Free Speech Lawsuit Filed in Washington DC:
$10,000 fine challenged

The ANSWER Coalition today filed a major Free Speech lawsuit in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia challenging anti-postering regulations that have been used to fine the organization. ANSWER has been hit with $10,000 fines in the last week.

Stepping up its politically targeted harassment campaign, as we were announcing the lawsuit, the government served fines for posters against the landlord of the building housing ANSWER's office. This is an unprecedented campaign against First Amendment speech and associational rights.

The lawsuit was announced at a press conference held today at the offices of constitutional rights attorneys at the Partnership for Civil Justice (PCJ). The lawsuit can be read in its entirety by clicking this link.

The Free Speech lawsuit asserts that:

The challenged regulations create a hierarchy of speech, allowing broad freedom to post on subjects related to elections or crime prevention, but sharply restricting -- and penalizing with massive fines -- those who post on grassroots political issues. The legal challenge arose in response to the issuance of fines against the ANSWER Coalition for $10,000 because that anti-war organization had used posters urging the public to "March to Stop the War" and to attend the national September 15, 2007, march in Washington, called by ANSWER and led by Iraq war veterans.

The press conference was an example of the broad support for the September 15 March on Washington DC which will be led by Iraq war veterans and their families.

In this email you can watch and listen to the presentations of the speakers and the see some of the extensive media coverage of this unfolding fight.

The government's attempt to disrupt the organizing for September 15 has backfired. Support is coming in from all over the country. More than ninety organizing centers are bringing people from their area to Washington DC. Go to www.Sept15.org. 

Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, Attorney and Co-founder, Partnership for Civil Justice Audio    Video	Carl Messineo, Attorney and Co-founder, Partnership for Civil Justice Audio    Video
Eugene Puryear, Howard University student; National Coordinator, Youth and Student A.N.S.W.E.R. Audio    Video  Written statement	Tina Richards, CEO of Grassroots America and mother of Iraq war veteran Cloy Richards Audio    Video	Phil Portluck, Social justice activist in Washington DC Audio  Video

Sarah Sloan National Staff Coordinator of the ANSWER Coalition  Audio excerpt   Video excerpt  What are the facts? Statement by the ANSWER Coalition at the press conference held in Washington DC on August 20, 2007

View the Fox 5 DC News coverage from Thursday, August 16

Read a Letter to the Editor of the Washington Post from Monday, August 20

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