[Peace] Advice for Ahmed campaign and beyond

[Kranich, Kimberlie]

I've been at "RadFest" at Aurora University in WI. since Ahmed's arrest and
have been keeping up with events via the listserves and U-C IMC Website.
Excellent work, everyone! Thank you!!!!

Danielle and I have shared what we know about the situation with a presenter
here at RadFest named Rania Masri, Human Rights Advocate, coordinator of
Iraq Action Coaliton, member, Al-Awda (the Palestine Right to Return
Coalition).  Rania has been interrogated by the FBI (three times under cover
and one time overtly) and many other people she knows have been as well.  

It is hard, of course, to comment on Ahmed's specific situation since little
is known.  She believes in general, however, that deportation is preferable
to detainment in the current political climate.  With detainment, a person
can get lost in the system for a long time, can be subject to solitary
confinement, etc.  She believes that those who have an activist community
around them get deported rather than detained and that deportation is less
scary than detainment. 

We should find out to what extent the U of I is in collusion with the
FBI/INS. UW Madison has refused, for example, to cooperate with the FBI/INS
because their interrogations are based on racial profiling. What is the U of
I's position?

We should be contacting Ahmed's professors to refute the statement that he
has not been a student.

She also suggests, since Ahmed apparantly has legal representation already,
that Ahmed's family's wishes be supported.  Again, without knowing a whole
lot, it is hard to say what we can do on Ahmed's behalf beyond what has
already been done and the two suggestions above.

But, Rania did have some solid advice on what we might consider doing as a
community now that one of our community members has been abducted by the
INS: 

1) Contact someone from the National Lawyers Guild immediately. She says
that the National Lawyers Guild is a stronger advocate than the ACLU in
cases such as these.  A lawyer from the Guild could be brought here to
inform us of the practical applications of the Patriot Act and our rights.
Those rights differ if you are a legal immigrant, here on a visa, a
naturalized citizen or a citizen at birth.  The lawyer can help us plan a
course of action if one of us is detained/abducted in the future. We need a
come up with a list or procedures and a course of actionfor different
situations.

2) We need advise on what to say and what not to say if we are questioned by
the FBI and INS.  What are our rights?  Can we record the interview?  Should
we take someone with us? How do we answer questions such as "So, you were at
an anti-American rally last week?"  Don't agree with their characterizations
of our activities!

3) Citizens must put themselves on the line.  We have more security than any
other group and visible organizing is the best way to keep ourselves and our
community safe. 

4) We must continue to work with and reach out to the local Arab community.

I do not have a number for the National Lawyers Guild and am still at my
conference, but they can be researched on-line.

Hope this helps.

Good job, everybody!  

Kimberlie