NEWSLETTER National Lawyers Guild | San Francisco Bay Area

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“…to the ends that human rights shall be regarded as more sacred than property interests.”

Mid-Year Review

JULY 2018

IN THIS ISSUE:

Mid-Year Review – Highlights

- Anti-Repression Series (p 2)

- Herman Bell is Free (p 2)

- J20 Victory (p 3)

- #Justice4Jerome (p 3)

- 2018 Testimonial Dinner (p 4)

- We Know Our Rights (p 4)

The Hell No on H Campaign (Print by Annie Banks) Wins a Major Battle, But the War Continues by Barbara Attard (p 5-6) The first half of 2018 reminded us that this country has a long and enduring

What I Did on My Vacation by legacy of systemic racism. Under an overtly fascist federal administration, David Weintraub (p 7) our carceral system continues to criminalize and separate Black and Brown families, now just more brazenly so. Organized hate is emboldened. The workers’ rights movement is being gutted in both the courtroom and the About NLGSF (p 8) backrooms of our legislatures. Yet even while the current political moment overwhelms and traumatizes our communities, the Guild is rising to the Upcoming Events (p 8) occasion to put in the work that’s needed to RESIST.

Our Committees (p 9) In this Newsletter, the first issue in our new biannual series, you will read highlights of what we’ve done in the first half of 2018 and learn about the

Rest in Power: Tony White (p 10) important roles of our chapter’s members and committees. As NLGSF continues to deepen our collective commitment to radical struggle, we invite you join us in our fight for a better world.

1 Topics covered in our anti- NLGSF Anti- repression series included: Herman Bell is Repression Series Finally Free! • Defending J20 Resisters from DC to the Bay Area;

• Targeting the Movement: the FBI’s Black Identity Extremist Designation and Black Liberation;

• From the Inside Out: Threats and Opportunities for Prisoner Organizing Photo of Herman Bell shot by Bryan Shih and Solidarity Today; On April 25, 2018, 70-year-old NLGSF partnered with the Center political prisoner Herman Bell for Political Education to organize • Land & Freedom: was released from prison, having a series of monthly panel Repression and Resistance been granted parole by the New discussions on defending in Struggles for Indigenous York State Parole Board in ourselves, each other, and our Sovereignty, Right to communities against state March. Bell was incarcerated for repression. Return and Displacement; and nearly five decades and was finally granted parole as a result of mass Each panel discussion brought together lawyers and legal workers • Workers of the World: organizing efforts to change parole with grassroots organizers and Defending Against Attacks regulations. activists who have experience on Labor, Migrant Bell’s parole was met with fierce being targeted for repression from Workers and Their the state and experience in Communities. opposition from the Patrolmen’s fighting back. Benevolent Association (PBA) and politicians. The PBA even went More than 300 community and Guild members attended this as far as backing an appeal of the series! Parole Board’s decision, which delayed Bell’s release for several weeks. It was not until a New York State Supreme Court judge dismissed the appeal that Bell was finally released.

NLGSF members wrote letters supporting the Parole Board’s lawful decision to grant Bell parole. We also commended the recent changes made to the Board,

This fall, NLGSF will be including the appointment of new organizing a day-long community Commissioners, and the direction defense workshop as a follow-up to of the new parole regulations. this series. This Fall, Bell will be honored with the Arthur Kinoy Award at NLG’s Annual #Law4thePeople Convention. 2 Victory for J20 resistance paid off and the DA became concerned that he had dropped the charged against them been detained and contacted Resisters! instead. NLGSF. Members of NLGSF’s Immigration and Demonstrations In the words of Gabriela’s client, Committees immediately J20 Resister Molly Jane responded by making their way to Hammond: “We decided to risk SFO and making phone calls to trial instead of taking diversion CBP and elected officials. Once because solidarity doesn’t end at the airport, NLGSF attorneys with putting our bodies on the were denied to ability to speak line – we also need to leverage our with Aba. privilege in the (in)justice system. We refused to be intimidated by During his detention, Aba was threats and manipulations of the subjected to ongoing interrogation state and we encourage people to by CBP agents and was tortured. take a stand and be unafraid.” He was ordered to strip naked and On January 18, 2018, San respond to questions with an Francisco’s Chief Assistant DA Congrats to the J20 Resisters and industrial fan pointed towards his to their defense attorneys! Shannon Woo announced the body. He was repeatedly taunted formal dismissal of charges by the officers and intimidated by against 11 activists known as J20, threats of violence. Only after 24 who participated in protests on #Justice4Jerome hours of detention was he offered last year’s Inauguration Day. food: a ham sandwich, which CBP agents knew Aba could not eat Many of the J20 Resisters were because he is Muslim. represented by NLGSF members. st Gabriela Lopez, Co-Coordinator On April 21 , Aba was voluntarily for the NLGSF Demonstrations deported to Manila and scarred Committee, represented one of the from the inhumane treatment he J20 Resisters: “The District received upon entry to the US. Attorney could have chosen not to Voluntary deportation, while not charge the J20 resisters from day ideal, was the best option for Aba one. Instead, he chose to put our and an option that was only made possible by the pressure of local clients through the criminal In April 2018, Jerome Aladdin activists and NLGSF members. process, wasting government Succor Aba, a human rights resources for almost a year, worker and peace advocate from In order to learn more about Aba’s knowing full well he never Mindanao, Philippines, was detention, NLGSF’s Immigration intended to take this case to trial.” invited to the United States by Committee partnered with the several church groups, ACLU of Northern California to Once charges were filed against congressional offices, and human file a Preservation of Records and the J20 Resisters, the DA rights organizations. FOIA Request. In addition, encouraged them to accept pretrial NLGSF’s Immigration Committee diversion (PTD), re-stating this Upon arriving at the San has been working to discuss legal option at various points through Francisco International Airport and organizing options with Aba’s the process. The J20 Resisters (SFO), he was immediately attorneys and supporters in the refused PTD from the outset, detained by US Customs and US and the Philippines. citing ethical opposition to the Border Protection (CBP). Bay criminalization of protest. Their Area Activists waiting for Aba 3 2018 NLGSF Linda Fullerton, a zealous We Know Our advocate since establishing her Testimonial criminal defense practice in the Rights: Derechos

early 80s, and Hunter Pyle, who Dinner has devoted his career to workers’ rights and teaching law students to do the same, were named this year’s Champions of Justice.

Over 300 Guild members and In June, NLGSF and independent supporters attended our annual producers April Martin and Lucia Testimonial Dinner on April 14, Palmarini released “Derechos,” 2018 for an evening of celebration the first installment of We Know and community. Many thanks to Our Rights, directed by David everyone who attended! Martinez. Save the Date! Next year’s “Derechos” is designed to explain Testimonial Dinner will be on the rights of immigrants when April 27, 2019! they are being confronted or questioned by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The three short vignettes in Derechos portray tense interactions with ICE agents and illustrate how to best respond when faced with intimidating Partner in Liberation Anti and/or threatening situations. Police-Terror Project was We Know Our Rights is designed recognized for its work on the frontline in the fight for justice for as a multimedia toolkit that can be April Martin was recognized as families who have lost their loved used as an organizing and this year’s Unsung Hero. She ones to police killings. educational tool. Along with the continues to use her gift of vignettes, there is a community photography and filmmaking as a screening guide and a myriad of tool for activism. Recently, she co- Know Your Rights resources. produced and released the first installment of “We Know Our To watch the short films and find Rights” in collaboration with out more information on how to NLGSF. host a community screening, visit: www.weknowourrights.com.

The Hell No on H Campaign Wins a Major Battle, But the War Continues

By Barbara Attard

The San Francisco Police Officers Association (POA) escalated the City’s taser war to a new level when they fired a shot off the bow with Proposition H. The POA has been pushing tasers for over 10 years, and the community has fought back, successfully blocking adoption in the past. But in November the Police Commission voted to arm officers with tasers, with implementation in December 2018, that date marking two years that the new use of force guidelines will have been in place. Not good enough for the POA, who raised the stakes to push their agenda of reckless taser use with their ballot initiative.

Had it passed, the POA’s aggressive proposition would have undermined the authority of the Police Commission to determine whether or not the City will equip officers with tasers and set policy for their use; it would have imposed a very lax policy to replace the responsible policy already adopted, the product of months of negotiations between the Police Commission, community groups, the Police Chief, and the POA;1 and it would have required another vote of San Franciscans or a four-fifths majority of the Board of Supervisors to change the policy. It was a complicated issue, and the language developed by the POA in the initiative was intentionally confusing and misleading, making it difficult to explain the problems with Proposition H to San Francisco voters. But the community was not fooled, and the No on Prop H campaign pulled off a significant 62-38% victory.

The bold No on H campaign took on the PAC-like funded POA, who spent nearly $440,000 on this initiative. No on Prop H raised about $80,000—with funding from the ACLU, fundraising through members of the Bar Association of SF and the National Lawyers Guild, and lots of individual donations. The dedication, leadership, and support of local police practices and accountability activists and the Democratic Socialists of America made for an inspired campaign of determined volunteers—and No on Prop H won by a huge margin, a battle that no one thought was winnable.

Almost all of San Francisco’s political leaders came out against Prop H (from both pro- and anti-taser camps), after much education and outreach from the No on H campaign. Their message was clear—this is not the way to set police policy! Officers for Justice, which represents African American and other minority officers, endorsed No on Prop H, clearly the POA does not represent all officers.

It was through long days and months of extensive volunteerism, ingenuity, passion, and spunk that Prop H was defeated. The No on H victory:

• Will protect lives—winning another battle to ensure that the more restrictive taser policy remains in place. • Preserves the authority of the long-standing Police Commission, the oversight body that oversees the SF Police Department and the Department of Police Accountability (DPA). • Hit head-on the power grab of the bully-minded POA—that has sought to undermine not only the Commission, the Police Chief, and the Department of Police Accountability, but also the reforms recommended by the Department of Justice (DOJ) in 2016. • Stopped a bad precedent that would have led the way for police unions in other cities across the country to undermine oversight through the initiative process.

1 Prop H would have lowered the standard for taser use to “active resistance,” from violent resistance, the standard in the approved Police Commission policy, and would have eliminated the 40-hours of Crisis Intervention training as a prerequisite, as well as denying the authority of the Police Commission and the Police Chief to make any changes to the policy. 5 Rapidly Changing Landscape… One would think that such a crushing, resounding decision on the taser initiative would have been the end of the story. After all, the POA asserted early in its campaign that Proposition H would be the final referendum on tasers, reflecting the true voice of San Franciscans. In remarkable bad faith, after losing on June 5, they’re now singing a different tune.

The new POA president, Tony Montoya, has vowed to attempt to loosen the Commission’s taser policy behind closed doors through meet and confer. In a recent Examiner article, retired ACLU police practices expert, John Crew, pointed out that the Police Commission has a “‘bad habit’ of negotiating with the union on policies … when it is not legally required to … perpetuating the myth that the POA has the right to police San Francisco in the way they want as opposed to the way San Francisco wants.” This practice of bargaining with the POA when it is not legally mandated must stop. It has drawn out the implementation of use of force and other policies, as well as the DOJ reforms, and has given the false impression that the POA has veto power over adopted general orders. It undermines transparency, and defeats community participation and collaboration in policing.

Police Commission Independence? These issues of unwarranted meet and confer and questionable legal advice from the City Attorney’s Office raises, yet again, the question of the independence of the Police Commission.

The Commission is staffed by the SFPD! And it relies on the City Attorney’s office for legal advice—the same office that defends the City against lawsuits. Best practices for independent civilian oversight is that the oversight agency has independent staff and independent counsel.

Maybe some of the money that would have gone to pay for tasers can instead fund an independent Police Commission. It’s long overdue.

Another troubling issue that has recently come to light is that the deputy city attorney advising the Commission on the meet and confer issue, Jonathan Yank, has a history of advocating for the POA. The City Attorney spokesperson asserts that there is no conflict, but the perception of a serious conflict is obvious to the community.

Complicating matters further, on June 6 the Sunshine Task Force unanimously ruled that the Police Commission’s taser vote violated open meeting requirements because the Commission walked out during public comment, and reconvened in a different room to vote on the issue without informing the public. One has to wonder who was advising the Commission that day? With recent changes to the makeup of the Police Commission since the original vote, the taser question may well have a different outcome if they vote again.

In yet another stunning development, on June 25 the Board of Supervisors Budget and Finance Committee voted 3-2 to support Supervisor Sandra Fewer’s motion to cut taser funding from the SFPD budget, citing concerns that the budget allocation was unrealistic, the need for more training, and full implementation of the DOJ reforms. The SFPD submitted a budget that did not include many of the safeguards that experts in the field recommend to prevent loss of life and liability issues—including having a coordinator for the program, review of each taser use, and training costs.

Clearly, the taser question has not been finally resolved. But what is apparent is that the POA is losing its political capital. Proposition H was trounced, the candidates who endorsed H lost the election, and now their beloved weapon is again out of reach. Their overly aggressive stance has backfired on them and they’ve become “toxic” (in their own words). Yet, it will take ongoing vigilance, organized leadership, and community activism to ensure that they are kept in check.

Barbara Attard is a police accountability consultant and past president of the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement (NACOLE). She’s a member of the NLG and active on the Doris Brin Walker Legislative Reform Committee. She is also a Co-Author, Police Misconduct Complaint Investigations Manual. 6

What I Did on My Vacation

By David Weintraub

OK, retirement is not a vacation. It is better. For 40 years, I did “people’s lawyering.” Throughout my career and exclusively in the last decade, I represented teachers who were referred to me by their union on employment issues. All the while, I stayed active in the Guild. I helped create and sustain the NextGen Committee and Testimonial Dinner Committee and even did some stints on the Executive Board.

About three years ago, I retired and my life and commitments changed. Besides having more fun, sleeping more, traveling and seeing friends more often, I have chosen to devote a lot of my time to saving our public education system. I believe this is really the civil rights movement of our time. Our democratic education system is one of the cornerstones of our democracy. It is the foundation for raising an aware, socially conscious citizenry.

And it is under attack by individuals motivated by monetary gains, who are pushing it toward privatization via vouchers and charter schools. This push towards a “business model” comes not only from billionaires like the Waltons, Zuckerbergs, Broads, Gates, and right wing lunatics like DeVos and Trump, but also from liberals like Obama, Arne Duncan and Governor Brown. These charter school supporters posit themselves as ‘saviors of children of color’ yet they are transferring public money to private pockets and draining resources from inner city students who are most in need.

In Oakland, my home for the past 40 years, the charter industry has accepted nearly one third of Oakland students. However, due to the unfair process, the students with the greatest disabilities and needs are not included in those numbers. A recent study showed that 57 million dollars a year is diverted to charter schools from our local schools. Now, the Oakland school district is once again in financial crisis and the state is threatening to take control, which would weaken Oakland citizen’s democratic control over their school system.

To resist this growing threat to public education, I have helped start and actively participate in two different education related groups: The Educators for Democratic Schools and the Wellstone Democratic Club Education Committee. Both groups are striving to stop the proliferation of charter schools by working with local students, educators and community members. We have educated ourselves and others in the community through forums, written materials, letters to the editor and the like. We have attended and spoken at school board meetings and legislative hearings with the hopes of ultimately amending the Charter School Act in California, which allows the unfettered growth of charter schools with little or no accountability. We have met and interviewed candidates for public office and current office holders on their views on education and conveyed this information to our members and the public.

We need to ally with others in our community, particularly groups of color, to build a movement for the change we seek. I have served as a representative for my organization in a coalition called Justice 4 Oakland Students. This coalition is comprised of diverse and multi-racial organizations and was founded on 4 pillars of unity: “Cut fat from the top, focus on students and school sites, support further funding for schools, and support a moratorium on charter schools.”

Although my work is no longer in the courts or with clients, it sustains a tangible relationship to the law. My expertise in Education Code has certainly been an asset but my prior personal connections with union members and other individuals involved in education has proven to be invaluable for this work which I am so passionate about. It also helps that some of those I love the most: my wife Emily, my sister, and other retired friends are working alongside me.

All in all, to those who can afford it, I highly recommend “retirement” - even if it does mean a lot of work and no pay. There’s something wonderful about feeling like you are doing your bit to stop this madness which now surrounds us. I can continue to live every day by the sentiment that drove me to the Guild – building a movement for revolutionary change away from capitalism and selfishness and towards love.

David Weintraub is the founder of the NLG’s NextGen Committee and longtime advocate for public schools 7

Upcoming Events: What’s Ahead for NLGSF

(Please check www.nlgsf.org for more details and exact dates)

August § NextGen Happy Hour at Oakland Museum – August 3rd, 5-7pm § Sweep Out the Fascists: A Festival of Resilience – August 5th, 2-7pm § NextGen Committee Meeting - August 9th, About the Guild 6:30 – 8:30pm § PAN Mentor Onboarding - Date/Time TBD For over 80 years, the National Lawyers Guild has served as § Immigration Committee Meeting - August 16th, the legal arm of movements leading the fight for meaningful 6-8pm social change in the United States. As a progressive and leftist § Demonstrations Committee Meeting - August legal organization, the NLG has represented and defended 16th, 6:30-8:30pm activists in the courtrooms and on the streets. September With a membership of over 700 progressive law students, legal § Bay Area Military Law Panel Training – workers, jailhouse lawyers, and attorneys, the San Francisco Date/Time TBD Bay Area Chapter is the largest NLG chapter in the country. § Prisoner Advocacy Network Training – Date/Time TBD § Conference of CA Bar Associations – September 13-16th (San Diego) Our work relies heavily on October § 50th Anniversary of Progressive Law Day – membership dues and donations - Date/Time TBD § NLGSF Elections – Date/Time TBD please consider joining or making a § Annual NLG #Law4thePeople Convention - Oct contribution at: www.nlgsf.org 31-Nov 4th (Portland)

November § Mentorship Cocktail Party – Date/Time TBD

NLGSF Staff NLGSF Board of Directors December § NLGSF Holiday Party and Auction – Jay Kim Executive Board At Large Members Date/Time TBD Executive Director [email protected] Judith Mirkinson, Dennis Cunningham 415-285-5067 Ext 104 President Finn Finneran Hasmik Geghamyan Charlene Khoo Sara Kershnar, Terry Koch Contact Us Program Coordinator Vice-President Karen Jo Koonan [email protected] Rachel Lederman 558 Capp Street 415-285-5067 Ext 101 Rachel Gendell, Jessica Lee San Francisco, CA 94110 Treasurer Debra Murov 415-285-5067 Lori Rifkin Cat Brooks, Secretary Katie Tertocha [email protected] www.nlgsf.org

Want to get involved? Join a Committee!

NLGSF has a number of active committees working on a variety of social justice issues. Our committees are the foundation of our programmatic work. If you want to learn more about any of the listed committees and/or would like to join, please contact Charlene Khoo, Program Coordinator, at [email protected] or at 415-285-5067 Ext 101.

BAY AREA MILITARY LAW PANEL: The Bay Area Military Panel staffs the GI Rights Hotline, provides individual representation to GI’s and veterans, and collaborates on challenges to oppressive military policies.

DEMONSTRATIONS COMMITTEE: The Demonstrations Committee provides legal support for demonstrations and direct actions organized by progressive groups throughout the Bay Area.

LEGISLATIVE REFORM COMMITTEE: The Legislative Reform Committee drafts and initiates progressive resolutions for consideration and debate among delegates at the annual Conference of CA Bar Associations.

IMMIGRATION COMMITTEE: The Immigration Committee provides Know Your Rights trainings, engages in rapid response work, and runs the Immigration Court Observation Program.

THE MENTORSHIP / NEXTGEN COMMITTEE: The Mentorship / NextGen Committee provides opportunities for Guild members to share ideas, solicit advice, find a mentor or mentee, and explore opportunities for partnership in local projects.

THE UNITED PEOPLE OF COLOR CAUCUS (TUPOCC): TUPOCC meets regularly and engages in a variety of work, such as organizing with law student groups, developing political education, and planning community events. TUPOCC is open to all members of the NLG community who self-identify as people of color.

PRISONER ADVOCACY NETWORK (PAN): PAN volunteers are trained in non-litigation advocacy strategies and work with people inside the California Department of Correction and Rehabilitation and their family members to fight for better conditions.

TESTIMONIAL DINNER COMMITTEE: Dinner Committee members plan and organize NLGSF’s annual Testimonial Dinner, our largest fundraiser, which celebrates the accomplishments of the chapter and honors key members of our community.

FINANCE COMMITTEE: The Finance Committee provides financial oversight for NLGSF by drafting annual budgets, engaging in financial planning, and monitoring the financial health of the organization.

Rest in Power: Tony White

Written in Collaboration by Gigi Richardson, Marc Van Der Hout, and David Weintraub

Long time National Lawyers Guild member, Tony White, passed away peacefully on June 30th, surrounded by family and friends, after suffering a stroke while visiting family on the east coast. He was 68. He will be missed tremendously by everyone whose life he touched. A dedicated legal services attorney, Tony helped social justice organizations throughout California use technology to advance the causes of their clients and movements. For many years he served as an attorney for California Rural Legal Assistance, which arose from the battles of farmworkers for justice and dignity. He fought not only for the rural poor and farmworkers but for his peers as well, becoming President of their union. Thereafter Tony served as Bay Area Legal Aid's Director of Law and Technology for over 15 years and always played a critical role supporting Bay Area Legal Aid's advocacy.

Tony was also a dedicated political intellectual and activist, constantly sending emails on the latest important causes and analysis of societal ills and strategies for change. He was a longtime member of the National Lawyers Guild, joining it his first year at Golden Gate University Law School. The Guild, its commitment to “human rights before property rights” and the close friends he met through it, were anchors in his life. Tony’s commitment to his family and to political action came together through his work in the organization Parenting in the Nuclear Age (PINA), which sought to help parents talk to their children about war, racism, sexism, poverty, and other difficult topics. Similarly, he was a committed member of a men’s group which arose from the women’s movement model and which met twice a month for 38 years to provide a moral and political compass for life’s many challenges as well as good jokes and fascinating sports commentary.

Nothing was more important to Tony than his family. He is survived by his dear wife of 40 years, Maribeth Riday, their loving sons Coreal, Tobias and Jordan, daughters-in-law Briana and Lisa, grandchildren Boden, Lucinda and Audrey, siblings Amy, Andy, Molly, Tacey, Samantha, Michael and Nick and hundreds of friends who cherished Tony, including his 8 remaining Men’s Group brethren.

A memorial service will be held for Tony on Sunday August 12 at 2:00 PM at Northbrae Community Church, 941 The Alameda, Berkeley. A reception will follow. Donations may be made in Tony’s honor to: Our Children’s Trust at www.ourchildrenstrust.org and The Mindful Life Project at www.mindfullifeproject.org. All who wish to communicate condolences or memories can do so at www.legacy.com.