What about when Nazis intimidate or oppress me for walking while Jewish? That’s just free speech, right?
This was introduced by Daniel Donovan (R-NY). If the name sounds familiar, its because he’s the attorney who failed to indict Eric Garner’s murderer. It’s very clear where his loyalties lie.
7308 13th Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11228 (office address)
(718) 630-5277 (office phone number)
I’m sure we can all very civily share our concerns with the esteemed congressman.
[ID: a series of tweets. from Lirael Lowenstein – 1: “Unmasking Antifa Act introduced to house of congress. You could get a maximum of 15 years in prison just for wearing a mask at a protest. 2: Notably, there is not even evidence that said bill is intended to be applied neutrally. If you follow the link, its authors refer to it as the “Unmasking Antifa Act of 2018.” (link here.) 3: So under this bill, if you “intimidate” or “oppress” (talk about vague terms) a nazi organizer at a rally, while wearing anything that could be construed as a disguise or mask, it would be a federal crime for which you could get up to 15 years in prison.
from Heather – 1: If any journalist who covers protests thinks this wouldn’t affect them personally because they’ve never assaulted anyone, I’d like to introduce you to the Ferguson police who dumped me out of my wheelchair & charged me for “assault on an officer” for filming on a public sidewalk. 2: If any journalist thinks this wouldn’t affect them personally because they don’t engage in vandalism, I’d like to introduce you to the St Louis police who kettle random groups of protesters, journalists, & bystanders three hours after minor vandalism several blocks away. end image description.]
more sources, all dated today; july 10th, 2018: xx, xx, xx
so what? why should i care about this?
the bill is vague, for one thing. “intimidate” and “oppress” are very unclear descriptors, meaning people could be put in jail for upwards of 15 years just for being at a protest wearing a mask.
as @sylviahook pointed out (and thank you for saying this in your own reblog): this also affects disabled people who need to wear filtration masks in public for any reason
(environmental allergens including pollen and artificial scents, asthma due to pollution, compromised immunity, etc.).
who is Daniel Donovan?
he was the attorney who was on Eric Garner’s murder case.
eric garner was a black man who was killed by a police officer in a choke hold. his last words were “i can’t breathe,” which became a tagline for a series of protests. (source 1, source 2)
he is currently sponsoring the unmasking antifa act. (source 1, source 2)
rip tumblr 