PRESS RELEASE -

Monday October 24, 2011

6:30-9pm

Berkeley Fellowship of Unitarian-Universalists (BFUU)

1924 Cedar at Bonita, Berkeley

Speak-Out and Community Forum on Civil Rights in Berkeley in the Face of “Secure Communities”

(S-Comm), Political Surveillance, and Profiling

The Coalition for a Safe Berkeley will host a Speak-Out on October 24, 2011, to unveil proposed city legislation to protect civil and human rights in the face of increasing federal surveillance, repression, deportations and racial profiling.

Berkeley residents who have committed no crime are being deported based on ICE (immigration) holds, while racial profiling occurs continually in Berkeley. Meanwhile, political surveillance involving local police is on the rise across the Bay Area.

The Speak-Out will feature testimony from Berkeley residents (and others) about their personal experiences with these abuses of civil and human rights.

The following human rights leaders will provide background information:

Ø Veena Dubal, Lead Attorney, Asian Law Caucus: Political and religious surveillance

Ø Shahid Buttar, Executive Director, Bill of Rights Defense Committee: campaigns around the country to restore civil rights

Ø Cinthya Munoz, Immigrant Rights Organizer with Causa Justa::Just Cause: “Secure Communities Program”

This panel will speak to the power of municipal civil rights restoration ordinances to restrain local police collaboration with repressive federal agencies.

Members of the Coalition for a Safe Berkeley include: American Civil Liberties Union Northern California (Berkeley/North East Bay Chapter), Asian Law Caucus, Berkeley City Councilmember Jesse Arreguin, Bill of Rights Defense Committee, Black Alliance for Just Immigration, Council on American Islamic Relations, FMLN Berkeley, National Lawyers Guild (Bay Area Chapter), National Network on Immigrant and Refugee Rights (partial list).