Stand up against political repression under the Trump/Pence regime! Drop the Charges on the RNC 16 Defendants!
Burning the American Flag in Protest is NOT a Crime… The fascism of Trump and Pence IS a Crime… against Humanity!
Attend the trial of two defendants charged with felonies
June 28, 2017: In one of the first major attempts to criminalize dissent under the Trump Regime, the first trial of the RNC 16 will begin in a Cleveland courtroom. 2 people arrested at the Republican National Convention face years in prison. This is outrageous and must not stand!
July 20, 2016: Donald Trump was being nominated at the RNC, with his program of “America First” chauvinism, fascist law and order, misogyny, and unbridled vitriolic racist attacks against Blacks, Chicanos, other Latinos, Muslims, and immigrants. But outside the convention, Gregory ‘Joey’ Johnson and the Revolution Club chanted “1, 2, 3, 4 —Slavery, Genocide, and War! 5, 6, 7, 8 —America Was NEVER Great!” Joey Johnson announced, “We’re standing with the people of the world today! We’re taking a stand against this imperialist Republican National Convention… America first? It always has been first: at genocide, at slavery, at exploitation, at destruction of the environment, at torture. We’re standing here with the people of the world today!” Joey then lit an American flag on fire.
The Revolution Club had a right to do what they did at the RNC, and it was the right thing to do. But the police violently arrested “Joey” Johnson (the same Johnson in the U.S. Supreme Court case Texas v. Johnson (1989) that established flag burning as protected speech) and at least 16 other people. Even before the flag was lit, a mob of police and fascist Infowars/Trump operatives assaulted the protective perimeter of Revolution Club members. But it’s the victims of this assault, the RNC 16, who are facing multiple misdemeanor and felony charges! On June 28, 2017 the trial begins for two RNC 16 defendants’ charged with felonies! This is an outrage and cannot stand.
Here’s what you can do now: Flood the prosecutors’ offices with postcards to Demand: Drop the Charges on the RNC 16!
Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O’Malley
The Justice Center, Courts Tower
1200 Ontario Street, 9th Floor, Cleveland, Ohio 44113
Fax: 216.698.2270
City of Cleveland Prosecutor Kimberly Barnett-Mills
1200 Ontario St., 8th Floor, Cleveland OH 44113
fax: 216-664-4399 send copies to [email protected]
*Make plans NOW to be at the RNC 16 Felony Trial
Wednesday, June 28, 9 am
Injustice Center, 1200 Ontario (at Lakeside), courtroom 21C
Whenever people come under attack for opposing injustice, they should be defended. But this case represents more than that. This continued prosecution/persecution is part of a whole fascist assault by the Trump and Pence regime on people’s rights and the rule of law, shredding of established constitutional rights, and imposition of open violent repression against dissent. It is forced patriotism – forcing people to respect the symbols of the government by punishing disrespect of those symbols. It is an attempt to intimidate people from opposing the odious message and fascist program put forward by Trump. In fact, on November 29, 2016, Donald Trump sent a tweet threat: “Nobody should be allowed to burn the American flag- if they do, there must be consequences—perhaps loss of citizenship or a year in jail.”
At every stop on his post-election “Victory Tour,” Trump repeated this threat, whipping up fascist mobs across the country to terrorize, threaten, and intimidate anyone from carrying out constitutionally protected free speech, and to cheer his calls for enforced patriotism and criminalizing dissent. It is reminiscent of Nazi Germany, where it was a crime to profane the Swastika.
The prosecution of the RNC 16 case looms even larger now in light of Trump’s flagburning decree. This is one of the first legal challenges to the dangerous and deadly regime Trump is imposing. And the urgency to defend the RNC 16 looms larger now as well. A key part of stopping the Trump regime—and resisting every crime he carries out and every new assault he and his followers unleash—is defending the right of people to stand up and protest, to speak freely what is on their minds, and to not be forced to risk physical assault, jail, denial of citizenship or death to do so.
“Fascism has direction and momentum. Dissent is piece by piece criminalized. The truth is bludgeoned. Group after group is demonized and targeted along a trajectory that leads to real horrors. All of this has already begun under the Trump regime. History has shown that fascism must be stopped before it becomes too late.” from the Refuse Fascism Call to Action at refusefascism.org
What you can do now!!
Find out more about the fight to Free the RNC16, including videos of the protest and arrests at https://freernc16.wordpress.com/ and www.revcom.us. Contact us at [email protected] 216-225-2267
Make plans NOW to be at the RNC 16 Felony Trial–Wednesday, June 28
9 am at the Injustice Center, 1200 Ontario (at Lakeside), courtroom 21C
Flood the prosecutors’ offices with postcards to Demand: Drop the Charges on the RNC 16!
Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O’Malley
The Justice Center, Courts Tower, 1200 Ontario Street, 9th Floor
Cleveland, Ohio 44113 Fax: 216.698.2270
City of Cleveland Prosecutor Kimberly Barnett-Mills
1200 Ontario St., 8th Floor, Cleveland OH 44113
fax: 216-664-4399
To interview or request Joey Johnson or one of the other RNC 16 to speak at your school, email [email protected]
Spread this all over social media, facebook, twitter, etc. @joey4revolution Facebook
Funds are needed to defray the costs of the defense, and travel of the RNC 16 Defendants to Cleveland. https://www.crowdrise.com/free-joey-johnson-and-the-rnc16-flagburning-is-not-a-crime/fundraiser/cheryllessin1
Sign the online petition—We demand: Drop the Charges on Gregory “Joey” Johnson and RNC16 Now! http://org.salsalabs.com/o/1170/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=20203