“We are the last free people. We are the people that have the last chance to act.” – Julian Assange.
While we are immensely grateful for larger donations, IT IS JUST AS
IMPORTANT that we have MANY small donations, $3, $5, $10 from thousands
of grassroots activists, in order to show broad support.
The Impact
THIS AFFECTS ALL OF US. If you believe in freedom of speech, of the press, of assembly, of the right to be anonymous in speech, freedom of thought, if you believe that we should be free from warrantless searches and seizures, that all are entitled to due process, that we are innocent until proven guilty, that probable cause is needed, if you value the hard fought freedoms won in the American Revolution, the Civil Rights and Free Speech Movements, and all those who lost their lives defending these rights, please help us. This fight is not only about the residents of Oakland, California as it will directly impact all of us, allowing further spying on US citizens.
The proposed Oakland spy center at issue in this litigation will conduct massive full-time surveillance and share information broadly, linking to various NSA and FBI intelligence centers and even private contractors. Data sharing platforms are being incorporated and further developed per project documents. The Dept. of Homeland Security has funded 78 of these 'fusion centers' around the country.
We Are Fighting Back
The Oakland Privacy Working Group, a
coalition of civil liberties minded individuals, in concert with other civil
liberties groups, seeks through litigation to prevent the awarding of a
contract for Phase 2 implementation of a Dept. of Homeland Security funded spy
center within the city limits of Oakland known as the Domain Awareness Center.
Because of the expiring nature of the federal grants funding the spy center,
there is a strong likelihood that disqualification of the remaining bidders
will halt the entire project due to loss of funding.
What We Need
We are
asking you, the larger community, for $10,000 for the first phase of
litigation, an injunction and lawsuit against the City of Oakland to prevent
the award of the Phase 2 contract, and dismantling of the work completed under
the Phase 1 contract.
We are anticipating a protracted battle not only on the Phase 2 contract
itself, but the larger overall battle of civil liberties infringement inherent in this project. We
have a real chance at turning back the military-industrial-intelligence complex
from daily intrusion and spying into our lives. With just a $5
donation, it only takes 2,000 people to make a loud statement that spying on
citizens will not be tolerated! The Snowden revelations make clear that
unless the intelligence community is forced to comply with the law, it surely
will not.
Other Ways You Can Help
Whether you
donate or not, please sign this petition: http://tinyurl.com/kdod9wt
If your are part of a civil liberties group and interested in helping spread
the word and participating, please contact us at oaklandprivacy@gmail.com
If you're an experienced litigator and licensed to practice in California, we
can use your help on our trial team. Please contact us at oaklandprivacy@gmail.com.
For additional info:
http://tinyurl.com/p7wbrqk
http://oaklandwiki.org/Domain_Awareness_Center
https://oaklandprivacy.wordpress.com/
https://twitter.com/OaklandPrivacy