strike.
-Jeffrey Free Luers
write to Jeff at:
Jeffrey Luers # 13797671
CRCI
9111 NE Sunderland Ave
Portland, OR 97211-1708
for more information, go to: http://freejeffluers.org
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Friday, November 7, 2008
PUERTO RICO: SURVEILLANCE, VIOLENCE AND REBELLIOUSNESS
by Jesús Dávila
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, October 30, 2008 (NCM) – The surveillance by several agents in four vehicles of independentista leader Norberto Cintrón Fiallo, for which the United States government has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility, is, as of this writing, the most serious incident to take place in the last remaining days until elections.
The cases are heating up the atmosphere prior to Tuesday’s elections, for which the polls say the opposition New Progressive Party will defeat the incumbent Popular Democratic Party, opening the path for the newly formed Puerto Ricans for Puerto Rico and predicting high probabilities that the small but influential Puerto Rican Independence Party will maintain its electoral franchise.
Those who promote not voting in the colonial elections are also active, including a street theater group that performs a traveling satirical play in which they urge people to vote for “No One.”
The ostentatious persecution of Cintrón Fiallo effectuated by four vehicles which surveilled him for hours, from his home and across from his work took place only a few days after the Boricua Popular Army–Macheteros announced they had penetrated the secret information systems of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. On that occasion, the Macheteros made public the name of one of the alleged participants in the operation of the commando group that killed its commander Filiberto Ojeda Ríos in 2005.
Cintrón Fiallo, a Puerto Rican born in the Dominican Republic and who leads the Puerto Rican Workers Guild, has been the target of persecution for many years. As part of this long history, he was imprisoned as a result of accusations that later were dismissed; there have been attempts to link him with armed clandestine actions; and he served time in prison for refusing to cooperate with a U.S. Grand Jury.
Months after Ojeda’s death, Cintrón Fiallo’s house was searched, as were the homes of other well known independentistas, in an operation where the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security used helicopters in a great display of force. The FBI’s movements, which have also included grand jury subpoenas served on Puerto Rican independentistas in the U.S., have not produced a single arrest of the leaders of the Macheteros, nor its commander, who identifies himself only by his nom de guerre “Guasábara.”
To date, the only arrest they have managed to announce is that of Avelino González Claudio,
fugitive since 1986 and alleged to have participated in the theft of $7 million from Wells Fargo, for which the Macheteros took responsibility in 1983. In that case, it was the national Police of Puerto Rico who turned over the fugitive to the FBI.
This week, immediately following the new surveillance, Cintrón Fiallo reaffirmed his anti-election position in a message in which he called on people to follow the example of Ojeda Ríos and said, “we are waging a truly revolutionary movement, we are developing a true strategy to convince the people, the working class, of the benefits of becoming a republic which is free and truly sovereign.”
In fact, the message alludes to the eminent Pedro Albizu Campos, which emerged on the eve of the commemoration of the nationalist uprising of October 30, 1950.
Cintrón Fiallo’s case took place ten days after the surveillance and aggression against the famous independentista photographer Farrique Pesquera, in the capital neighborhood of Santurce. In both cases, people recorded the license plate numbers of the vehicles used by the alleged police agents.
Meanwhile, violent acts have also been noted in the context of the pro-U.S. parties, and half a dozen incidents have already been reported, including the burning of campaign vehicles of the opposition New Progressive Party, as well as fights in which bottles have been thrown.
At the same time, social rebellion is spreading. This same week, administrative workers at the University of Puerto Rico managed to paralyze the eleven public university campuses. The university administration decreed the university closed until after the elections, when the Brotherhood of Non Docent Employees decided to go on strike demanding economic conditions similar to those conceded to other university workers.
Just the week before, the Teachers Federation of Puerto Ricowhose union representation was declared null by the government won an important triumph in defeating the attempt by a government backed union affiliated with the U.S. union Change to Win, to organize all public school teachers. That confrontation, in which the U.S. union invested millions of dollars, has been one of the worse defeats suffered by the government’s labor strategy.
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, October 30, 2008 (NCM) – The surveillance by several agents in four vehicles of independentista leader Norberto Cintrón Fiallo, for which the United States government has neither confirmed nor denied responsibility, is, as of this writing, the most serious incident to take place in the last remaining days until elections.
The cases are heating up the atmosphere prior to Tuesday’s elections, for which the polls say the opposition New Progressive Party will defeat the incumbent Popular Democratic Party, opening the path for the newly formed Puerto Ricans for Puerto Rico and predicting high probabilities that the small but influential Puerto Rican Independence Party will maintain its electoral franchise.
Those who promote not voting in the colonial elections are also active, including a street theater group that performs a traveling satirical play in which they urge people to vote for “No One.”
The ostentatious persecution of Cintrón Fiallo effectuated by four vehicles which surveilled him for hours, from his home and across from his work took place only a few days after the Boricua Popular Army–Macheteros announced they had penetrated the secret information systems of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. On that occasion, the Macheteros made public the name of one of the alleged participants in the operation of the commando group that killed its commander Filiberto Ojeda Ríos in 2005.
Cintrón Fiallo, a Puerto Rican born in the Dominican Republic and who leads the Puerto Rican Workers Guild, has been the target of persecution for many years. As part of this long history, he was imprisoned as a result of accusations that later were dismissed; there have been attempts to link him with armed clandestine actions; and he served time in prison for refusing to cooperate with a U.S. Grand Jury.
Months after Ojeda’s death, Cintrón Fiallo’s house was searched, as were the homes of other well known independentistas, in an operation where the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security used helicopters in a great display of force. The FBI’s movements, which have also included grand jury subpoenas served on Puerto Rican independentistas in the U.S., have not produced a single arrest of the leaders of the Macheteros, nor its commander, who identifies himself only by his nom de guerre “Guasábara.”
To date, the only arrest they have managed to announce is that of Avelino González Claudio,
fugitive since 1986 and alleged to have participated in the theft of $7 million from Wells Fargo, for which the Macheteros took responsibility in 1983. In that case, it was the national Police of Puerto Rico who turned over the fugitive to the FBI.
This week, immediately following the new surveillance, Cintrón Fiallo reaffirmed his anti-election position in a message in which he called on people to follow the example of Ojeda Ríos and said, “we are waging a truly revolutionary movement, we are developing a true strategy to convince the people, the working class, of the benefits of becoming a republic which is free and truly sovereign.”
In fact, the message alludes to the eminent Pedro Albizu Campos, which emerged on the eve of the commemoration of the nationalist uprising of October 30, 1950.
Cintrón Fiallo’s case took place ten days after the surveillance and aggression against the famous independentista photographer Farrique Pesquera, in the capital neighborhood of Santurce. In both cases, people recorded the license plate numbers of the vehicles used by the alleged police agents.
Meanwhile, violent acts have also been noted in the context of the pro-U.S. parties, and half a dozen incidents have already been reported, including the burning of campaign vehicles of the opposition New Progressive Party, as well as fights in which bottles have been thrown.
At the same time, social rebellion is spreading. This same week, administrative workers at the University of Puerto Rico managed to paralyze the eleven public university campuses. The university administration decreed the university closed until after the elections, when the Brotherhood of Non Docent Employees decided to go on strike demanding economic conditions similar to those conceded to other university workers.
Just the week before, the Teachers Federation of Puerto Ricowhose union representation was declared null by the government won an important triumph in defeating the attempt by a government backed union affiliated with the U.S. union Change to Win, to organize all public school teachers. That confrontation, in which the U.S. union invested millions of dollars, has been one of the worse defeats suffered by the government’s labor strategy.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Urgent Action!-Elders Home & Sacred Homelands Face Destruction
URGENT! PLEASE ACT NOW! Big Mountain, Black Mesa Elder Faces Threat of her Ceremonial Lodge/Home being dismantled while Peabody Coal Company is pushing their massive
coal-mining expansion plans on the sacred ancestral homelands of the Dine' (Navajo) &
Hopi peoples of Black Mesa, AZ. Your voices are urgently needed before these two very important deadlines close!
PEABODY COAL COMPANY'S PLANS UNDERMINES PLANETARY LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS BY ACCELERATING
ECOLOGICAL & CULTURAL COLLAPSE! We cannot allow a small cartel of energy corporations and their financial backers to knowingly de-stabilize our planet’s climate and devastate whole communities & ecosystems for their own personal gain. This may turn out to be the most devastating crime ever perpetrated against humanity, the planet and future generations. We are at a critical juncture. Indigenous and land-based people globally have maintained the understanding that our collective survival is deeply dependent on our relationship to the Earth.
Please, act now in support of the communities on the front lines of resistance!
Big Mountain, Black Mesa Elder Faces Threat of her Ceremonial Lodge/Home being dismantled on her ancestral homeland. Elder Served Notice That Rebuilding Ceremonial Lodge is Illegal. On Wednesday, May 20th,Traditional elder and resister to relocation laws, Pauline Whitesinger was served notice that her recently rebuilt ceremonial lodge was illegal and under threat to be dismantled. She was ordered to halt all construction of her earthen lodge, called a hogon, as it is being prepared for an upcoming ceremony. She is refusing to cooperate and is requesting assistance to finish her ceremonial hogon.
Whitesinger, in her mid-eighties and living alone, has been an active resitor to the U.S. Government’s laws and efforts to relocate her off of her traditional homeland. She has also been an outspoken opponent to the existing coal mine on her homeland of Black Mesa, owned by Peabody Coal, as well as current plans for expansion of the strip mine, construction of pipelines and the mining of the area’s aquifers, stating that “Our very mother is being carved up there (at the coal mine)…if the mine is further permitted or expanded, the coal company will eventually kill her.” This recent BIA funded action is an affront not only to this elder and her people but to all advocates of the indigenous lifeways that maintain the health of the planet.
WHAT YOU CAN DO!
* Volunteers are needed right now to stay with Pauline to assist her with herding sheep,
to monitor for more threats, and to complete the hogon.
* Demand that Pauline be left alone on her ancestral homeland. Send a letter on her
behalf TODAY!
* For more information and where to send comments and/or demands:
http://sheepdognationrocks.blogspot.com/
coal-mining expansion plans on the sacred ancestral homelands of the Dine' (Navajo) &
Hopi peoples of Black Mesa, AZ. Your voices are urgently needed before these two very important deadlines close!
PEABODY COAL COMPANY'S PLANS UNDERMINES PLANETARY LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEMS BY ACCELERATING
ECOLOGICAL & CULTURAL COLLAPSE! We cannot allow a small cartel of energy corporations and their financial backers to knowingly de-stabilize our planet’s climate and devastate whole communities & ecosystems for their own personal gain. This may turn out to be the most devastating crime ever perpetrated against humanity, the planet and future generations. We are at a critical juncture. Indigenous and land-based people globally have maintained the understanding that our collective survival is deeply dependent on our relationship to the Earth.
Please, act now in support of the communities on the front lines of resistance!
Big Mountain, Black Mesa Elder Faces Threat of her Ceremonial Lodge/Home being dismantled on her ancestral homeland. Elder Served Notice That Rebuilding Ceremonial Lodge is Illegal. On Wednesday, May 20th,Traditional elder and resister to relocation laws, Pauline Whitesinger was served notice that her recently rebuilt ceremonial lodge was illegal and under threat to be dismantled. She was ordered to halt all construction of her earthen lodge, called a hogon, as it is being prepared for an upcoming ceremony. She is refusing to cooperate and is requesting assistance to finish her ceremonial hogon.
Whitesinger, in her mid-eighties and living alone, has been an active resitor to the U.S. Government’s laws and efforts to relocate her off of her traditional homeland. She has also been an outspoken opponent to the existing coal mine on her homeland of Black Mesa, owned by Peabody Coal, as well as current plans for expansion of the strip mine, construction of pipelines and the mining of the area’s aquifers, stating that “Our very mother is being carved up there (at the coal mine)…if the mine is further permitted or expanded, the coal company will eventually kill her.” This recent BIA funded action is an affront not only to this elder and her people but to all advocates of the indigenous lifeways that maintain the health of the planet.
WHAT YOU CAN DO!
* Volunteers are needed right now to stay with Pauline to assist her with herding sheep,
to monitor for more threats, and to complete the hogon.
* Demand that Pauline be left alone on her ancestral homeland. Send a letter on her
behalf TODAY!
* For more information and where to send comments and/or demands:
http://sheepdognationrocks.blogspot.com/
Thursday, May 29, 2008
From Black Power to Green Scare: The Criminalization of Dissent
Thursday, June 5, 2008 6:30 p.m.
FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
Join the Center for Constitutional Rights and the National Lawyers Guild - San Francisco Chapter for an engaging and important discussion exploring the criminalization of dissent both historically and in today's era of the so-called "war on terror."
The government has a long and sordid history of criminalizing and targeting oppressed communities and social justice activists and organizations that challenge its abuse of power - from the "Red Scare" of the 1920s, to the internment of Japanese Americans, to the targeting of the Black liberation struggle and other movements.
And today, under the guise of "anti-terrorist" legislation, the government is again attempting to target and intimidate a wide range of communities and movements, from former Black Panthers to environmental and animal rights groups to Muslim, Arab, and South Asian communities.
On Thursday, June 5, hear from directly impacted communities as well as attorneys and grassroots organizers struggling against repression.
Featured speakers:
SHAYANA KADIDAL, Center for Constitutional Rights, Managing attorney of the Guantànamo Global Justice Initiative.
RICHARD BROWN, Committee for the Defense of Human Rights and one of the "San Francisco 8," former Black Panthers facing renewed charges based on torture evidence
MICHEL SHEHADEH, Palestinian activist and one of the "Los Angeles 8," Palestinian and Kenyan immigrants targeted for their political activity who won a historic victory in November 2007 after a 20-year struggle
ANDREA LINDSAY, SHAC 7 Support Committee and an activist involved in combating the "Green Scare" against environmental and animal rights activists
LAUREN ORNELAS, Food Empowerment Project and an environmental and animal rights
Location:
The Women's Building
Audre Lorde Room
3543 18th St., #8
San Francisco, CA 94110
Contact 212-614-6466 with any questions. No RSVPs are required.
FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC
Join the Center for Constitutional Rights and the National Lawyers Guild - San Francisco Chapter for an engaging and important discussion exploring the criminalization of dissent both historically and in today's era of the so-called "war on terror."
The government has a long and sordid history of criminalizing and targeting oppressed communities and social justice activists and organizations that challenge its abuse of power - from the "Red Scare" of the 1920s, to the internment of Japanese Americans, to the targeting of the Black liberation struggle and other movements.
And today, under the guise of "anti-terrorist" legislation, the government is again attempting to target and intimidate a wide range of communities and movements, from former Black Panthers to environmental and animal rights groups to Muslim, Arab, and South Asian communities.
On Thursday, June 5, hear from directly impacted communities as well as attorneys and grassroots organizers struggling against repression.
Featured speakers:
SHAYANA KADIDAL, Center for Constitutional Rights, Managing attorney of the Guantànamo Global Justice Initiative.
RICHARD BROWN, Committee for the Defense of Human Rights and one of the "San Francisco 8," former Black Panthers facing renewed charges based on torture evidence
MICHEL SHEHADEH, Palestinian activist and one of the "Los Angeles 8," Palestinian and Kenyan immigrants targeted for their political activity who won a historic victory in November 2007 after a 20-year struggle
ANDREA LINDSAY, SHAC 7 Support Committee and an activist involved in combating the "Green Scare" against environmental and animal rights activists
LAUREN ORNELAS, Food Empowerment Project and an environmental and animal rights
Location:
The Women's Building
Audre Lorde Room
3543 18th St., #8
San Francisco, CA 94110
Contact 212-614-6466 with any questions. No RSVPs are required.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Marilyn Buck - Book Release Celebration!
Marilyn Buck, political prisoner at FCI Dublin, has translated and written an introduction to a book of poetry by Uruguayan poet Cristina Peri Rossi. Come celebrate this achievement and hear excerpts from this beautiful book at one of the book release parties happening in May. See below for full information.
Book Release Celebration! STATE OF EXILE By Cristina Peri Rossi Translated and with an introduction by Marilyn Buck “State of Exile is a haunting work that sat for decades, awaiting, like cicadas, its proper season. That time is now.” --Mumia Abu-Jamal In the first years of her exile from Uruguay, lesbian poet, author, journalist and social activist Cristina Peri Rossi penned an extraordinary collection of poems – spare, beautiful poems fueled by the experiences of forced migration, poems so personal, she didn’t publish them for almost 30 years. Now, in a collaboration across prison walls, continents and states of exile, U.S. political prisoner and poet Marilyn Buck has translated Peri Rossi’s poems into English. The poems are accompanied by two brilliant essays on exile, one by Peri Rossi, written for Spanish publication in 2003, and the other by Marilyn Buck for this bi-lingual City Lights edition. http://www.prisonactivist.org/pps+pows/marilynbuck/
Book Release Celebration! City Lights Bookstore Wednesday, May 14 7pm 261 Columbus, San Francisco
Readers:
Devorah Majors, David Meltzer, Graciela Trevisan
La Pena Cultural Center
Tuesday, May 20 7pm
3105 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley
Maisha Quint, MC
Readers: Cherrie Moraga, Mitsuye Yamada, Graciela Trevisan
$10 donation
Freedom Archives
522 Valencia Street San Francisco, CA 94110
415 863-9977 www.Freedomarchives.org
Book Release Celebration! STATE OF EXILE By Cristina Peri Rossi Translated and with an introduction by Marilyn Buck “State of Exile is a haunting work that sat for decades, awaiting, like cicadas, its proper season. That time is now.” --Mumia Abu-Jamal In the first years of her exile from Uruguay, lesbian poet, author, journalist and social activist Cristina Peri Rossi penned an extraordinary collection of poems – spare, beautiful poems fueled by the experiences of forced migration, poems so personal, she didn’t publish them for almost 30 years. Now, in a collaboration across prison walls, continents and states of exile, U.S. political prisoner and poet Marilyn Buck has translated Peri Rossi’s poems into English. The poems are accompanied by two brilliant essays on exile, one by Peri Rossi, written for Spanish publication in 2003, and the other by Marilyn Buck for this bi-lingual City Lights edition. http://www.prisonactivist.org/pps+pows/marilynbuck/
Book Release Celebration! City Lights Bookstore Wednesday, May 14 7pm 261 Columbus, San Francisco
Readers:
Devorah Majors, David Meltzer, Graciela Trevisan
La Pena Cultural Center
Tuesday, May 20 7pm
3105 Shattuck Ave, Berkeley
Maisha Quint, MC
Readers: Cherrie Moraga, Mitsuye Yamada, Graciela Trevisan
$10 donation
Freedom Archives
522 Valencia Street San Francisco, CA 94110
415 863-9977 www.Freedomarchives.org
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Earth Day Everyday
Free to be freed (sooner than later)
by Daniel on March 19th, 2008
On February 28th, 2008, my friend and political prisoner Jeff ‘Free’ Luers received his long-awaited sentence of 10 years by Judge Billings in Eugene, Oregon. This outcome was a long time coming— Jeff was arrested in June 2000, sentenced June 2001 and his appeal was filed January 2002. February 14, 2007 saw his sentence of 22 years and 8 months, imposed by Judge Lule Velure, thrown out. After waiting for so long and my belief that this so-called justice system could be fair long eroded, I doubted I would ever see any victory with Jeff’s case.
Jeff was sentenced to an absurd sentence of nearly 23 years back in 2001 which many saw as a clear message to the movement: use property destruction as a tactic and you will be crushed. It was a message heard loud and clear just a few years later when my co-defendants were indicted in the Operation Backfire/ELF case initially charged us with crimes that could have put us behind bars for life.
I knew Free from the Eugene anarchist scene— at the time a thriving and active smattering of collectives, groups and spaces. Free did Food Not Bombs and taught self defense. We were both involved in an 8-week activist gathering called Eugene Active Existence and had mutual friends. My interactions with him were always positive and I respected his participation in the Fall Creek tree village— a tactic/style of campaigning I had become disenchanted with. When Jeff was arrested, like many of the local anarchists, I joined efforts to support him and fundraise for his legal defense. Ironically, at the same time, I was involved with the Earth Liberation Front and was participating in actions similar to what Jeff was arrested for.
Hindsight is 20/20, of course, so perhaps it’s easy to say this now. Either way, events outside of Jeff’s (or my) control heavily impacted his life and legal case. Some of my co-defendants went back to Romania Chevrolet’s, in an apparent gesture of solidarity, and burned 36 SUVs in an immense and spectacular action. The second Romania arson (“Romania II”) was polarizing to say the least. Some in the activist community freaked out thinking it was a COINTELPRO-inspired set-up specifically designed to ruin Jeff’s trial. The corporate media in Eugene (specifically the Register Guard and Oregonian) offered sensational coverage implying links between Jeff and the incident.
In this climate, Jeff made the decision to have a bench trial— without a jury. The Judge would not only give the sentence (per usual) but would decide guilt or innocence. Despite major holes in the government’s arguments, the Judge (Lyle Velure) found Jeff guilty on 11 of 13 charges— including counts related to an attempted arson at Tyree Oil (an action Jeff has stated he was not involved in). Jeff was found guilty of 3 1st-degree counts of arson— one for each vehicle— which carried 7-year mandatory minimum sentences. When all was said and done, Velure handed Jeff a 22-year, 8-month sentence and Jeff was sent to a maximum security prison. It’s where he has done much of his time since that day.
There has been a lot of speculation on the impact of Romania II on Jeff’s sentence. Suffice to say, I think the action had a clearly negative impact on Jeff’s state of mind regarding his ability to win at trial, inflamed the Judge and the Romania family and polluted the potential jury pool. Everyone knew about this action in the small city of 150,000. Of course the media’s role in this is obvious but they are just doing what they do and it’s silly to assume they would do anything else [case in point, the smoke hasn’t cleared at the Woodinville, WA fires that took place at a rural development before the media and law enforcement proclaimed it an ELF action. The impact on the Briana Waters’ trial is widely assumed to have been negative.]
It is my belief that our movement(s) need to not shy away from discussions of these situations. Criticism, when done in the context of support and respect, is appropriate. It can help us move forward and give us a decent perspective on our own actions. As evidenced by the Woodinville fires (assuming it is ELF), it is apparent that we haven’t learned our lesson. Suspending any sort of discussion on whether the radical environmental movements should use arson, the question of timing and impact on others is still there. It was foreseeable, in my opinion that the second Romania arson was going to inflame and polarize Jeff’s legal situation. To see this situation (potentially) play out years later is just sad. While I know the intentions of those who did Romania II were good, we still need to face up to the impact of these actions.
Although my participation with the Romania II arson was limited to being shown the communique (and failing to have Jeff’s name removed), I felt partially responsibility. The repercussions of that action hit home for me and I decided I needed to be responsible for Jeff’s sentence. I committed to being there for him in the long haul, through every appeal and ordeal until he was released. From 2001- my arrest in December 2005, I was lucky enough to work with a variety of activists all over the world in fighting for Jeff’s freedom. Specifically, the Luers family, Break the Chain and the Friends of Jeff Luers crew were the stand-outs of that effort.
Almost 8 years later after many legal briefs, multiple prisons, a few trips to the hole, 3 international days of action/weekends of resistance and countless interviews, dispatches, articles and videos, we won. Jeff is coming home in December 2009 provided he participates in a boot camp program. While I am pissed off that Jeff wasn’t released immediately, as he should have been, I am happy he will be getting out at age 30, not 43!
Our prisoners have not always done so well upon release and have had a hard time adjusting to outside life again. It is imperative that we resolve to support people not just while they are imprisoned but in the period of adjustment when they re-enter society.
The Irish republican movement has a group called ‘Welcome Home’ (translated from Irish) that exists to provide support released political prisoners beyond the initial rush and euphoria from release. This work isn’t glamorous but it’s necessary. Finding decent housing and jobs, helping people comply with parole and probation, setting them up with clothes and some money when they get out— these are all things our communities can and should do. Jeff luckily has options in all these areas due to the hard work of activists in Eugene. He plans to go to school for green building or ecological sciences. He also plans to spend a lot of time with family and friends. His future indeed does look bright.
For me, I’m just excited my friend is coming home. While I will not be able to see him until 2015, due to my probation, its a day I look forward to. Free’s coming home— damn, that feels good to say.
I want to personally thank a few people who I have worked with over the years on Jeff’s campaign: Jenny, Leeanne, Brenton, Nadia, Priya, Chris, Lauren and John and Judy Luers.
To contribute to Jeff’s legal or release fund, go to his website at www.freefreenow.org. There’s a paypal button there or you can send a check/money order.
by Daniel on March 19th, 2008
On February 28th, 2008, my friend and political prisoner Jeff ‘Free’ Luers received his long-awaited sentence of 10 years by Judge Billings in Eugene, Oregon. This outcome was a long time coming— Jeff was arrested in June 2000, sentenced June 2001 and his appeal was filed January 2002. February 14, 2007 saw his sentence of 22 years and 8 months, imposed by Judge Lule Velure, thrown out. After waiting for so long and my belief that this so-called justice system could be fair long eroded, I doubted I would ever see any victory with Jeff’s case.
Jeff was sentenced to an absurd sentence of nearly 23 years back in 2001 which many saw as a clear message to the movement: use property destruction as a tactic and you will be crushed. It was a message heard loud and clear just a few years later when my co-defendants were indicted in the Operation Backfire/ELF case initially charged us with crimes that could have put us behind bars for life.
I knew Free from the Eugene anarchist scene— at the time a thriving and active smattering of collectives, groups and spaces. Free did Food Not Bombs and taught self defense. We were both involved in an 8-week activist gathering called Eugene Active Existence and had mutual friends. My interactions with him were always positive and I respected his participation in the Fall Creek tree village— a tactic/style of campaigning I had become disenchanted with. When Jeff was arrested, like many of the local anarchists, I joined efforts to support him and fundraise for his legal defense. Ironically, at the same time, I was involved with the Earth Liberation Front and was participating in actions similar to what Jeff was arrested for.
Hindsight is 20/20, of course, so perhaps it’s easy to say this now. Either way, events outside of Jeff’s (or my) control heavily impacted his life and legal case. Some of my co-defendants went back to Romania Chevrolet’s, in an apparent gesture of solidarity, and burned 36 SUVs in an immense and spectacular action. The second Romania arson (“Romania II”) was polarizing to say the least. Some in the activist community freaked out thinking it was a COINTELPRO-inspired set-up specifically designed to ruin Jeff’s trial. The corporate media in Eugene (specifically the Register Guard and Oregonian) offered sensational coverage implying links between Jeff and the incident.
In this climate, Jeff made the decision to have a bench trial— without a jury. The Judge would not only give the sentence (per usual) but would decide guilt or innocence. Despite major holes in the government’s arguments, the Judge (Lyle Velure) found Jeff guilty on 11 of 13 charges— including counts related to an attempted arson at Tyree Oil (an action Jeff has stated he was not involved in). Jeff was found guilty of 3 1st-degree counts of arson— one for each vehicle— which carried 7-year mandatory minimum sentences. When all was said and done, Velure handed Jeff a 22-year, 8-month sentence and Jeff was sent to a maximum security prison. It’s where he has done much of his time since that day.
There has been a lot of speculation on the impact of Romania II on Jeff’s sentence. Suffice to say, I think the action had a clearly negative impact on Jeff’s state of mind regarding his ability to win at trial, inflamed the Judge and the Romania family and polluted the potential jury pool. Everyone knew about this action in the small city of 150,000. Of course the media’s role in this is obvious but they are just doing what they do and it’s silly to assume they would do anything else [case in point, the smoke hasn’t cleared at the Woodinville, WA fires that took place at a rural development before the media and law enforcement proclaimed it an ELF action. The impact on the Briana Waters’ trial is widely assumed to have been negative.]
It is my belief that our movement(s) need to not shy away from discussions of these situations. Criticism, when done in the context of support and respect, is appropriate. It can help us move forward and give us a decent perspective on our own actions. As evidenced by the Woodinville fires (assuming it is ELF), it is apparent that we haven’t learned our lesson. Suspending any sort of discussion on whether the radical environmental movements should use arson, the question of timing and impact on others is still there. It was foreseeable, in my opinion that the second Romania arson was going to inflame and polarize Jeff’s legal situation. To see this situation (potentially) play out years later is just sad. While I know the intentions of those who did Romania II were good, we still need to face up to the impact of these actions.
Although my participation with the Romania II arson was limited to being shown the communique (and failing to have Jeff’s name removed), I felt partially responsibility. The repercussions of that action hit home for me and I decided I needed to be responsible for Jeff’s sentence. I committed to being there for him in the long haul, through every appeal and ordeal until he was released. From 2001- my arrest in December 2005, I was lucky enough to work with a variety of activists all over the world in fighting for Jeff’s freedom. Specifically, the Luers family, Break the Chain and the Friends of Jeff Luers crew were the stand-outs of that effort.
Almost 8 years later after many legal briefs, multiple prisons, a few trips to the hole, 3 international days of action/weekends of resistance and countless interviews, dispatches, articles and videos, we won. Jeff is coming home in December 2009 provided he participates in a boot camp program. While I am pissed off that Jeff wasn’t released immediately, as he should have been, I am happy he will be getting out at age 30, not 43!
Our prisoners have not always done so well upon release and have had a hard time adjusting to outside life again. It is imperative that we resolve to support people not just while they are imprisoned but in the period of adjustment when they re-enter society.
The Irish republican movement has a group called ‘Welcome Home’ (translated from Irish) that exists to provide support released political prisoners beyond the initial rush and euphoria from release. This work isn’t glamorous but it’s necessary. Finding decent housing and jobs, helping people comply with parole and probation, setting them up with clothes and some money when they get out— these are all things our communities can and should do. Jeff luckily has options in all these areas due to the hard work of activists in Eugene. He plans to go to school for green building or ecological sciences. He also plans to spend a lot of time with family and friends. His future indeed does look bright.
For me, I’m just excited my friend is coming home. While I will not be able to see him until 2015, due to my probation, its a day I look forward to. Free’s coming home— damn, that feels good to say.
I want to personally thank a few people who I have worked with over the years on Jeff’s campaign: Jenny, Leeanne, Brenton, Nadia, Priya, Chris, Lauren and John and Judy Luers.
To contribute to Jeff’s legal or release fund, go to his website at www.freefreenow.org. There’s a paypal button there or you can send a check/money order.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Morrissey speaks out against seal hunt
In late June the Montreal Symphony are hosting a TV Special to salute Buffy Sainte-Marie's 50th year making music. I am honored to be asked to take part. I first bought a Buffy Sainte-Marie record when I was 12, and her music has always remained with me. In the 1960s, as a political activist, Buffy's lyrics were fearless, and I'm very grateful for all the risks that she took.
I am also pleased to be asked to join the bill at the V Festival at the Thunderbird Stadium in Vancouver, and also at Fort Calgary in Calgary.
However, as we all know, the psychologically and constitutionally sickening Canadian seal-kill has started and is once again in full-cry.
The horror of the Canadian seal-kill is untranslatable, and although I fully realize that highly concentrated evil exists in other countries - Japan's dolphin slaughter, Iceland's newly-revived whaling, the cat-skinning trade in Switzerland, and China with just about every injustice imaginable - there is something especially menacing about Canada's seal-kill.
Loyola Sullivan (Canada's Ambassador for Fisheries Conservation) is a man of glacial coldness who claims that the seal-kill is "humane" - a view he might alter if his own skull were cracked open with a spiked axe.
The fact that the seal-kill provides a livelihood for fishermen is an insultingly dim excuse for it to take place - after all, the German gas chambers of World War 2 also provided work for someone.
The seal-kill takes place to satisfy greed for fur-pelts, and this Canadian government is happy to drag the global image of its own country down, and make it a place that people such as I couldn't bear to visit.
I am also pleased to be asked to join the bill at the V Festival at the Thunderbird Stadium in Vancouver, and also at Fort Calgary in Calgary.
However, as we all know, the psychologically and constitutionally sickening Canadian seal-kill has started and is once again in full-cry.
The horror of the Canadian seal-kill is untranslatable, and although I fully realize that highly concentrated evil exists in other countries - Japan's dolphin slaughter, Iceland's newly-revived whaling, the cat-skinning trade in Switzerland, and China with just about every injustice imaginable - there is something especially menacing about Canada's seal-kill.
Loyola Sullivan (Canada's Ambassador for Fisheries Conservation) is a man of glacial coldness who claims that the seal-kill is "humane" - a view he might alter if his own skull were cracked open with a spiked axe.
The fact that the seal-kill provides a livelihood for fishermen is an insultingly dim excuse for it to take place - after all, the German gas chambers of World War 2 also provided work for someone.
The seal-kill takes place to satisfy greed for fur-pelts, and this Canadian government is happy to drag the global image of its own country down, and make it a place that people such as I couldn't bear to visit.
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