Posted on 10/26/2013 11:57:37 AM PDT by Lucky9teen
Hundreds are marching on the National Mall in Washington, DC to protest covert NSA surveillance operations on the anniversary of the Patriot Act. The organizers are planning to present Congress with a petition which has acquired over 570,000 signatures.
Stop Watching Us is a collective of 100 public advocacy groups, among them the American Civil Liberties Union, Freedom Works, as well as individuals like Chinese artist/activist Ai Weiwei and Glenn Greenwald, the journalist who worked with Edward Snowden to expose many of the NSA’s surveillance procedures. The rally is scheduled to begin at 11:30 am local time on October 26 – the 12th anniversary of the US Patriot Act.
“First, we are asking for a congressional investigation so we can shed light on exactly what the National Security Agency is doing. Secondly, we ask for reform of federal surveillance law, specifically Section 215 of the Patriot Act, Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, and the state secrets privilege,” Rainey Reitman, EFF activism director and lead organizer for Saturday's rally told tech news outlet CNET on Friday.
18:05 GMT: Former US Department of Justice ethics adviser, Jesselyn Radack, has read a statement from Edward Snowden. “This isn't about red or blue or party lines, and it definitely isn't about terrorism...it's about power, control, and trust in government,” it said. “It's about being able to live in a free and open American society,” the statement continued. “Elections are coming and we are watching you.” Snowden went on to remind the crowd that no phone call in the USA is made without the NSA keeping a record of it. "They're public servants not private investigators," he added.
17:59 GMT: Whistleblower Thomas Drake is addressing the crowd. "I am fortunate that I did not end up in actual prison," he said. “The last thing a free and open society needs is a digital fence around us.” He called for the restoration of the Fourth Amendment and said that NSA surveillance "engenders fear and erodes our freedom."
17:50 GMT: One speaker addressed the crowd reciting the poem “First they came…” generally attributed to pastor Martin Niemöller.
17:15 GMT: Crowds in Cologne, western Germany, have gathered outside the city's iconic cathedral. The banner asks: "Should we all become a 'Merkel' before our rights are taken seriously?" Allusions to the Stasi ‒ the old East-German secret police ‒ can be seen in the crowd; government surveillance remains a sensitive issue.
17:09 GMT: The march has arrived at its point of destination, gathering at the foot of the US Capitol. A variety of speakers are expected to give speeches to the crowd berating NSA spying and government monitoring of communications.
16:56 GMT:
Andrew Boo-lake @apblake
Anti-spy rally in DC. Can ya spot all 5 surveillance cams here? (there's more you can't see too) #stopwatchingus
16:51 GMT: Crowds are chanting: "This is what democracy looks like."
16:45 GMT: According to independent journalist, Rania Khalek, who is present at the march, it is currently "about a block long," with other eyewitnesses estimating it to be even longer. The crowds are now chanting: "They say wiretap; we say fight back!"
16:30 GMT: The march is now moving, to the sound of heavy drums.
The Bill of Rights just walked by
16:25 GMT: RT's Andrew Blake, who is present at the march, has identified an effigy of a drone in the crowd, alongside a man in an Obama mask wielding a model surveillance camera.
16:21 GMT: Further chants of: “Hey hey, ho ho, mass surveillance has got to go!” can be heard.
16:12 GMT: The crowd is chanting: “We are the people. Defend the Bill of Rights!”
16:06 GMT: Speakers are beginning to address the crowd, who come from “across the political spectrum,” demanding that Congress “investigate the full extent of the NSA spying program.”
Among cities involved in sympathetic protests are Louisville, Kentucky, Austin, Texas, Birmingham, Alabama, and eight different cities in Germany, according to rally leaders.
David Segal stepped up to denounce NSA online intrusions, commenting that people’s communications “define our lives and even our very humanity...as we express our hopes and fears....they are watching us. They are running algorithms that study all of us…”
He went on to add that communications are ‘open for their taking’ to loud boos from the crowd.
“There would be no place to hide if this government ever became a tyranny….there would be no way to fight back,” he said.
15:42 GMT: According to witness estimates, almost a thousand have already arrived in Washington DC. 
@sinak - There a must be a thousand people here already, and the buses haven’t even arrived yet! #StopWatchingUs
15:41 GMT: Some 120 people attended a simultaneous rally taking place in Munich on Saturday, according to an official police statement.
On Wednesday a German government spokesman said that Berlin had information the NSA could have been spying on German Chancellor Angela Merkel, prompting Germany to announce that next week it would be sending senior intelligence chiefs to Washington
15:30 GMT: Participants of the US protests are wielding builboards bearing the "Stop Watching Us" slogan, alongside further statements demanding the cessation of mass NSA spying. Others have pictures of Snowden's face and messages of thanks. One group in attendance has brought along a giant parachute bearing the logo of the collective.
15:20 GMT: Crowds are beginning to gather in Washington DC.
15:15 GMT: Stop Watching Us have produced an official video giving a platform to the voices of a variety of celebrities, politicians and activists who oppose NSA spying.
Um...we don't live in a Democracy fools. It's supposed to be a CONSTITUTIONAL REPUBLIC. Ugh....
While they may be able to come together to protest THIS over step of the government, I wish they'd realize all of the many OTHER rights that have been over stepped.
Maybe they'll realize that, the more their toes get stepped on and they realize they are not immune to the tyranny, from the dictator, they so worship.
An 8 lb maul and a rope.
You give the maul a good swing, crimping the base of the mast, then lasso the top and pull, effectively bringing the traffic camera down to the sidewalk.
And there are always paintball guns.
NSA and the FBI were there taking pictures and notes. Cell phones were tracked. Faces were saved to the database for future use. Their social security numbers popped up in an IRS office. How dare they challenge the all-encompassing power of the federal government?
the DUmmies are having a real brewhaha over this, the purists are knocking it because freedomworks and some other groups are involved, the other half are cheering it on. it really quite entertaining
No drones recording this with individual face recognition software?
Looks like a manufactured *march*...with all of the pre-printed signs and their very own logo to go with. Reminds me of the 0ccup00pers, uni0ns and La Raza marches.
How are the feds ever going to keep the Obamacare website running if the nerds are on the warpath?
The anti-NSA crusade is BS! How many of these asshats are more than comfortable handing their otherwise private health data over to the Marxists?!
It’s amazing how the NSA never before amassed so much attention as it has in this administration.
Want change? Vote out the idiots, our “representatives”, that are setting policy and funding the programs that are so... damn... unacceptable!
Anyone thinking even one aspect of this goes away is completely naive. It never will.
The irony is delicious.
A thousand or so people standing in front of the Capitol with signs saying Stop Watching Us.
Mommie, they’re looking at me!~
The irony is a lot of them will turn right around and vote for a bigger more overbearing government.
what are these libtards bitching about? They are modern liberals...they WANT the govt to be their god, parent, guardian and brain.
Chinese “artist/activist” I WeeWee?
“The irony is a lot of them will turn right around and vote for a bigger more overbearing government.”
BINGO! Modern liberals are slaves to the govt and want a bigger govt to watch over them, tell them what to do, what to eat etc. Commie bastards all...
DoJ wants to use warrantless nsa surveillance data for criminal case
I dont think these are all liberals - I see a Impeach Obama sign (complete with Hitler mustache)
However, I dont think this will get much coverage in the TeeVee news either without a lot of selective video footage editing.
>No drones recording this with individual face recognition software?
Probably comes standard armed with a silencer, heart attack creater kit, and detonation device now...
>No drones recording this with individual face recognition software?
Probably comes standard armed with a silencer, heart attack creater kit, and detonation device now...
: > )
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