The Assault on Free Speech, Public Assembly, and Dissent

A National Lawyers Guild Report 19
How the Police, with Justice Department
Approval, Violate the First Amendment
Police infractions of civil liberties are evident before, during, and
after demonstrations throughout the country. <strong>The</strong> next three sections,
in that order, lay out strategies used by law enforcement that
systematically violate the constitutional rights of individuals
nationwide.
Chilling Political Expression Before
Demonstrations
I
n the late 1990s there was a noticeable shift from reactive
law enforcement to preemptive law enforcement.
Preemptive policing includes engaging in mass false
arrests and a range of other activities designed to stop
individuals before they engage in associative activities. False
and pretextual arrests occurred before the 2000 World
Bank/International Monetary Fund (IMF) demonstrations in
Washington, D.C. Police also shut down a central meeting place
and organizers’ offices while confiscating literature, signs, and
banners—materials clearly protected by the First Amendment—
as well as medical supplies. <strong>The</strong>se tactics have been repeated at
most large demonstrations following the World Bank/IMF
protests, but in nearly all instances they are illegal. Probable
cause must exist for each and every person arrested in order to
constitute lawful arrest. 32
Other pre-demonstration tactics include intimidation by the media,
police infiltration, passing unconstitutional ordinances in advance of
specific demonstrations, and denying permits based on content.
Intimidation by the Media
One of the first measures is to deter people from attending
demonstrations altogether. <strong>The</strong> media plays a large role in this by
depicting protesters as violent and by showing striking images of
weapon-bearing police officers in riot gear well in advance of a
given event. Such early media coverage of anticipated confrontations