And so ... the noose tightens....

Thought you might like to know the latest bad news about the
antinuclear Vigil outside the White House.  Richard Robbins, the
Department of Interior lawyer who has appointed himself our
nemesis, isn't content to just collect his paycheck and leave
law-abiding citizens well enough alone.  Now he's written us a
new letter, advising us that our signs are illegal (same signs,
legal last year, illegal now?).  

There's been a cluster of petty little police pogroms this year. 
Thomas was arrested again November 4, 1996 after telling a rookie
Park Police officer he didn't know what he was talking about when
the officer told a foreign news crew they couldn't put their
video camera on their shoulder and interview Thomas in the park
on election eve.  (Film crews had been videotaping interviews of
people in the park all day long; video cameras which aren't on a
tripod aren't illegal.)  

On Easter Eve Thomas was arrested and physically assaulted by a
rookie Secret Service officer for reciting the Declaration of
Independence louder than the cop arbitrarily decided to allow. 
Prosecutors didn't prosecute.  

This week prosecutors announced their intent to pursue this
disorderly conduct charge.   

We've observed officers of both yellow and blue stripe (Secret
Service and Park Police) chase other individual demonstrators
away on the flimsiest excuses.  If we speak out on behalf of the
others, they retaliate with stepped-up surveillance or menacing
gestures.  

Fortunately the police didn't beat Thomas up this time, like they
did last Easter.  But it was really weird to watch the whole
sequence of events:  cop misinforms reporters; Thomas corrects
cop; reporters get nervous and leave soon thereafter; cop then
threatens Thomas with arrest "if I catch you doing anything
wrong"; Thomas ignores cop; cop gets red in face and orders
Thomas to leave park; Thomas reluctantly prepares to leave, but
not fast enough; cop (who has been backed up by a circle of
somewhat bewildered-looking Secret Service officers, who like us
are probably wondering what in heck is going on) grabs Thomas off
his bike, handcuffs him, and walks him to paddywagon, Thomas not
resisting.  Ellen, who has rescued bike, asks a Secret Service
officer, "Why are you supporting this, can't you see Thomas isn't
doing anything wrong?" and is told, "I don't know, I didn't see
what happened." 

What is it with these guys, anyway?  And why does that little
lawyer in the Department of Interior (Richard Robbins) dislike us
so much, waste so much time and taxpayers' dollars on us?  Are we
some kind of failure to him?  Does he particularly dislike Thomas
the iconoclast, the philosopher, the untidy gadfly buzzing around
lies?  How can we be legal for months and suddenly not be?  Has
this man lost his mind?  

Read http://prop1.org/park/vigil.htm for more history on Richard
Robbins vs. the Vigil. 

Write us and let us know how you feel about this message?

Ellen Thomas, for Peace Park Crew, PO Box 27217, DC 20038
202-462-0757 (phone) - 265-5389 (fax)) - prop1@prop1.org (email)