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#civildisobedience — Public Fediverse posts

Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #civildisobedience, aggregated by home.social.

  1. Cities are Replacing Flock with Axon / Motorola for their Mass Surveillance Network

    Flock Safety became the protested brand. Axon Enterprise now sells Outpost and Lightpost readers that livestream and feed Axon Fusus; Fleet cameras scan plates from patrol cars. Motorola Solutions bought VaaS for $445 million in 2019 and kept Vigilant Solutions and Digital Recognition Network. The vendor changes, the mass surveillance network remains.

    Cameras are not the only issue with surveillance systems like these. These devices can also log Audio, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and RFID and other signals your devices broadcast. Then they fuse data collected without warrants with commercial data-broker records and "AI", to create a comprehensive database of everyone surveiled, who everyone is, what that are doing, and what they "will do".

    These are not just cameras or license plate readers, this is a surveillance network. It's a violation of privacy and the 4th amendment. And we should not let this happen.

    #surveillance #politics #resistance #resist #usa #authoritarianism #fascism #civildisobedience #USAFascistShitShow #policestate #policemilitarization #federalinvasion #nokings #abolishice #privacy #flock #palantir #axon #axonaut #4thamendment #Chatrie_v_United_States

  2. #Quakers condemn arrests of #activists at meeting house

    March 30, 2025

    "The arrests of six female supporters of activist group #YouthDemand at a Quaker meeting house have been condemned by the faith group.

    "Quakers in #Britain said the arrests were the first at a meeting house and 'an aggressive violation'.

    "The Metropolitan Police said six people were arrested on Thursday evening at the Westminster Meeting House on suspicion of conspiracy to cause a #PublicNuisance.

    "The force said it came amid concerns there were plans to 'shut down' London during April using tactics such as road blocks.

    "Youth Demand said more than 30 officers were involved with making the arrests.

    "Paul Parker, of Quakers in Britain, said he could not recall anyone being arrested at a Quaker meeting house in living memory.

    "'The forceful removal of young people holding a protest group meeting clearly shows what happens when a society #CriminalisesProtest.

    "'#FreedomOfSpeech, assembly, and fair trials are an essential part of free public debate which underpins #democracy,' he said.

    "Police said a further five arrests for the same offence were made on Friday - four at addresses in #London and one in #Exeter.

    "Youth Demand, which is not affiliated with the Quakers, said the meeting was 'an opportunity to share plans for non-violent #CivilResistance actions' due to take place in April.

    "The group claimed a number of houses were also raided on Thursday and Friday as part of the operation.

    "Quakers in Britain said: 'Quakers support the right to non-violent public protest, acting themselves from a deep moral imperative to stand up against #injustice and for our planet.

    "'Many have taken non-violent direct action over the centuries from the abolition of #slavery to women's #suffrage and prison reform.'

    "The Met said the force understood the importance of the right to protest but added that Youth Demand had stated an intention to 'shut down' London in April.

    "'We have a responsibility to intervene to prevent activity that crosses the line from protest into serious disruption and other criminality,' a spokesman said.

    "On Thursday, officers raided a Youth Demand planning meeting where those in attendance were plotting their April action.

    "Six people were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to cause a public nuisance.

    "A further five arrests for the same offence were made on Friday, 28 March. Four of the arrests were at addresses in London and one in Exeter.

    'Policing priorities'

    "Out of the 11 people arrested, 10 have been released on bail and one will face no further action.

    "Asked about the matter on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said: 'I have made clear to the police this government's priorities for policing are reducing serious violence... and bringing back neighbourhood policing, those crimes in town centres like shoplifting.'

    "Youth Demand, which describes itself as a 'new youth resistance campaign fighting for an end to #genocide', began carrying out acts of #CivilDisobedience last year.

    "Its demands of the government include stopping all trade with #Israel and raising money from 'the #SuperRich and #Fossilfuel #elite' to pay damages for the effects of fossil fuel burning."

    Read more:
    bbc.com/news/articles/cj3x5j6g
    #UKPol #ThoughtCrime #CriminalizingDissent #CriminalizingActivism #PublicNuisanceLaws #Article20 #2023PublicOrderAct #Resistance #UKResistance #ProtectMotherEarth #FreePalestine #IsraeliWarCrimes

  3. And how much economic damage is from climate change and pollution from #FossilFuels? #BigOil is the real criminal here!

    #ClimateProtesters are taking action against Big Oil. UK courts are handing them prison terms akin to rapists and thieves

    By Kara Fox, CNN
    September 14, 2024

    London CNN — "As #RightWing rioters attacked communities with #racist violence across parts of the UK last month, 22-year-old #ClimateActivist #CressieGethin sat in a prison cell.

    "Her crime? Organizing a disruptive protest against new government-granted licenses to drill for oil — a planet-heating #FossilFuel — in the #NorthSea.

    "In late July, a London court found #Gethin and four other members of the #JustStopOil activist group guilty of 'conspiring intentionally to cause a #PublicNuisance,' after recruiting protesters to climb structures along the M25 — a major ring road around London — bringing traffic to a standstill in parts over four days in November 2022.

    "Prosecutors alleged that the protests, organized over a #ZoomCall, disrupted more than 700,000 drivers, caused economic damage of over £760,000 ($980,000) and racked up £1 million ($1.3m) in policing costs.

    "Now Gethin and three others — Louise Lancaster, #DanielShaw and #LuciaWhittakerDeAbreu, who planned the disruption on the call — are serving four-year jail terms, while Just Stop Oil co-founder #RogerHallam was given five years. All are appealing.

    "The sentences are believed to be the longest in the UK’s history for #nonviolent protest and were delivered under two new controversial laws that supercharged #policing powers to crack down on disruptive protests, even when they are peaceful.

    "They place the act of planning a 'public nuisance' event, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, on a similar footing as #ViolentCrimes like robbery, for which punishments range from community service to 12 years’ jail, or rape, which is four to 19 years.

    "The judge — who in court referred to the activists as '#extremists' — justified the long jail terms because all five activists had previously been convicted of one or more offenses in relation to direct action protest. Each were on bail for another set of proceedings when the Zoom call took place. He also noted people missed important doctor’s visits and funerals because of the protest.

    "But activists like Gethin say their demonstrations are proportionate to the problem at hand — a rapidly warming world that threatens to transform life as we know it, through deadly #ExtremeWeather events and by pushing #ecosystems to their brinks. They are now battling the bolstered powers of the #police and courts to get their point across.

    “'A very harsh sentence like this doesn’t make sense morally or legally — but it does make sense politically,' Gethin told CNN in a handwritten letter from HMP Bronzefield, a women’s prison just south of London’s Heathrow Airport.

    "The laws have drawn criticism from the UN’s special rapporteur on #EnvironmentalDefenders, #MichaelForst, who said not only do they criminalize peaceful protest, but they are being enforced in 'punitive and repressive' ways."

    Read more:
    cnn.com/2024/09/14/climate/uk-

    #BigOilAndGas #ClimateActivists #ClimateProtest #SLAPPs #CorporateColonialism #WaterDefenders
    #ClimateDefenders
    #EnvironmentalActivists
    #SilencingDissent #SLAPPs #ClimateActivists #CorporateColonialism
    #EarthDefenders #CriminalizingDissent #FreeSpeech #RightToProtest #BiodiversityNecessityDefense
    #EarthDefenders
    #SLAPPs #Fascism #CivilDisobedience
    #Activism #ClimateStrike
    #HumanRights #Article20 #2023PublicOrderAct #ClimateNecessityDefense #Corporatocracy #CorporateFascism #ClimateCrisis #ClimateCatastrophe

  4. Thousands Sign Support for #Greenpeace and #RedWarriorSociety in #Pipeline #SLAPP

    By Greenpeace International, #CensoredNews, Sept. 13, 2024

    "We, the undersigned individuals and organisations, formally express our solidarity with Greenpeace against #EnergyTransfer’s meritless $300 million lawsuit.

    " #PeacefulProtest and #FreeSpeech are fundamental human rights that underpin social progress. The Energy Transfer $300 million lawsuit against Greenpeace is an abuse of the legal system and a blatant attempt to silence legitimate work to protect people and our planet.

    "This lawsuit makes allegations that affect people far beyond Greenpeace. It attempts to rewrite the history of the #Indigenous-led opposition movement at #StandingRock – by absurdly alleging that Greenpeace orchestrated the entire resistance.

    "It seeks to hold the Greenpeace organizations in the US and Greenpeace International accountable for actions taken by unaffiliated and unknown individuals. This could have a chilling effect on anyone engaged in peaceful protest and assembly. It also attempts to sue over justified and protected speech, claiming it is '#defamation.' This is #corporate overreach that is part of a disturbing trend of attacks on advocacy and speech around the world.

    "We will not allow lawsuits like this one to stop us from advocating for a just, green and peaceful future. On the contrary, we will ensure they have the opposite effect, increasing the support for organizations like Greenpeace and strengthening the broader movement for justice.

    "This legal attack on Greenpeace is an attack on us all. We will not stand idly by. We will not be bullied. We will not be divided and we will not be silenced.

    "This letter has been signed by more than 290 organisations, tens of thousands of individuals, and a growing list of public figures."

    Source:
    bsnorrell.blogspot.com/2024/09

    Read the names of support organizations:
    greenpeace.org/international/s

    #StandWithStandingRock #BigOilAndGas #ClimateCrisis #ClimateActivists #ClimateProtest #SLAPPs #CorporateColonialism #WaterDefenders
    #ClimateDefenders
    #EnvironmentalActivists
    #SilencingDissent #SLAPPs #ClimateActivists #CorporateColonialism
    #EarthDefenders #CriminalizingDissent #FreeSpeech #RightToProtest #BiodiversityNecessityDefense
    #EarthDefenders
    #SLAPPs #Fascism #CivilDisobedience
    #Activism #ClimateStrike
    #HumanRights #Article20 #2023PublicOrderAct #ClimateNecessityDefense #Corporatocracy #CorporateFascism #DakotaAccessPipeline

  5. “On Thin Ice”: Western Nations Crack Down on #ClimateActivists with Arrests & Jail Terms

    Story by #DemocracyNow
    September 12, 2024

    "As the #ClimateCrisis continues to accelerate, #wealthy governments in the West are clamping down on #ClimateProtest. According to a new report from #ClimateRightsInternational, #demonstrators around the world are being arrested, charged, prosecuted and silenced, simply for using their rights to free expression. One of those prosecuted is activist #JoannaSmith, who last year applied washable school finger paint on the exterior glass case enclosing Edgar Degas’s renowned wax sculpture, Little Dancer, at the National Gallery of Art to draw attention to the urgency of the climate crisis. She was charged and later sentenced to two months in federal prison for her #CivilDisobedience. We speak to Smith just a week after her release, and to #LindaLakhdir, the legal director of Climate Rights International. 'Countries who have held themselves up as beacons of rule of law are essentially repressing peaceful protest,' says Lakhdir. Smith says the nonviolent action she took was intended to highlight the disparity between a sculpture of a child protected from the elements with a strong plexiglass case and the billions of children around the world left unsafe and vulnerable by #ClimateChange's effects. 'The crisis is here now, it’s unfolding in front of us, and our governments are failing us,' she explains.

    Read more:
    democracynow.org/2024/9/12/cli

    #WaterDefenders
    #ClimateDefenders
    #EnvironmentalActivists
    #SilencingDissent #SLAPPs #ClimateActivists #CorporateColonialism
    #EarthDefenders #CriminalizingDissent #FreeSpeech #RightToProtest #BiodiversityNecessityDefense
    #EarthDefenders
    #SLAPPs #Fascism #CivilDisobedience
    #Activism #ClimateStrike
    #ClimateActivists
    #HumanRights #Corporatocracy
    #Article20 #2023PublicOrderAct
    #ClimateNecessityDefense

  6. Japan asks Denmark to extradite anti-whaling activist #PaulWatson

    Denmark announced Thursday that it has received Japan's extradition request for anti-whaling activist Paul Watson, who was arrested in Greenland last month on an international arrest warrant. Watson, the 73-year-old founder of #SeaShepherd, is facing charges related to a 2010 confrontation with Japanese #whaling ships, raising concerns over his potential extradition and the motivations behind Japan's request.

    Issued on: 01/08/2024

    "#Denmark's justice ministry said Thursday that it had received Japan's extradition request for anti-whaling activist Paul Watson, who was detained in #Greenland last month on an international arrest warrant.

    "Watson, the 73-year-old American-Canadian founder of the Sea Shepherd activist group, was arrested on July 21 in Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory, over a 2010 altercation with Japanese whaling ships.

    "Watson, who featured in the reality TV series '#WhaleWars', founded Sea Shepherd and the Captain Paul Watson Foundation (#CPWF), and is known for #DirectAction tactics including confrontations with whaling ships at sea.

    "'The Ministry of Justice received a formal extradition request regarding Paul Watson from the Japanese authorities yesterday,' the ministry told AFP in an email."

    [...]

    "'#Japan has a personal vendetta against #PaulWatson, and this so-called offence is the pretext for revenge against a man who defied and therefore humiliated them,' [Francois Zimeray] told AFP.

    "He said an extradition to Japan would be a violation of the European Convention on #HumanRights, since 'the country does not respect international standards on fair trials and prisons.'"

    france24.com/en/europe/2024080

    #Greenpeace #Ecocide #FreeSpeech #RightToProtest
    #CriminalizingDissent
    #BiodiversityNecessityDefense
    #EarthDefenders #Fascism
    #CivilDisobedience #Activism #ClimateActivists #HumanRights #SilencingDissent #Corporatocracy #Article20 #HumanRightsViolations #DefendNature #Japon #SaveOurSeas #FreePaulWatson

  7. TY to @RadicalAnthro for making me aware of this!

    Five #JustStopOil activists receive record sentences for planning to block M25

    Campaigners receive longest ever sentences for #nonviolent #protest after being convicted of conspiracy to cause #PublicNuisance

    Damien Gayle
    Thu 18 Jul 2024 12.47 EDT

    "Gethin, who offered her own comments in mitigation, said: 'I want to remind the court once more that my reasons for taking action were not beliefs or opinions. Earth’s life-support systems are breaking down due to human activities, whether we believe it or not.

    "'These are not beliefs or opinions and feeling strongly that this is wrong is greatly understandable, I would argue. I deeply regret that this action was necessary … I maintain that it was necessary and I stand by my actions as the most effective option available to me.'

    "Supporters of the defendants expressed outrage at the sentences, which came after a two-week trial in which the judge denied them any of the defences in law for causing a public nuisance.

    "Hehir ruled that the jury should not take into account evidence about #ClimateBreakdown, which the defendants wanted to point to as the key motivation behind their actions, and which they said provided them with a #ReasonableExcuse for them."

    Read more:

    theguardian.com/environment/ar

    #FreeSpeech #RightToProtest #CriminalizingDissent #BiodiversityNecessityDefense #EarthDefenders #SLAPPs #Fascism #SLAPPs #CivilDisobedience #Activism #ClimateStrike #ClimateActivists #HumanRights #SilencingDissent #Corporatocracy #EarthDefenders #Article20 #ExtremeProtestGroups #2023PublicOrderAct #ClimateNecessityDefense

  8. "Militant groups like Palestine Action and Just Stop Oil are using criminal tactics to create mayhem and hold the public and workers to ransom without fear of consequence," Lord Walney said.

    Um, #BigCorporations, especially #BigOilAndGas, have been holding THE PLANET and ALL LIFE FORMS to ransom without consequence! Why doesn't the UK (and all the other countries) criminalize ECOCIDE?!!

    'Extreme' protest groups face ban under proposal

    Harry Farley
    May 11, 2024

    "#Protest groups such as #JustStopOil and #PalestineAction could be banned in a similar way to #terrorist organisations, under a proposal from the government’s adviser on political violence.

    "An upcoming report from Lord Walney, which BBC News has seen extracts of, will recommend a new category for proscribing '#ExtremeProtestGroups'.

    "It defines these as those which routinely use criminal tactics to try to achieve their aims.

    "The sanctions could restrict a group's ability to #fundraise and its #RightToAssembly in the #UK.

    "The Home Office said ministers would consider the recommendations."

    Read more:
    bbc.com/news/articles/c2qv7425

    #FreeSpeech #RightToProtest #CriminalizingDissent #SLAPPs #Fascism
    #SLAPPs #CivilDisobedience #Activism #ClimateStrike #FreePalestine #ClimateActivists #HumanRights #SilencingDissent #Corporatocracy #EarthDefenders #Article20 #2023PublicOrderAct