Please see the press release below and online here <https://www.nlg.org/news/releases/nlg-strongly-objects-oppressive-and-discriminatory-law-enforcement-tactics-ferguson-mo>.
To support the NLG's efforts in Missouri, please visit
nlg.org/ferguson.
Many thanks!
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Tasha Moro, Communications Coordinator
212-679-5100, ext. 15 communications@nlg.org
*National Lawyers Guild Strongly Objects to Oppressive
and Discriminatory Law Enforcement Tactics in Ferguson, Mo. * *NLG Members
Offering Legal Support to Ferguson Protesters*
NEW YORK -- The National Lawyers Guild (NLG) is on the
ground providing legal support to Ferguson, Missouri residents protesting in
the wake of last week’s fatal shooting of black teenager Michael Brown by white
police officer Darren Wilson. Since then, community protests and neighborhood
demonstrations have been violently confronted by the Ferguson Police
Department, armed with military-grade weaponry. Yesterday morning, Governor Jay
Nixon deployed the Missouri National Guard to supplement St. Louis County
police, while the state of emergency he announced on Saturday remains in
effect. In light of the police brutality aimed at protesters thus far, the NLG
is deeply concerned about the use of the National Guard for civilian police
duties, normally reserved for natural disasters or insurrection.
In response to needs of local demonstrators and
organizers, the NLG is mobilizing a range of legal support such as criminal
defense, jail support, injunctive relief, and Legal Observers – NLG-trained
volunteers who protect the rights of protesters by monitoring and documenting
police activity at demonstrations. The NLG’s presence in Ferguson includes
legal workers and lawyers from the St. Louis area, as well as others from
Chicago, Detroit, and New York in collaboration with local St. Louis and
Ferguson organizers.
Interim NLG Executive Director Dan Gregor, currently in
Ferguson helping with legal support, said, “Nobody should have assault weapons
leveled at their chests by police or tear gas rounds fired at them for
exercising free speech and petitioning government for a redress of serious
grievances. This is a community expressing legitimate anger at not just the
murder of one unarmed black teen a week ago, but also the countless young men
of color brutalized every day across the country by the police, and now, the
military.”
The Guild recognizes that the ongoing events in Ferguson
reflect a dynamic and complex struggle around issues including race, class,
state repression, and free speech. The NLG urges Gov. Nixon and law enforcement
to respect the protesters’ right to free speech and assembly, while treating
them with the dignity they deserve.
*The National Lawyers Guild was formed in 1937 as the
nation’s first racially integrated bar association to advocate for the
protection of constitutional, human and civil rights.*
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