In its continuing effort to defend the right to dissent, the National Lawyers Guild of Chicago is offering to support individuals who are involved in the Occupy Chicago movement in several ways.Know Your Rights
Whether you are an activist, organizer, or simply an ordinary person, it is essential that you know your rights and feel comfortable exercising them. To that end, NLG Chicago is offering the following resources for individuals who participate in the Occupy Chicago movement:
The National Layers Guild has a long tradition of standing up to government repression. We recently updated our 16-page manual, You Have the Right to Remain Silent, which is a basic primer for law enforcement encounters. There is also an Arabic version of this manual available here.
The Center for Constitutional Rights, which was founded by Guild attorneys, publishes a 48-page booklet for activists and organizations targeted by federal law enforcement agencies entitled If an Agent Knocks.
The National Lawyers Guild’s Military Law Task Force recently created a short brochure, Legal Support for Members of the US Military participating in the Occupy Wall Street Protests, with Know Your Rights information for members of the US military. The Military Law Task Force has more detailed Know Your Rights information here.
For additional resources and information about your rights and how to assert them, click here.
Legal Observers
Lastly, as always, the NLG Chicago Chapter provides legal observers to monitor police activity and potential infringement of First Amendment rights at local rallies, demonstrations, and direct actions. To request legal observers, please email chicago.lo.program@gmail.com with information about your planned action. For more information about our Legal Observer Program and how to request legal observers, click here.
