Lawyers
are taking the City of Memphis to court over their unjust surveillance of
political activists. The activists they were focused on watching? None other
than Black Lives Matter movement members, Darius Stewart’s mother, and several other
racial justice activists. As the adage goes, history repeats itself, and seeing
that Memphis Police are spying on political activists feels uncomfortably reminiscent
to the FBI spying on Civil Rights Leaders in Memphis and beyond during the
1960s. This stands as direct evidence as to how the Civil Rights Movement is
not yet over. As
a blacklisted activist said when asked about the lawsuit, “It’s just another Monday
in Memphis” (Poe).
Interestingly, what makes this kind
of surveillance occurring today illegal is directly linked to the Sanitation
Worker’s Strike and others in Memphis during the 1960s. In 1976, the City of
Memphis was sued in the case Kendrick v.
Chandler to guarantee the enforcement of political activists’ First
Amendment Right to be exercised without Memphis Police surveillance. This case
was possible after evidence came to light of the Memphis’ Domestic Intelligence
Unit spying on activist groups involved in the Civil Rights Movement. The
result of the case went as follows:
“The resulting 1978 consent decree, the first in the nation to
forbid the maintenance of domestic intelligence units that monitor the First
Amendment activities of citizens, prohibits the City of Memphis from ever again
engaging in the collection, maintenance or dissemination of information
regarding a person’s lawful political activities. The decree also bans the city
from using informers or collecting license plate numbers or taking photos of participants
at public protests and rallies, and requires the city to review any criminal
investigation that could infringe on First Amendment rights.” (ACLU-TN)
What
this means, is that Memphis police cannot spy on activists for exercising their
right to freedom of speech at rallies or protests, for example. However,
Memphis has been violating this consent decree with black activists today in
contemporary society. These targeted activists do not have a criminal history
nor are they linked to disturbances in government buildings. Despite this lack
of evidence, they are black and outspoken about inequality, and both racism and
lack of oversight in policing allowed for them to be spied on. These
individuals were blacklisted and unofficially required to have police escorts
when visiting City Hall. Overall, this is incredibly unjust and reveals the
depth to which racism goes in the police system.
Reference:
https://www.commercialappeal.com/story/news/government/city/2017/02/20/city-hall-blacklist-may-violate-federal-order/98150126/
I think many people might be surprised to hear that in 2018 there is a “blacklist” toward civil rights leaders and activists. The fact that it is occurring in City Hall, a building that these tax-paying activists fund, is a reminder of the ongoing injustice and the crucial role of these activists’ work.
ReplyDeleteIt is both disheartening and infuriating to see the city of Memphis' dedication to censoring those speaking out on injustices within the city. Memphis is stunting its own growth by refusing to hear any voices for change that do not align with their vision of Memphis as a city on the rise.
ReplyDelete