Activist Security Culture

Skullface
Brewing activist security culture

Slingshot!, Issue 95
http://slingshot.tao.ca/displaybi.php?0095020

". . . Security culture is a set of customs shared by a community whose members may engage in illegal activities, the practice of which minimizes the risks of such activities." - Wikipedia

Creating a security culture is about understanding the destructiveness of "big-mouths" and boasting. The practice extends far beyond not talking and ensuring the confidentiality of your internet conversations. It also means watching your friends and creating an environment where lying, gossip, bragging, and indirect bragging are not welcome.

Observing security culture is not the same as being so paranoid about everything and everyone that you become paralyzed and ineffective at resisting the system. Government surveillance has two distinct purposes -- actually monitoring individuals with an eye towards arresting or repressing them, and even more importantly, making everyone think they are always being watched. People who spend all their time worrying about being watched don't do anything in the first place, and the government knows this. The government doesn't have enough resources to watch everyone all the time. The trick to getting security culture right is not making silly mistakes, and yet not losing the spirit and courage necessary to fight the system.

Many common behaviors violate security culture and should be avoided. Nocompromise.org defines four categories :

"Liars-- To impress other activists, they claim to have done actions. Such lies not only compromise the person's security--as cops will not take what is said as a lie--but also hinders movement solidarity and trust.

Gossips-- Some weak characters think they can win friends because they are privy to special information. These gossips will tell others about who did what action or, if they don't know who did it, guess at who they think did what actions or just spread rumors about who did it when they really have no clue. This sort of talk is very damaging. People need to remember that rumors are all that are needed to instigate a grand jury. Usually gossips are also liars which only worsens the situation.

Braggers-- It is possible that some people who partake in illegal direct action might brag about it to their friends in an attempt to receive respect and admiration. If someone did such a thing, it would not only jeopardize the bragger's security, but also that of the other people involved with the action (as they may be suspected by association), as well as the people who he told (they can become accessories after the fact).

Indirect-Braggers-- Indirect-braggers are people who make a big production on how they want to remain anonymous, avoid protests, and stay "underground." They might not come out and say that they do illegal direct action, but they make sure everyone within ear-shot knows they are up to something. They are no better than braggers, but they try to be more sophisticated about it by pretending to maintain "security." However, if they were serious about security, they would just make up a good excuse as to why they are not as active, or why they can't make it to the protest. It is doubtful these people ever really do anything."

Often, we break our own rules when we get too excited. Even simply reminiscing the blows we caused our oppressors is a risk; especially the blows we hope to cause in the future. Sometimes we need to step back and look at groups and individuals involved with resistance work. Not everyone can be trusted.

So how do we do this?

NEVER talk about you or someone else's involvement with underground or illegal groups. NEVER ask someone else about their involvement in past or present illegal actions or groups. NEVER talk about you or someone else's plans for future action. NEVER allow yourself to become vulnerable to someone asking these sort of questions or talking about illegal actions.

Affinity groups are made up of people in very small groups that you are familiar with. These groups should have full trust in each other, but you should be as careful as ever when working with others. No conversations concerning future actions should be over the internet, the phone, snail mail, or any car or home of an activist. If it is important to mention an action, protest, or illegal activity, do not mention specifics.

If you are detained or arrested, do not answer questions that could implicate you or anyone else in a future or previous crimes. It is better to stay silent, no matter what coercion is used against you. They may ask you why you were at the protest or action, who you usually meet with, what groups you're a part of, what the times and dates of future protests and meetings are, or what your beliefs are. They may offer to let you go or to give you time off your sentence or try to pick at your weaknesses and tell you that your comrades are lying to you. If you don't respond, eventually, they will give up.

When you encounter people with poor security skills, do not shun them immediately. Try to educate them on discussions that are not appropriate. There are cases where the circumstances are too peculiar and the people involved are too sketchy. In these cases, it is best to avoid these people and situations. It is better to criticize actions and not engage in witchhunts for suspected cops in the absence of solid information

Activists are restless and resistance is on the rise. Some people are adopting radical and confrontational tactics. The more we organize and are effective, the more police forces will escalate their activities against us. For direct action movements to continue, we need to make security one of our strengths.

To Know • To Will • To Dare • To Keep Silent

Eyes On The Police: A How-To-Guide

Eyes on the police: A how-to guide

Slingshot, Issue 95
http://slingshot.tao.ca/displaybi.php?0095011

Berkeley Copwatch - Edited by Slingshot collective The following are excerpts of the Copwatch Manual published by Berkeley Copwatch on how you Copwatch groups monitor police activity:

Our main tactic in Copwatch is to discourage police brutality and harassment by letting the cops know that their actions are being recorded and that they will be held accountable for their acts of harassment and abuse. To this end we will:

• Record incidents of abuse and harassment

• Follow through on complaints

• Publicize incidents of abuse and harassment

• Work with the Police Review Commission

• Educate those who don't believe that police harassment exists.

Defuse Situations

People don't want to be arrested. As Copwatchers, we don't want to escalate a situation to where police arrest someone as a way of getting back at us. We want cops to treat people with respect and to observe their rights. Often, cops forget that homeless people and others actually have rights. We may need to remind them from time to time. We must learn how to assert our rights and to encourage others to assert their rights without endangering someone who is already in some amount of trouble.

We do not attempt to interfere with officers as they make routine arrests. We document and try to inform the cops when we feel that they are violating policy or the law . . .

Shift Procedures

• Be sure your warrant status, bike or car is up to date. Don't give the cops any opportunity to bust you. Assume that this could happen.

• Identification can be very helpful if the police detain you.

• Have a partner for safety as well as good Copwatching. It is very important not to confront the police alone. You must have a witness and someone who can verify your story in case of a problem

• Make sure that you are not carrying anything illegal! No knives, drugs, etc.

• Wear a Copwatch identification badge.

• Be sure that you or your partner brings things you will need to Copwatch: Incident forms, the Copwatch Handbook, Police Dept. complaint forms, Copwatch literature to distribute, tape recorder, police scanner, video recorder, cameras, copy of Penal Code

During Shift

As you observe a situation, one partner records what officers are saying or doing, while the other quietly gets information from witnesses. Consult and share information. Get a firm grasp of the situation first. Record as much information as possible. Witness names and numbers and badge numbers are important. . . . It also helps to write down when, where and what time the incident happened. If there has been an injury, encourage the person to see a doctor and take pictures of the injuries as soon as possible. Distribute Copwatch literature while you are observing a stop so that people understand that you are not just there to be entertained but are actually trying to help.

Remember that you have the right to watch the cops. You don't have the right to interfere. . . .

When you observe police remember that you don't want to make the cops more nervous than they already are. Keep your hands visible at all times. Don't approach an officer from behind or stand behind them. Don't make any sudden movements or raise your voice to the cop. Try to keep the situation calm. You don't want to get the person in more trouble. If an officer tells you to step back, tell the officer that you do not want to interfere, you simply wish to observe.

More Assertive Style:

• Ask victims if they know why they are being arrested or detained. . . .

• If the stop is vague, ask the cop to name the Penal Code Section that they are enforcing.

• Have educational conversations with people standing around.

• Don't piss the cop off if you can help it. Don't let it get personal. No name calling!

• Identify yourself as "Copwatch."

• Try to stay until the stop is concluded. Remember that Rodney King was just a traffic stop originally.

• If a person wants to take action, give them complaint forms.

• Don't assume who is right and who is wrong. Observe and document before taking action.

Be Careful:

• Don't inadvertently collaborate in a crime (don't become a look-out, warning if police are coming, etc.) . . .

• Taking pictures or videotaping can be a problem if the detainee doesn't want you to. Respect them. Tell them that you are working to stop police misconduct. If this doesn't satisfy them, turn off the camera. . . .

• Don't make promises that you can't keep. Don't tell people you will get them a lawyer or take the cops to court, etc.

• Don't be afraid to say "I don't know" if you are asked legal questions. Better than giving out wrong information.

To see the full manual or for other information, check out www.berkeleycopwatch.org.

8 Nican Tlacah Arrested For Looking "Illegal"

LA VOZ DE AZTLAN EDITORIAL
http://www.aztlan.net/arrested_on_suspicion_of_being_illegal.htm
Los Angeles, Alta California
December 3, 2007

ARIZONA: Eight Latinos arrested "on SUSPICION of being illegal"




"Today they are coming for Latinos and very few people are speaking up. Who then will speak up when they come for you?"
-- Ernesto Cienfuegos 2007 --

The Arizona Republic Newspaper and the Associated Press reported today that Sheriff Joseph Arpaio of Maricopa County arrested eight Latinos on Saturday "on suspicion of being illegal." According to news reports, the eight Latinos arrested were in the vicinity of a Phoenix shopping mall where anti-immigration protests were taking place. The Latinos were not breaking any laws but were simply arrested on "suspicion" of violating immigration laws.

One of the greatest fears of Americans of Mexican descent is to be mistaken as an undocumented immigrant and "deported" based simply on one's cultural and ethnic characteristics. The deportation of US citizens to Mexico has occurred numerous times since the end of the Mexican-American War in 1848. Many of the mistaken deportations have occurred on an individual basis but there have been at least two government organized deportations in mass that have resulted in thousands of US citizens of Mexican descent being deported

The first mass deportation called "The Mexican Repatriation" took place between 1929 and 1937 during the "Great Depression." An estimated 600,000 Mexicans and Mexican-Americans were deported. Approximately 60% of the people deported were children who were actually born in the US and others who were legal citizens. Because of the US economic depression, Mexicans were viewed as a burden on social services and as aliens who took jobs from Americans.

The second government organized mass deportation of Mexicans and Mexican-Americans took place in 1954 and was called "Operation Wetback." The purpose of President Dwight D. Eisenhower's "Operation Wetback" was to deport approximately 1.5 million undocumented immigrants from the southwestern United States. The operation began in California and Arizona. It involved over 1,000 Border Patrol agents and state and local police agencies. The operation consisted of aggressive police sweeps of Mexican-American neighborhoods, random stops and ID checks of "Mexican-looking" people. In numerous cases undocumented Mexican immigrants were deported along with their American-born children, who were by law U.S. citizens. Many US citizens of Mexican descent suffered arrests by police authorities simply on suspicion of being illegal.

Today, Sheriff Arpaio of Arizona is conducting his own personal "Operation Wetback" in Phoenix. His arrest of eight Latinos on "suspicion of being illegal" is right out criminal and racist. What is going to happen to Sheriff Arpaio if all or some of the Latinos he arrested turn out to be legally in the US? What if all or some of those arrested turn out to be US citizens? Will the FBI arrest Sheriff Arpaio for hate crimes?

Southern Poverty Law Center Law Suit against the KKK

SPLC Sues Leading Klan Group over Beating

http://www.splcenter.org/legal/news/article.jsp?site_area=2&aid=277
http://www.splcenter.org/legal/docket/files.jsp?cdrID=69&sortID=0

July 25, 2007 - The Southern Poverty Law Center today filed suit against the nation's second-largest Klan group and five Klansmen, saying two members were on a recruiting mission for the group in July 2006 when they savagely beat a teenage boy at a county fair in Kentucky.
The lawsuit claims that as part of an official recruiting drive organized by the leadership of the Imperial Klans of America (IKA), several members went to the Meade County Fairgrounds in Brandenburg, Ky., to hand out business cards and flyers advertising a "white-only" IKA function.

Unprovoked, two of the Klansmen at the fair began harassing a 16-year-old boy of Panamanian descent, calling him a "spic," according to the lawsuit. The boy, who stands 5-foot-3 and weighs just 150 pounds, was beaten to the ground and kicked by the Klansmen, one of whom is 6-foot-5 and 300 pounds. The beating left the boy with two cracked ribs, a broken left forearm, multiple cuts and bruises and jaw injuries requiring extensive dental repair.

"The defendants are members and high-ranking officials of one of the most violent white supremacist groups in America," said SPLC President Richard Cohen. "They promote violence and intimidation and call for the death of racial and ethnic minorities, homosexuals and so-called 'race traitors.' They targeted and viciously beat our client solely because he has brown skin."

The SPLC has documented a 40 percent rise in the number of hate groups since 2000 — an increase fueled by anti-immigration furor aimed largely at Latinos. The boy who was attacked is a U.S. citizen.

The lawsuit says the boy has endured physical and mental pain and suffering from the attack. It seeks compensatory and punitive damages.

Two IKA members at the time of the beating — Jarred R. Hensley, 24, of Cincinnati and Andrew R. Watkins, 26, of Louisville — each are serving three-year prison terms for the beating after pleading guilty to second-degree assault. Hensley was the IKA's Grand Titan in Ohio. Watkins served as the IKA's webmaster.

The center earlier sued Hensley and Watkins for their actions, but Wednesday's filing adds the IKA and three other individuals.

The suit names Ron Edwards, the IKA's founder and highest-ranking member; J. Edward, who as an Exalted Cyclops had "authority over and responsibility for the operations and activities of the IKA in Kentucky"; and Joshua Cowles, another member participating in the recruiting drive.

The IKA's compound in Dawson Springs, Ky., is situated on 28 acres owned by Edwards. It is the site of Nordic Fest, a music festival that brings together Klansmen, skinheads and members of other violent hate groups each year in May.

Over the past 25 years, the SPLC has crippled some of the nation's largest and most violent white supremacist organizations by helping victims of racial violence sue for monetary damages. Its victories include a $7 million verdict against the United Klans in 1987 for the lynching of Michael Donald in Mobile, Ala.; a $12.4 million verdict against the White Aryan Resistance in 1990 for the brutal murder of an Ethiopian student in Portland; and a $6.3 million verdict against the Aryan Nations in 2000 that forced the organization to give up its 20-acre compound in Idaho.

Barrio Run!!! (9th of December)

Sunday, December 9th 2007 @ 9am

The Run will begin at 101 W. 44th St. Wakefield Middle School
(Corner of 44th and 9th)

The Run will end at 6th ave. & Irvington Rd. @ Rudy Garcia Park

CALPULLI
TEOXICALLI
"THE HABITAT FOR LIFE ENERGY ON EARTH, UNDER THE SUN"
XICANO INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY
TUCSON, AZ
520.551.5229
CUCHRUIZ@YAHOO.COM

BARRIO RUN

The Barrio Run is a reflection of a historical Indigenous tradition that brings about change through prayer. The energy that is projected from the momentum of the run, its runners and their intentions will be reciprocated in the form of a healing and ultimately a blessing. The Peace and Dignity Journeys also clarifies this tradition by stating, “As indigenous people, we know that running was and is a vital part of ceremonial life. Our ancestors and elders have taught us that spiritual running reinforces the unity among the two-legged, nature, and the universe” (2000). Presently, the Barrio Run is used as a channel to carry out postivie change in our local communities. The runs are not marches, rallies, or races, but are an opportunity for our people to work united with all the rest of creation to bring a healing to our people, one neighborhood at a time.

Background: The 1st Barrio Run was held in the fall of 2004. A group of community members along with student run youth organizations, organized the Barrio Run with hopes to promote peace and dignity among the community and local neighborhoods. Another key objective of the Barrio Run was to educate and bring awareness on political propositions and their effects on the community. The run took place in Barrio Hollywood and Menlo Park (Tucson, AZ) and was successful as it was highly supported by the families from the local neighborhoods.

As a result of the first run and its impact, it was decided that there would be 4 sets of 13 runs totaling 52 runs within a 4-year span. This is significant of the 52-year marker as represented in the TONALMACHIOTL (Aztec Calendar). To date we are still in the process of accomplishing this goal. Today many youth, elders, families, and community members participate in and support the barrio runs.

Ceremonial instruments play a key role in guiding the run and all participants.
A group of Xicano Nahuatl people whom are involved in the runs created and maintain a ceremonial staff that establishes the pace of the run, provides protection, and serves as an ongoing witness to the events taking place.

Starting and ending points represent important markers and signify both the positive and negative sites in the community that have a significant impact on the neighborhood. For example, locations such as parks, schools, juvenile detention centers, liquor stores, local landmarks, and neighborhood centers are selected. At these locations, an opening and closing to the four directions takes place and words are shared by anyone who wishes to express themselves.

Purpose: The Barrio Run is an indigenous approach of spirituality and serves as a tool to send forth a blessing of positive energy. In addition, the purpose of the Barrio Run is to promote peace and dignity, to encourage a drug and alcohol free, healthy lifestyle, through culture. Furthermore the Barrio Run serves as a method of bringing awareness to current political and social injustices affecting the community.



CALPULLI
TEOXICALLI
"THE HABITAT FOR LIFE ENERGY ON EARTH, UNDER THE SUN"
XICANO INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY
TUCSON, AZ
520.551.5229
CUCHRUIZ@YAHOO.COM

TEOXICALLI

TEOXICALLI

The Habitat For Life Energy On Earth, Under The Sun

XICANO INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY
TUCSON, AZ 520.551.5229


TEOXICALLI consist of members of the Xicano Indigenous community living in Tucson, Arizona, who wish to offer a historical, cultural, and spiritual approach to our inter-personal relationships with each other and the Earth.

Our purpose as members of TEOXICALLI is to awaken the MEXICAYOTL that our genetic memory holds through the gaining and sharing of knowledge, and through self-introspection (Tezcatlipoca) by way of ceremony.

We seek to constantly teach ourselves to walk in beauty and balance IN NOCHTIN TO MECAYOTZIN (with all our relations) to live and function in today’s society with an understanding of and proud identification with our Mexicanidad.

With an understanding of the importance of the uniqueness and varied passions of our beautiful gente, we welcome all who strive for the respect, acknowledgement, and evolvement of ourselves as INDIGENOUS people.

It is in this TEOXICALLI that we are given the opportunity as human beings to use the sacred elements and the will of our ancestors to remind the world that personal gain does not lead to happiness, but that through this HUEHUETLAPALOHTLI (sacred red road) we can achieve and maintain harmony that will write an everlasting story for our children to pass on. Together we can plant this seed, nourish it, watch it flourish, and save the world.