Public Employee Press

Patriot Act threatens labor rights, say panelists

Labor and civil rights experts warned Dec. 10 at DC 37 that the Patriot Act could become a government tool for repressing union activism.

Panelists raised grave concerns about the act’s threat to personal liberties during a forum sponsored by New York Public Library Guild Local 1930, Queens Library Guild Local 1321 and the Metro NY Labor Communications Council.

The Patriot Act — passed in the wake of the 9/11 terrorist attacks — reflects a dark side of U.S. history in which the government has repeatedly cracked down on immigrants, union activists and dissidents in light of real or perceived threats during wartime or periods of social upheaval.

Juan Fernández, president of Amalgamated Professional Employees Local 154, said the Bush administration’s growing preoccupation with domestic surveillance conjured up images of the U.S.-influenced Latin American governments that launched a wave of internal repression from the 1950s until the 1980s.

Harm to immigrant organizing Immigrants will be less likely to be aggressive union advocates because of the act’s chilling effects, he said. The forum, moderated by Local 1930 Treasurer Carol Thomas, occurred as the City Council considered Resolution 909.

The proposal calls on government officials to respect personal liberties while prosecuting the war on terrorism. Three states and over 215 communities have passed similar resolutions.

Rally for City Council bill
Local 1930 President Ray Markey spoke at a rally Dec. 2 in favor of the proposal, which calls on the House and Senate to monitor the implementation of the Patriot Act. During the forum at DC 37, Udi Ofer of the New York Civil Liberties Union urged the audience to lobby the City Council to pass the resolution.

Mr. Ofer charged that the act is leading to ethnic profiling, an erosion of civil liberties and a transfer of judicial authority to the executive branch of government.

Maurice J. Freedman, former president of the American Library Association and head of the Westchester County library system, described how librarians are protesting the Patriot Act by quickly deleting patrons’ records. The act lets the government seize records and prohibits librarians from revealing that FBI or other law enforcement officers visited them.

The act also permits federal agencies, without court permission, to keep lists of the people individuals communicate with via E-mail and telephone, monitor their use of the Internet, and secretly enter homes without informing the residents.

Mr. Freedman said the Patriot Act is an assault on the Bill of Rights in the U.S. Constitution, which protects individuals’ right to read whatever they want and bans searches of their homes without probable cause.

Antoine Faisal, publisher of the Arab-American newspaper Aramica, told how “fear and suspicion” have overshadowed the Arab community since 9/11. The focus on domestic security has fueled hate crimes and media hysteria, he said. Michael Ratner, president of the Center for Constitutional Rights, told how government anti-labor activity has accompanied the Patriot Act.

He cited the Bush administration’s denial of union rights for 150,000 government workers in the Dept. of Homeland Security, police crackdowns on free-trade protestors, and the administration’s claim that a West Coast dock strike would harm national security.

Urging unionists to fight back to protect the labor movement, Mr. Ratner said, “It’s time to hit the streets and make a difference.”

— Gregory N. Heires