tangent4ronpaul
03-05-2011, 08:20 PM
http://www.consortiumnews.com/2011/030211.html
A disorderly conduct charge against former CIA analyst Ray McGovern – for standing silently with his back to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton – was dropped on Wednesday in what McGovern called a victory for the constitutional right to dissent against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Two security agents grabbed the 71-year-old McGovern and dragged him away from the audience listening to Clinton’s speech on Feb. 15 at George Washington University. McGovern, who was wearing a “Veterans for Peace” T-shirt, suffered bruises and abrasions from the arrest.
Clinton, who was calling on governments around the world to respect peaceful dissent, continued on with her talk as if nothing had happened.
“The Constitution lives,” McGovern said after the government decided not to proceed with prosecution. “I am hugely grateful for the widespread condemnation of the brutal treatment I encountered two weeks ago for exercising my First Amendment rights. It strikes me as an empowering example of what we can do together in standing for justice and against the violence of war.”
McGovern’s arrest prompted an outpouring of support from people all over the country and the incident received widespread coverage in the alternative media, although it was barely mentioned in the mainstream press.
“This outrageous arrest laid bare the hypocrisy of Clinton’s presentation about free speech and free expression, said Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, one of McGovern’s attorneys at the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund. “While lecturing other governments, she never even paused while Mr. McGovern was brutally hauled out right in front of her and arrested while peacefully and silently expressing dissent.”
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http://www.democracynow.org/2011/3/3/headlines/charges_dropped_for_silent_protest_at_clinton_spee ch
(video at link)
Charges Dropped for Silent Protest at Clinton Speech
Charges have been dropped against a career CIA officer-turned-peace activist who held a silent protest against U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last month. Ray McGovern was accused of disorderly conduct after he stood up and turned his back to Clinton during a speech in Washington, D.C. McGovern was seized by government agents who assaulted him as they removed him from the room. McGovern spoke to Democracy Now! about the incident last month.
Ray McGovern: "I was standing up in silent witness to the fact that Hillary Clinton is responsible, partly responsible, for countless thousands of Iraqis, Americans, Afghans and, God help us, Iranians—I hope not—and that she should not get the idea that everybody is going to sit down and applaud politely when there are so many of us that are usually excluded from these sessions who are feeling very, very, very sad and very angry at the foreign policy of our government."
A disorderly conduct charge against former CIA analyst Ray McGovern – for standing silently with his back to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton – was dropped on Wednesday in what McGovern called a victory for the constitutional right to dissent against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Two security agents grabbed the 71-year-old McGovern and dragged him away from the audience listening to Clinton’s speech on Feb. 15 at George Washington University. McGovern, who was wearing a “Veterans for Peace” T-shirt, suffered bruises and abrasions from the arrest.
Clinton, who was calling on governments around the world to respect peaceful dissent, continued on with her talk as if nothing had happened.
“The Constitution lives,” McGovern said after the government decided not to proceed with prosecution. “I am hugely grateful for the widespread condemnation of the brutal treatment I encountered two weeks ago for exercising my First Amendment rights. It strikes me as an empowering example of what we can do together in standing for justice and against the violence of war.”
McGovern’s arrest prompted an outpouring of support from people all over the country and the incident received widespread coverage in the alternative media, although it was barely mentioned in the mainstream press.
“This outrageous arrest laid bare the hypocrisy of Clinton’s presentation about free speech and free expression, said Mara Verheyden-Hilliard, one of McGovern’s attorneys at the Partnership for Civil Justice Fund. “While lecturing other governments, she never even paused while Mr. McGovern was brutally hauled out right in front of her and arrested while peacefully and silently expressing dissent.”
[...]
====
http://www.democracynow.org/2011/3/3/headlines/charges_dropped_for_silent_protest_at_clinton_spee ch
(video at link)
Charges Dropped for Silent Protest at Clinton Speech
Charges have been dropped against a career CIA officer-turned-peace activist who held a silent protest against U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton last month. Ray McGovern was accused of disorderly conduct after he stood up and turned his back to Clinton during a speech in Washington, D.C. McGovern was seized by government agents who assaulted him as they removed him from the room. McGovern spoke to Democracy Now! about the incident last month.
Ray McGovern: "I was standing up in silent witness to the fact that Hillary Clinton is responsible, partly responsible, for countless thousands of Iraqis, Americans, Afghans and, God help us, Iranians—I hope not—and that she should not get the idea that everybody is going to sit down and applaud politely when there are so many of us that are usually excluded from these sessions who are feeling very, very, very sad and very angry at the foreign policy of our government."