ANSWER'S BRIAN BECKER CALLS PHOTOG FREEPER "COCKROACH," "GOV'T. SPY" AT RALLY, INCITES HARASSMENT

The event, called Muslim Solidarity Day, was held at Freedom Plaza on Pennsylvania Avenue between the White House and the Justice Department--the main targets of the protesters wrath.

Though thousands were expected to turn out, barely two hundred and fifty Muslims and Godless commies came out to hear speaker after speaker denounce President Bush, Attorney General John Ashcroft, America and Israel.

The Memorial Day weekend weather was cool and overcast, but dry. The roaring sounds of Rolling Thunder riders going by punctuated the sounds of hatred with the sound of liberty.

The advertised lineup of speakers included Democrats Rep. John Conyers and presidential candidate Al Sharpton; A.N.S.W.E.R. commies Brian Becker and Mara Verheyden-Hillard; and Mahdi Bray, President of MAS Freedom.

Conyers and Sharpton were no-shows. However Rep. Conyers sent an aide to speak for him, as did another Democrat presidential candidate--Rep. Dennis Kucinich.

It’s just as well those politicians weren’t present because they would have had to answer whether they agreed with other speakers’ calls for “revolution” to replace the American government and praise of suicide bombers as not murderers but “martyrs.”

They also might have had to answer for the threats of violence and other harassment by rally principals and National Lawyers Guild representatives against two FReepers who exercised their rights to attend the public rally and photograph it.

TgslTakoma and I went down there not to counterdemonstrate, but to check it out. We’ve always been busy when the other side does their thing in D.C., so we took the opportunity to take a busman’s holiday.

We walked though the crowd wearing our FReeper jackets. We carried no signs and spoke to noone unless spoken to first. TgslTakoma split off to take photos of the crowd and the signs they were carrying.

TgslTakoma was singled out for hostility by Brian Becker when he noticed her photographing him and Mara Verheyden-Hillard as they stood by the stage. Becker walked over and loudly accused tgslTakoma of being a government spy.

Becker and Verheyden-Hillard commented on tgslTakoma being a FReeper, then Verheyden-Hillard conferred with a group of green hat wearing National Lawyers Guild representatives. Soon the group surrounded tgslTakoma in an effort to prevent her from taking pictures.

TgslTakoma called me from her cellphone to inform me of her situation. I walked up from the back of the crowd towards the front to check out the situation. I was stunned to see a ‘green hat’ right in tgslTakoma’s face blocking her from taking pictures with her body and hands.

‘Green hats’ are supposed to monitor the police to make sure the rights of the participants are protected at their rallies--not violate the civil rights of others. So I walked back to the other end of the plaza and informed the U.S. Park Police officers there about the situation.

By then, Fidel Castro groupie Becker had taken the stage. As I walked back with the officers to tgslTakoma, Becker pointed her out to the audience, accusing her again of taking pictures for the government. He said she was a cockroach, telling the audience, “There are two things you can do with a cockroach. You can ignore it, or....you can do something else.”

The eyes of the crowd turned toward tgslTakoma. Everyone got a good look at the “cockroach.” Some took her picture, while others apparently made mental notes about how to deal with the “cockroach” later.

The officers rebuked the ‘green hats’ for harrassing tgslTakoma. Though we had a right to be in the crowd and take pictures, we agreed that we would not enter the permitted area of the rally so as to keep the peace.

I pointed out to the officers our experience over the past year with how the ‘green hats’ would escort demonstrators from their anti-war rallies into our pro-America rallies to test our reactions. Our only objections were when those demonstrators violated our permit by carrying signs contrary to our rally’s message or when they tried to shout down our speakers. Anyone was free to take pictures and listen, as we were doing today.

The officers acknowledged that and expressed their appreciation for our understanding of the situation.

The ‘green hat’ who was waving “her” hands in front of tgslTakoma took up a post at the edge of the plaza near where we sat down after things were sorted out. “She” shadowed us for the rest of the rally.

Other rally principals came over and took photographs of us. Boy, was that intimidating (/sarcasm). Some of them got up the nerve to talk to us. One of them, accompanied by a few others, threatened tgslTakoma with grave bodily harm, prompting another walk by me to bring the police back over.

This time, they advised us that without a police witness to the threat it would be a “he said she said” in front of a magistrate. They went over to the back of the stage and basically told the principals to leave us alone or else.

The police stayed nearby until the rally ended to ensure that we were not harrassed further. While all this was going on we met a couple from North Carolina who had attended a FReeper Rally for America in Raleigh. They hung out with us for part of the rally today and got to witness the intolerant left up close and personal.

Also, a crew filming a documentary on “Democracy in America” filmed an interview with me. They wanted tgslTakoma to speak too, but she declined.

As we left, the ‘green hat’ shadowed us all the to the far end of the plaza, breaking off when we stopped to thank the Park Police for being out there today.

BY TGSLTAKOMA: Kristinn had planned to stay home this weekend and catch up on home stuff while I had planned to do a solo trip to the CANSWER/MAS rally to do some freelance photojournalism. Unlike some "journalists" my plan was to just wander quietly in the crowd and along the periphery and take photos of things, signs, people. I like to stay behind my camera, I don't look to make news.

Well, I went into the city with this simple plan and when I saw how few people were at the "massive" event, I called Kristinn and told him that their rally was a flop. So we met up and arrived together at Freedom Plaza. I took a few photos and then told Kristinn that I was just going to wander about and take pictures in the crowd. Kristinn sat on the outer wall and listened to the hate speeches while I meandered.

I noticed Brian Becker and Mara Verheyden-Hillard, King and Queen of WWP/ANSWER, honored guests of MAS - so I started snapping photos of them, from about 50 feet distant. Becker saw me, and quickly turned away. I moved about and took some more shots of him and others, but as a photo subject he bored me, so I focused on other things.

Next thing I know he comes up from behind me on my right and says, "You're from Free Republic!" (I was wearing my FR jacket. Good guess, Becker) "You're here spying for the government!"

I told him that he was way too paranoid. He really was going goofy on me; he said that I couldn't infiltrate his rally and spy on people. I reminded him of the name of the location, Freedom Plaza, and that this was a public event. I said that I was standing out in the open, quietly taking photos, and not disrupting. And I turned my back on him.

He started yelling then, calling over a goon to take my picture. So I smoothed out the name on my jacket, and turned my collar with the Pentagon -9/11 pin towards the goon and I smiled for the camera. Several more of the goons soon arrived, as others on the stage looked my way. Mara joined in on Becker's verbal confrontation. She made a few disparaging remarks about FReepers, and then headed over to the NLG Green Hats. They pow-wowed for several minutes while I moved to the side of the spectator area to take photos of the guest speakers.

Within a minute or two, I was joined by a "female" NLG green hat with her bicycle, and then another, and then a 300lb "security" guy, and then another scrawny one, and then another, and then another. I had six people, two women-types and four males, surrounding me. Whenever I raised my camera, one of them would shift into my camera line-of-sight. I didn't say a word.

I called Kristinn on the cell phone and told him what was happening, as I had been gone 20 minutes and didn't know where he was.

I then moved to front and center in the spectators, figuring that if they were going to do anything, I wanted to be near Pennsylvania Ave side where normal passers-by, and Kristinn were.

Pretty soon my shadows followed me. The bicycle NLG gal became frustrated as I moved my camera from right to left and up and down and left and right. She was looking incredibly foolish running back and forth in front of me, right up in front of the spectators.

She dropped her bike on the ground and began using her hand to block my view, but she still looked silly... waving her hand to-and-fro, up-and-down, in front of the crowd.

Visibly perturbed she then enlisted an olive-skinned male to take over, and he was a little too eager. He shoved me as I had taken camera aim at the stage. The NLG bike gal told him, "Don't touch her. You can't touch her."

I tried to take more photos, but he pushed his sign into my way. So I moved further to the right side of the crowd, and that's when Brian Becker made his "cockroach" speech, and pointed me out to the crowd. Kristinn arrived very soon after with police and we moved to the public sidewalk to continue our observation of this hate-America rally.

Kristinn pretty much covers the rest of the story after we reunited at the sidewalk. What a day! I have lots of photos to link, but it's late, so I may not get them listed here until sometime tomorrow.

1969 - 1970 winter : (CUBA : VENCEREMOS BRIGADES : LEFTIES / BRIGADISTAS : CAGAN, BLACK PANTHERS) "In the winter of 1969-70," Leslie Cagan fondly recalls, "I spent over two months with the First Venceremos Brigade in Cuba. Just ten years into their revolution, the Cubans had taken control of their history. . . . While we were in Cuba, Fred Hampton and other Chicago Black Panthers were murdered. It was a shocking reminder of the brutality and power of the US government, and there we were in Cuba, a whole nation under attack from the US. As Brigadistas we were taking a risk traveling in defiance of Washington’s travel ban, but we knew the risk was small compared to what Cubans and so many others around the world faced every day." Cagan is a socialist and longtime activist who, during the past thirty years, has mobilized millions of demonstrators in rallies denouncing our nation’s foreign policies; its military-related spending; and its purportedly virulent racism, sexism, and homophobia. She is a die-hard, pro-Communist radical who proudly aligns her politics with those of Communist Cuba. -

1970s late : (RAMSEY CLARK, AMBASSADOR YOUNG) American leaders were also supporting Khomeini. After the Pravda endorsement, Ramsey Clark, who served as Attorney General under President Lyndon B. Johnson, held a press conference where he reported on a trip to Iran and a Paris visit with Khomeini. He urged the US government to take no action to help the Shah so that Iran "could determine it's own fate." Clark played a behind the scenes role influencing members of Congress to not get involved in the crisis. Perhaps UN Ambassador Andrew Young best expressed the thinking of the left at the time when he stated that, if successful, Khomeini would "eventually be hailed as a saint." - "Carter Sold Out Iran 1977-1978" by Chuck Morse

JUNE 1980 : (IRAN : RAMSEY CLARK ON ANTI-AMERICAN FORUM) In June 1980, with America mesmerized by the Iran hostage crisis, he [Ramsey Clark] joined a forum on "Crimes of America" in Tehran--the first of many such junkets. The '80s saw him globetrotting to schmooze with any dictator who happened to be on the White House shit-list. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1986 : (LIBYA : RAMSEY CLARK MEETS WITH QADAFFI) After the US bombing of Libya in 1986, he [Ramsey Clark] met with Col. Moammar Qadaffi in Tripoli. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1980s (GRENADA : RAMSEY CLARK ADVISES COARDS, WHO WERE ACCUSED OF MURDERING BISHOP) He [Ramsey Clark] went to Grenada to advise Bernard and Phyllis Coard, leaders of the clique accused of murdering Maurice Bishop, who were facing treason charges. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1980s (ACHILLE LAURO CASE : RAMSEY CLARK REPRISENTS PLO) Clark also represented PLO leaders in a suit brought by the family of Leon Klinghoffer, the elderly vacationer who was shot and thrown overboard from the hijacked Achille Lauro cruise-ship by renegade Palestinian terrorists in 1986. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

(RAMSEY CLARK REPRISENTS LINNAS, A FORMER NAZI CONCENTRATION CAMP GUARD) Another Clark client was Karl Linnas, an ex-Nazi concentration camp guard in Estonia (where he had overseen the murder of some 12,000 resistence fighters and Jews), who was being deported from the US to the USSR to face war crimes charges. Clark again lost the case, but again went to bat for his client in the public arena, questioning the need to prosecute Nazis "forty years after some god-awful crime they're alleged to have committed." - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

JUNE 1990 : (RAMSEY CLARK ATTENDS LAROUCHE CONFERENCE IN COPENHAGEN, DENMARK) - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

AUGUST 1990 : (RAMSEY CLARK ACCEPTS INVITATION TO LEAD GROUP ASSOCIATED WITH THE WORKER'S WORLD PARTY) In August 1990, two months after his return from the LaRouche conference in Copenhagen, with US troops mobilizing to Saudi Arabia, Ramsey Clark accepted an invitation to lead the National Coalition to Stop US Intervention in the Middle East. This invitation had been extended by members of an orthodox Stalinist sect, the Workers World Party (WWP). Clark had finally found a new home. The Clark-WWP alliance has lasted to this day. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

FEBRUARY 1996 : (USA : LA, CA : LEFTIES : NNOC : CAGAN, SANBRANO, CISPES, PONCE) In February 1996 at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, the National Network on Cuba (NNOC), of which Leslie Cagan was a national co-chair, sponsored a public forum that featured an address by Angela Sanbrano of the Committee in Solidarity with the People of El Salvador (CISPES), which was affiliated with the Communist guerrilla movement in that country. Another guest speaker was the Cuban revolutionary José Luis Ponce, who appeared on stage with an admiring Cagan. Ponce extolled the enormous social gains that Castro’s revolution had brought to Cuba. As the socialist publication The Militant paraphrased it, Ponce lauded the revolution for its opposition to "the legacy of US domination - a legacy of unemployment, absence of health care for millions especially in the countryside, illiteracy, racism and the super-exploitation of women." He further predicted, quite happily, that "a fight for socialism" would re-emerge in Russia. To all these assertions, Leslie Cagan nodded with approval. -

1998 : (LEFTIES : WWP'S LEADER MARCY DIES) The Worker's World Party, the WWP, is the brainchild of Sam Marcy, intellectual guru at the party's helm until his death in 1998. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1956 : (SOCIALIST WORKER'S PARTY, SWP, FACTION SUPPORTING THE SOVIET INVASION OF HUNGARY IS LED BY MARCY) In 1956, Sam Marcy led the faction in the Socialist Workers Party that supported the Soviet invasion of Hungary, attacking the popular uprising and general strike there as "counter-revolutionary."- "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1959 : (MARCY BREAKS FROM SWP AND FORMS WWP : THE GROUP SUPPORTED THE CHINESE OPPRESSION OF TIBET) WWP is the brainchild of Sam Marcy, intellectual guru at the party's helm until his death in 1998. In 1959, the Sam Marcy clique broke from the Trotskyist Socialist Worker's Party, the SWP, to found the more Stalinist "Worker's World Party" or WWP. The new group wasted little time in cheering on the brutal Chinese repression of the indigenous culture in Tibet that year (which sent the Dalai Lama and 80,000 refugees fleeing into exile). - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1960s - 1970s : (WWP MAINTAINS FRONT GROUP CALLED YAWF, YOUTH AGAINST WAR AND FASCISM) Vying with SWP and other parties for top dog position on the radical left, WWP always maintained a front group to suck in neophytes. During the Vietnam era this was Youth Against War & Fascism (YAWF).- "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1980s : (WWP MAINTAINS FRONT GROUP CALLED PAM, PEOPLE'S ANTI-WAR MOBILIZATION) Vying with SWP and other parties for top dog position on the radical left, WWP always maintained a front group to suck in neophytes. During the Vietnam era this was Youth Against War & Fascism (YAWF).In the Reagan-Bush era it was People's Anti-War Mobilization (PAM)--which would be the operative group in the National Coalition in 1990. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1984 : (WWP SUPPORTED JESSIE JACKSON PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN & ALLIED WITH LEFTIST DEMOCRATS IN NY) Yet WWP also wooed the Democratic party, supporting Jesse Jackson's presidential bid in 1984. In New York, WWP made alliances with the left wing of the Democrats to establish a foothold in key trade unions. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

: (GLASNOST ERA : WWP SUPPORTS COMMUNIST HARDLINERS AGAINST GORBACHEV'S REFORMS & AGAINST DISARMAMENT) With glasnost, WWP supported the Kremlin hard-liners who resisted Gorbachev's reforms and disarmament moves.- "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1989 : (WWP SUPPORTED XIAOPING AGAINST STUDENT PROTESTERS) Insisting that China remained a "workers state," WWP supported Deng Xiaoping in the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, again attacking the protesting students and workers as "counter-revolutionaries." - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1990 : (NATIONAL COALITION LED BY PAM/WWP) Against Desert Shield/Storm- "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1991 : (NATIONAL COALITION PROVOKES SPLIT IN LEFTIST GROUPS AGAINST DESERT STORM; A RIVAL GROUP THEN FORMS) With Clark as the figurehead and PAM/WWP at the helm, the National Coalition provoked a split in the movement against Operation Desert Storm through its refusal to condemn Saddam Hussein or Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. The other established anti-war groups (War Resisters League, CISPES, SANE/Freeze, National Organization for Women, etc.) formed the rival National Campaign for Peace in the Middle East, which condemned both Bush and Saddam. Soft-peddling their pro-Saddam line, WWP's National Coalition won endorsements from celebrities like Spike Lee and Casey Kasem, sucking in numbers even after the split. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

JANUARY 1991 : (SEPARATE MARCHES HELD BY TWO SQUABBLLING LEFTIST GROUPS) The two groups [National Coalition led by PAM/WWP & National Campaign for Peace in the Middle East led by assorted lefties including the War Resisters League, CISPES, SANE/Freeze, National Organization for Women, etc.] held separate marches on Washington in January 1991, allowing the media to portray a divided movement. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1991 : (WWP SUPPORTED KGB COUP AGAINST GORBACHEV) In 1991, WWP supported the KGB coup against Gorbachev. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1977 : (WWP CADRE GEMMA BECOMES RAMSEY CLARK'S SECRETARY) WWP cadre Gavriella Gemma became a secretary in Ramsey Clark's New York law office in 1977. In his New Republic piece, Judis [?] suggests that Clark fell under her spell and was won over to the WWP.- "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1990 : (WRL'S MCREYNOLDS WARNS RAMSEY CLARK ABOUT WWP INFLUENCE) When David McReynolds of the War Resisters League met with Clark in 1990 to warn him that WWP was "using him," Clark refused to listen, constantly referring to what WWP cadre Gavriella "Gavriella said." - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

NOVEMBER 1990 : (RAMSEY CLARK MEETS WITH HUSSEIN IN BAGHDAD, IRAQ) In November 1990, Clark flew to Baghdad to meet with Saddam, who allowed him to return with a few hostages. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

FEBRUARY 1991 : (RAMSEY CLARK IS IN BASRA, IRAQ) In February, with the bombs falling, Clark was in Basra, Iraq's southern port, witnessing the destruction. But his consistent failure to complain about Saddam's regime made it clear he was there at its invitation. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1991 : (WWP FORMS NEW FRONT GROUP CALLED INTERNATIONAL ACTION CENTER, IAC) With Clark's name-recognition and homespun, avuncular image, WWP had the opportunity to form a new front group to win over naive liberals. This was the International Action Center (IAC), which remains the top vehicle for Clark's ego and WWP's play for hegemony over the fragmented remnants of the left. IAC/WWP's politics went from bad to worse as Yugoslavia descended into chaos. It soon became obvious that Clark's legal work now closely followed the WWP line. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1992 : (RAMSEY CLARK REPRISENTS KARADZIC) IAC/WWP's politics went from bad to worse as Yugoslavia descended into chaos. It soon became obvious that Ramsey Clark's legal work now closely followed the WWP line. In 1992, Radovan Karadzic, the leader of the Bosnian Serbs, was served with federal subpoenas when he touched down in New York for UN meetings. The National Organization for Women and the Center for Constitutional Rights, acting on behalf of Bosnian refugee women, were charging him with ordering mass rape and war crimes. Clark, of course, immediately came forward to represent Karadzic. Clark also made junkets to Serb-occupied Bosnia to schmooze with Karadzic (as did various Russian neo-fascists like Vladimir Zhirinovsky). The case against Radovan Karadzic languished since the UN launched war crimes charges against him, forcing him into hiding in Serbia. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1999 : (RAMSEY CLARK : RED-BROWN ALLIANCE) The "Red-Brown Alliance" was seen on the streets of New York during the 1999 NATO air campaign against Yugoslavia, when Clark led rallies which brought WWP communists together with right-wing nationalists and Orthodox priests from the Serb immigrant community. Serbian flags were proudly waved at these New York rallies, while meetings at IAC's 14th Street offices degenerated into mass chants of "Serbia! Serbia! Serbia!" This at a time when Serbian police and paramilitaries were forcing 800,000 Albanian refugees to flee their homes in Kosovo at gunpoint. Again, WRL and other anti-war groups broke away to form their own coalition that rejected both NATO's bombing and Serbian aggression against the Kosovo Albanians. But this time it was only IAC/WWP which held a national rally in DC. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

OCTOBER 1999 : (RAMSEY CLARK MEETS WITH MILOSEVIC) In October 1999, Clark met with Yugoslavia's President Slobodan Milosevic in Belgrade, and said everything the dictator wanted to hear. Milosevic, by then facing war crimes charges before the UN tribunal, called his guest "brave, objective, and moral." - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1990s : (RAMSEY CLARK REPRISENTS RWANDAN) The case against Radovan Karadzic languished since the UN launched war crimes charges against him, forcing him into hiding in Serbia. Clark, meanwhile, represented a Rwandan Hutu militiaman fighting his extradition from the US back to Rwanda to face genocide charges. The WWP line simultaneously (and predictably) tilted to the genocidal Hutu militias as the UN wrote up war crime charges against their leaders for ordering the slaughter of half a million Tutsi civilians in 1994. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

1994 : (WWP SUPPORTS HUTUS) The WWP line simultaneously (and predictably) tilted to the genocidal Hutu militias as the UN wrote up war crime charges against their leaders for ordering the slaughter of half a million Tutsi civilians in 1994. - "THE MYSTERIOUS RAMSEY CLARK," By Manny Goldstein

NOVEMBER 1994 : (WTC1 PLOT CASE : RAMSEY CLARK ASKS ATTORNEY LYNNE STEWART TO TAKE ON RAHMAN AS A CLIENT) One Saturday morning in November 1994, Ramsey Clark, attorney general under President Johnson and more recently a spokesman for radical Arab causes, met in his Manhattan office with a criminal defense lawyer named Lynne Stewart. Clark wanted Stewart to take on a new client -- Sheik Abdel Rahman - "Terrorist Lawyer," by george Packer, NY TImes via FrontpageMagazine.com, September 23, 2002

JANUARY 28, 1998 : (RAMSEY CLARK SENDS LETTER TO UN'S KOFI ANNAN) "The Security Council and the General Assembly should immediately admonish the United States that it must not commit any armed assault, or other grave threats to peace, against Iraq. It should condemn the repeated uses of false propaganda employed to create fear and hatred toward Iraq such as the recent false claims that photographs proved Iraq tested chemical weapons against prisoners. " - Complete letter to Kofi Annan

MAY 2000 : (RAHMAN DICTATES A STATEMENT TO YOUSRY CALLING FOR AN END TO THE CEASE FIRE BETWEEN THE ISLAMIC GROUP & THE EGYPTIAN GOVERNMENT ; THE STATEMENT WAS PHONED TO SATTAR : STEWART HOLDS PRESS CONFERENCE TO CONFIRM IT WAS RAHMAN'S MESSAGE) Then in May 2000, at a meeting with Stewart in the federal prison in Rochester, Minn., the sheik Omar Abdel Rahman dictated a statement to his Arabic translator, Mohammed Yousry, calling for an end to the cease-fire between the Islamic Group and the Egyptian government. The statement was phoned to Islamic Group leaders by Ahmed Abdel Sattar, a Staten Island mailman and follower of the sheik who had worked as a paralegal on the case. The sheik's followers in Egypt doubted the statement's authenticity -- until Stewart herself, in violation of the SAM's, held a press conference a few weeks later to confirm that Abdel Rahman advocated withdrawal from the cease-fire. - "Terrorist Lawyer," by george Packer, NY TImes via FrontpageMagazine.com, September 23, 2002

APRIL 9, 2000 : (NY : STEWART IS ARRESTED) She [Lynne Stewart] imagined that she might be cut off from the sheik.[Omar Abdel Rahman] She did not know that her prison conversations with the sheik were being taped by a court order stemming from [Ahmed Abdel] Sattar's activities with the Islamic Group. And she did not imagine what would happen on April 9 of this year, when she was handcuffed outside her Brooklyn town house by F.B.I. agents and arraigned in federal court in Manhattan on two counts of lying to the government and two counts of aiding a terrorist organization. Attorney General John Ashcroft himself flew to New York to announce Stewart's indictment, along with those of Yousry, Sattar and an Islamist in London. The trial will begin next year. Stewart, now 62, faces 40 years in federal prison. - "Terrorist Lawyer," by george Packer, NY TImes via FrontpageMagazine.com, September 23, 2002

JULY 21, 2001 : (BEATBACKBUSH.ORG REGISTERED) beatbackbush.org : The domain beatbackbush.org was registered July 21, 2001. According to their website, they were going to protest the Bush administration's policies regarding the IMF and World Bank, although the phrase "Beat Back The Bush Attack" seems more fitting for the protest of the war against terrorism. The plans for these protests hit a bit of a snag when the United States reacted with restraint not seen under the Clinton administration. To date, there has been no Bush attack to beat back; unlike Clinton, Bush has said that he has no desire "to send some $2 million missiles at a $10 tent and hit a camel in the butt" to satisfy the desire for quick retaliation. Coupled with the fact that Bush's approval ratings have soared to the 90% level, a change in approach was needed. The group behind beatbackbush.org quickly redesigned their site from leading the charge to "Beat Back The Bush Attack", to "International A.N.S.W.E.R. (Act Now to Stop War & End Racism)". They registered a new domain (internationalanswer.org) to front this effort, and both websites currently have essentially the same content. Their web site was here : http://www.beatbackbush.org - Source : Freerepublic, freepers

2001 late : (A.N.S.W.E.R. (Act Now To Stop War and End Racism)) A.N.S.W.E.R. consists of 200 fringe groups who joined forces immediately after 9/11 to oppose U.S. war on the Taliban. The group's other 'noble' causes include freeing convicted cop-killer Mumia Abu-Jamal. The media calls A.N.S.W.E.R. a glowing portrait of middle America. Their protests Include groups with ostentatious names like Queers for Peace and Justice, Trotskyist Spartacus League, etc. *
The group apparently began as beatbackbush.org and later changed to ANSWER: ,br>(snip) The plans for these protests hit a bit of a snag when the United States reacted with restraint not seen under the Clinton administration. To date, there has been no Bush attack to beat back; unlike Clinton, Bush has said that he has no desire "to send some $2 million missiles at a $10 tent and hit a camel in the butt" to satisfy the desire for quick retaliation. Coupled with the fact that Bush's approval ratings have soared to the 90% level, a change in approach was needed. The group behind beatbackbush.org quickly redesigned their site from leading the charge to "Beat Back The Bush Attack", to "International A.N.S.W.E.R. (Act Now to Stop War & End Racism)". They registered a new domain (internationalanswer.org) to front this effort, and both websites currently have essentially the same content.(/snip) - source : freerepublic freepers

SEPTEMBER 29, 2001 : (RAMSEY CLARK LEADS ANTI-US DEMONSTRATION IN WASHINGTON DC) Shortly after the attacks on the World Trade Center, a website called "Beat Back The Bush Attack" (note: they have subsequently changed their name) announced that they would be organizing a demonstration. "Now is the time for all people of conscience, all people who oppose racism and war to come together. If you believe in civil liberties and oppose racism and war, join us on September 29 in front of the White House. We urge all organizations to join together at this critical time" their announcement stated. The temptation is there to dismiss this group of people as misguided kooks or irrational pacifists. This would be a mistake. The organizers of this protest are hoping for a repeat of the troubles that occurred in Seattle in November, 1999. The site's FAQ makes this clear:

Should I bring a gas mask? A helmet?
Since Seattle, there have been an increasing number of major demonstrations and convergences that have been targeted with a high level of repression by the state. MAKE NO MISTAKE ABOUT IT, THE DEMONSTRATIONS IN DC WILL FALL INTO THE SEATTLE CATEGORY. Everyone is advised to take this seriously and take precautions. Basically, this means ensuring that you are protected against the types of maneuvers that the cops have clearly utilized over and over against very large demonstrations. Namely, the types of things to protect yourself against are teargas, pepper spray and projectiles. So, this means you should:
buy and learn to use a gas mask
wear a helmet, head guard or a hard hat
wear protective eyewear
The mainstream media currently is portraying the protesters of the war on terrorism as pacifists. They are not. These are the same folks that terrorized Seattle in 1999 under the umbrella group Mobilization for Global Justice, and who tried to do the same in Washington, DC in April 2000 under the name A16. The type of protest that occurred in Seattle in 1999 takes months of preparation and organization. Travel plans had to be made for the various anarchists. Staging areas had to be set up. Lodging for those taking place had to be arranged. The logistics behind such an endeavor would make it impossible for such an uprising to be impossible to coordinate on such a short notice. However, the protest on September 29th was planned long ago, long before the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon. The domain beatbackbush.org was registered July 21, 2001. According to their website, they were going to protest the Bush administration's policies regarding the IMF and World Bank, although the phrase "Beat Back The Bush Attack" seems more fitting for the protest of the war against terrorism.
The plans for these protests hit a bit of a snag when the United States reacted with restraint not seen under the Clinton administration. To date, there has been no Bush attack to beat back; unlike Clinton, Bush has said that he has no desire "to send some $2 million missiles at a $10 tent and hit a camel in the butt" to satisfy the desire for quick retaliation. Coupled with the fact that Bush's approval ratings have soared to the 90% level, a change in approach was needed. The group behind beatbackbush.org quickly redesigned their site from leading the charge to "Beat Back The Bush Attack", to "International A.N.S.W.E.R. (Act Now to Stop War & End Racism)". They registered a new domain (internationalanswer.org) to front this effort, and both websites currently have essentially the same content.

OCTOBER 4, 2002 : (RAMSEY CLARK ASSOCIATE LYNEE STEWART, YOUSRY & SATTAR TRIAL DATE SET : RELATED TO RAHMAN WTC1 CASE) NEW YORK, Oct 04, 2002 (AP WorldStream via COMTEX) -- A Manhattan attorney accused of helping a jailed Egyptian cleric direct terrorism will not go on trial until late next year, a judge ruled. U.S. District Judge John Koeltl on Thursday set a trial date of Oct. 7, 2003, for Lynne Stewart and co-defendants Mohammed Yousry, an Arabic translator, and Ahmed Abdel Sattar, a U.S. postal worker. The judge considered setting a Sept. 16, 2003, trial date until Stewart's lawyer objected, arguing it fell too near the anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. "The risk to a fair trial is very great with the September date," said the attorney, Michael Tigar. The judge said the yearlong delay was reasonable given the amount of evidence lawyers must sift through and similar delays in other terrorist cases. Evidence includes 97,000 phone-line interceptions by investigators. Stewart, Yousry and Sattar are charged along with a man held in England with helping relay messages from Sheik Omar Abdel-Rahman to the Islamic Group, a radical Egyptian-based terrorist organization. They have pleaded innocent. - "Judge Sets 2003 Trial Date for Attorney Accused of Helping Jailed Cleric Direct Terrorism," AP, Oct 4, 2002

FEBRUARY 4, 2003 : (LEFTIES : NEW YORK TIMES PRAISES COMMUNIST CAGAN ) Yet a February 4 New York Times puff piece benignly heralded Leslie Cagan as "one of the grandes dames of the country’s progressive movement," a woman whose "organizational skills are prodigious." Predictably, there was no mention that Cagan has consistently lavished praise upon Castro’s Cuba, which she considers a far better place than the United States. Cagan is a socialist and longtime activist who, during the past thirty years, has mobilized millions of demonstrators in rallies denouncing our nation’s foreign policies; its military-related spending; and its purportedly virulent racism, sexism, and homophobia. She is a die-hard, pro-Communist radical who proudly aligns her politics with those of Communist Cuba. During her seven years as director of the Cuba Information Project, she led numerous demonstrations demanding that the US end its economic embargo of, and travel ban to, Cuba. "In the winter of 1969-70," Cagan fondly recalls, "I spent over two months with the First Venceremos Brigade in Cuba. Just ten years into their revolution, the Cubans had taken control of their history. . . . While we were in Cuba, Fred Hampton and other Chicago Black Panthers were murdered. It was a shocking reminder of the brutality and power of the US government, and there we were in Cuba, a whole nation under attack from the US. As Brigadistas we were taking a risk traveling in defiance of Washington’s travel ban, but we knew the risk was small compared to what Cubans and so many others around the world faced every day." -

FEBRUARY 15, 2003 : (USA : UFPJ ORGANIZES GLOBAL PROTESTS) On February 15, many thousands of protesters will assemble within sight of the United Nations building in New York to express their opposition to a war in Iraq. Their efforts will be duplicated in some 300 additional cities throughout North America, Latin America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. This will be the first such protest not organized by the Workers World Party (WWP), an energetic Marxist-Leninist organization that openly supports Kim Jong Il’s brutal dictatorship in North Korea. Instead, it will be run by a group called United For Peace and Justice (UFPJ), whose co-chair Leslie Cagan is an enthusiastic, longtime supporter of yet another Communist despot, Fidel Castro. -

OCTOBER 7, 2003 : (TRIAL DATE FOR RAMSEY CLARK ASSOCIATE LYNEE STEWART, YOUSRY, SATTAR, & UNNAMED MAN IN THE UK : RELATED TO RAHMAN WTC1 CASE) - "Judge Sets 2003 Trial Date for Attorney Accused of Helping Jailed Cleric Direct Terrorism," AP, Oct 4, 2002

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.