It's a Free Country Personal Freedom in America After September 11

by Goldberg, Danny; Greenwald, Robert; Goldberg, Victor

• ISBN13: 9780971920606
• ISBN10: 0971920605
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2002-09-01
• Publisher: RDV Books

Summary

A groundbreaking collection of new pieces examining the effects of George W. Bush's legislative assault on civil liberties following the terrorist bombing of the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. Foreword by Cornel West, author of Race Matters, with original essays by Michael Moore (Stupid White Men, Downsize This!), Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Tom Hayden (former California senator, author of Irish on the Inside), Congressman Jerrold Nadler, Robert Scheer (L.A. Times columnist), Ira Glasser (former head of the ACLU), Lillian Nakano, political cartoonist Matt Groening, Patti Smith, and many more. Also, firsthand stories from victims of civil-liberty infringement, such as the chief of police in Portland, Oregon, who resisted federal pressure, and Fathi Mustafa, a Palestinian caught in the wave of racial profiling. This debut title from RDV Books is edited by the company's three publishers. Danny Goldberg, president of Artemis Records and Sheridan Square Entertainment, has worked hands-on with more popular musical talent than any other recorded-music executive. He is also one of the very few who has worked with every major genre of popular music: rap, country, folk, classical, jazz, pop, rock, R&B, and jazz. Robert Greenwald is a filmmaker and has directed many feature movies, including Steal this Movie, Breaking Up, and Xanadu. Victor Goldberg (father of Danny) is formerly co-publisher of Tikkun Magazine and associate publisher at The Nation.

Table of Contents

Foreword: Lift Every Voice	1	(2)
Cornel West
Introduction	3	(8)
Danny Goldberg
PART 1: THE CRISIS IN CIVIL LIBERTIES. PAST AND PRESENT
More Safe, Less Free: A Short History of Wartime Civil Liberties	11	(14)
Ira Glasser
A Primer: Wartime Erosion of Civil Liberties	25	(3)
Howard Zinn
American Presidents and Civil Liberties	28	(3)
Paul Starr
We Can Learn From History	31	(2)
Paul Simon
Expert Perspective on Civil Liberties Curtailment	33	(9)
Nat Hentoff
It's Empire Versus Democracy	42	(10)
Tom Hayden
Conservatives and Liberals Unite to Conserve Liberty and Security	52	(17)
Nadine Strossen
The Sorrow and the Pity of Racial Profiling	69	(7)
Ralph Temple
The Chilling of Dissent Post-9/11	76	(13)
Chris Mooney
Poem: Self-Evident	79	(10)
Ani DiFranco
PART 2: CONGRESSIONAL COMMENTARIES
Selections from House Floor Statements	89	(5)
Congressman Jerrold Nadler
Freedom Versus Security Issues	94	(3)
Congressman Bob Barr
Common Sense, Security, and Freedom	97	(8)
Congressman Barney Frank
Our Loss of Civil Liberties in a Post-September in World	105	(5)
Congresswoman Maxine Waters
A Prayer for America	110	(9)
Congressman Dennis Kucinich
PART 3: ACLU VOICES
The ``Secret'' War Against Civil Liberties	119	(8)
Anthony Romero
America: ``Land of the Free''?	127	(6)
Norman Siegel
Casualties of War: Anti-Terror Hysteria	133	(10)
Ramona Ripston
The Danger of Remaining Silent	143	(10)
Donna Lieberman
Matt Groening Cartoon	150	(3)
PART 4: THE INVESTIGATORS
The Misuse of ``Intelligence'' in the Name of Security	153	(11)
Michael Isikoff
``Patriochialism'': September II and the Death of Debate	164	(7)
Michael Tomasky
How the Media Threatens Civil Liberties	171	(8)
Danny Schechter
The Knock at the Door	179	(4)
Eve Pell
Against a Twenty-First Century Star Chamber	183	(8)
Jeremy Voas
David Rees Cartoon	186	(5)
PART 5: LOOK AT IT THIS WAY...
What the Hell Do I Know?	191	(2)
Robert Greenwald
All I Am Saying is Give War a Chance: The Private Correspondence Between Michael Moore and George W. Bush	193	(6)
Michael Moore
Civil Liberties and Bare Breasts: Me and My John Post-September 11	199	(5)
Janna Malamud Smith
An Open Letter to Senator Joseph Lieberman and Lynne Cheney	204	(11)
Martin Sherwin
The Politics of Retribution	207	(8)
Steve Earle
PART 6: DETENTIONS AND RIGHTS
Is This a Dark Age for Fundamental Legal Protection?	215	(22)
Michael Ratner
Human Rights and the Campaign Against Terrorism	237	(11)
Kenneth Roth
Legalized Cointelpro	248	(7)
Kit Gage
Military Tribunals	255	(10)
Arthur N. Eisenberg
Dehumanization via Indefinite Detention	265	(15)
Judith Butler
The Ashcroft Raids	280	(6)
David Cole
National and International Court Systems to Fight Terror	286	(9)
Anne-Marie Slaughter
Human Rights Violations and Discrimination in San Francisco in the Wake of September 11 The San Francisco Human Rights Commission	295	(8)
PART 7: PERSONAL TESTIMONY
Tale of the Mustafas	303	(4)
Dan Gerson
The Weight of a Nation	307	(4)
Andrew Kirkland
Horror at Home: An Innocent's Victim's Story	311	(4)
Michel Shehadeh
Academic Freedom and Free Speech in the Wake of September 11	315	(6)
Dr. Sami Al-Arian
The Return of Xenophobia-An Asian-American Commentary	321	(10)
Helen Zia
How Muslims Have Been Hurt by Governmental Action Since 9/11	331	(8)
Mohammed Sohail
Racial Profiling in the Pursuit of Arabs and Muslims in the U.S.	339	(7)
Mervat Hatem
Psychological Loss of Freedom Since the Attacks	346	(3)
John Tateishi
Braving the Storm: American Muslims and 9/11	349	(3)
Hodan Hassan
A Fear of Flying	352	(7)
Asma Gull Hasan
The Japanese Internment Experience	359
Lillian Nakano