{"article":{"id":84147,"heading":"IMPORTANT UPDATE ON SHERMAN AUSTIN","author":"JMR","created":"2003-09-24 03:32:23","modified":"2013-11-11 00:26:15","last_modified":"Mon, 11 Nov 2013 07:26:15","article":"

Thank you to everyone who has faxed Dianne Feinstein. Sherman's situation

remains of critical concern, and every effort matters. While many of you

have contacted Feinstein or sent letters, we are also collecting signatures

for a version of the letter that will be made public and distributed widely.

In the coming weeks, a Free Sherman website, www.freesherman.org will be up and running.

That site will include the letter with a list of signatures, updates on Sherman’s legal situation,

links to information, and ways to get involved. In the meantime, if

you would like your name to appear on the PUBLIC letter of support, please

send a message to ahurley@stanford.edu<\/a>. Group endorsements are also

welcome. Please include your title and\/or how you would like to be listed.

You should also include your address and contact information in the event

that signatures need to be verified. A work address is also acceptable.

None of this information will be shared or made public. This is simply to

prevent any false signatures from appearing.

A copy with a preliminary list of signatures is pasted below. You'll notice

that the letter is introduced by a statement of support from Noam Chomsky

and that people such as Howard Zinn and Zack de la Rocha have already

signed.

Thanks!

Here it is:





“The events reported in the statement below are deeply troubling. Sherman Austin appears to be the victim of a serious miscarriage of justice, and I hope that this matter is pursued quickly, fairly, and justly.”

Noam Chomsky



We, the undersigned, are united in our opposition to the selective

prosecution and imprisonment of Sherman Austin, a twenty year-old African

American webmaster and activist. Sherman¹s sentencing sets a dangerous

precedent for the future of our right to express dissent and marks a

troubling escalation in the criminalization of critical thinking and the

erosion of the very civil liberties and rights our society purports to

value.

On September 3, 2003 Sherman Austin surrendered himself to begin a one-year

term in federal prison for the contents of a website that was authored by

another boy and linked to Sherman's site, www.raisethefist.com, on a

free-hosting area Sherman provided there. The other boy's site included a

direct link to the \"Reclaim Guide,² a manual that provides crude

instructions on how to build explosives. While this boy has not been

charged with any crime, Sherman, who had no part in writing or posting any

of the offending material, was prosecuted under a 1997 law sponsored by

Dianne Feinstein that makes it illegal to distribute information related to

explosives with the intent to use that information in a \"federal crime of

violence.\"

Numerous websites feature bomb-making instructions, and while such

information is easily accessed via the internet and online bookstores such

as amazon.com, Sherman, who has no history of violence and who did not write

the \"Reclaim Guide,² is the first person to be charged under this law. The

key element in the case against Sherman hinged on the question of \"intent.\"

Because Sherman's site is critical of U.S. government policy, police

brutality, globalization, and racism, the prosecution and judge maintained

that his politics provided grounds for proving intent.

Senator Feinstein, in a press release issued the day Sherman entered prison,

expressed ³dismay² that prosecutors had not pursued the ³bombmaking² law

³aggressively² enough as a ³tool in fighting terrorism.² We ask, why is it

that a nonviolent twenty year-old, someone whom the California Department of

Corrections Senior Staff Psychologist determined ³does not represent a risk

to society whatsoever² and described as ³a very, very peaceful,

mild-mannered² person, has been sentenced under this law while others who

present clear and identifiable threats, such as certain white supremacist

and anti-choice organizations, have been permitted to distribute bombmaking

information and make direct threats on individuals, clinics, and groups? We

contend that the selective prosecution of Sherman Austin had everything to

do with his race, his politics, his effectiveness as an internet activist,

and his mother¹s lack of financial resources to mount an aggressive legal

defense. We find it significant and telling that the actual author of the

site directly linked to the \"Reclaim Guide\" is the son of affluent and

conservative white parents.

We also question the validity of Sherman¹s plea itself. Sherman, who was

eighteen years-old when this case began, was told a \"terrorism enhancement\"

would be applied to his case if he went to trial. This meant that he could

have been subjected to an additional 20 years in prison if found guilty. We

challenge the notion that a plea made under such circumstances could be

truly voluntary. Sherman accepted two plea bargain agreements, one of which

the judge rejected, sentencing Sherman to a term longer than what the

prosecution suggested.

As is evident in the court transcripts, the decisions of U.S. District Court

Judge Stephen V. Wilson were neither fair nor impartial. He stated that he

hoped Sherman¹s case would serve as a deterrent to other activists and

³revolutionaries² and that he wanted to \"send a message\" by subjecting

Sherman to a harsher sentence. As activists, educators, artists, and

concerned individuals, we stand together to send a message back to Judge

Wilson. We will not be silenced or deterred.

Many of us have published, recorded, performed, or presented work that is

critical of U.S. foreign policy, domestic examples of social injustice, and

the effects of globalization. Some of us have made statements that could

provide even more compelling grounds for applying the standard of ³intent²

invoked in Sherman¹s case had we offered free-hosting website space that the

author of the ³Reclaim Guide² could have used. Because Sherman is now

serving time in federal prison for having expressed opinions not unlike our

own, we feel compelled to speak out lest we be next.

Two days after entering prison, Sherman was moved into isolation because of

death threats made by white supremacist groups. Thanks to numerous calls,

faxes, and letters sent to prison officials, Sherman has now been

transferred, but his safety in prison remains a concern. In the words of

the Department of Corrections Psychologist, Sherman ³is likely to become a

victim by virtue of his youth, slight build and naiveté. He is totally

unprepared to defend himself in such a setting. He is more likely to become

brutalized by the experience than to learn from it.\"

We support the efforts underway to challenge the terms of Sherman's plea and

probation, and we demand that prison and government officials ensure the

safety of Sherman Austin while he remains in custody.



Michael Albert

Z Magazine and Znet

Antonio Austin

artist and writer

Melanie Austin

Rachel Austin

graphic artist

Shermane Austin, Ph.D

Associate Professor, Computer Science

Medgar Evers College

The City University of New York

http:\/\/nrts.mec.cuny.edu\/saa\/<\/a>



Blase Bonpane, Ph.D.

Director, Office of the Americas

Margaret B. Carey

Attorney at Law

Denver, CO

Alison Chubb, Ph.D.

Biologist and videographer

Redwood City, CA

Nicholas De Genova

Assistant Professor of Anthropology and Latina\/o Studies

Columbia University

Zack de la Rocha

Folk This!

James Fujii

Associate Professor of Japanese Literature

University of California, Irvine

Paul George

Director, Peninsula Peace and Justice Center

Palo Alto, CA

Theodore Harris

artist

Philadelphia, PA

Patricia Hartz, Ph.D.

Humanities

University of California, Irvine

Julie Hoigaard, Ph.D.

Social Science

University of California, Irvine

Adrienne Carey Hurley, Ph.D.

Stanford Institute for International Studies



Ramsey Kanaan

AK Press

Roger Linn

Roger Linn Designs

http:\/\/www.rlinndesign.com\/<\/a>

Josh Lofthouse

Red Deer, Alberta, Canada

Futoshi Nakagawa

Tokyo, Japan

Anahita New (U.K. National)

Bangkok, Thailand

David Remer

Frankfurt, Germany

Jennifer Martin Ruggiero

Teacher of Computer Science & Imaging

Stephen Ruoss, M.D.

Associate Professor

Stanford Medical School

Carla Williams

writer and artist

Oakland, CA

Deborah Willis-Kennedy

Professor of Photography & Imaging

Tisch School of the Arts

New York University

Armando Yañez

San Jose, CA

Prof. Howard Zinn

http:\/\/www.howardzinn.org\/<\/a>





<\/p>\n","contact":"","link":"","address":"","phone":"","parent_id":0,"mime_type":"text\/plain","summary":"Sherman's situation\r\nremains of critical concern","numcomment":16,"fileurl":"\/uploads\/","filesize":null,"article_url":"\/news\/2003\/09\/84147.php"},"attachments":[],"comments":[{"id":84211,"heading":"You got The Chomsky in on this?","article":"Yay! They'll let Sherman out now! \r\n\r\nAnd Mumia, and the Chicago Seven, and any other idiots caught doing something illegal whom you yo-yos think is a "political prisoner". \r\n\r\nChomsky needs to rent a 10-story crane to get over himself.\r\n\r\nOoops! Did I say something heretical? ","author":"nonanarchist","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 19:50:27","modified":"2003-09-24 19:50:27","fileurl":""},{"id":84214,"heading":"OneEyedMan","article":"Nope...you ain't capable.....\r\n\r\n\r\n...too fuckin' dim......","author":"KPC","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 19:57:49","modified":"2003-09-24 19:57:49","fileurl":""},{"id":84216,"heading":"Sorry, Chicken Boy.","article":"Didn't mean to insult your hero.\r\n\r\nOh, wait...yes, I did.","author":"nonanarchist","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 19:59:41","modified":"2003-09-24 19:59:41","fileurl":""},{"id":84219,"heading":"OneEyedMan","article":"Nope...you didn't...\r\n\r\n\r\n....still too fuckin' dim.....","author":"KPC","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 20:02:17","modified":"2003-09-24 20:02:17","fileurl":""},{"id":84221,"heading":"My...what a convenient list.","article":"Thank you for making it easy for us to identify the seditionists. Now that we know who sympathizes with anarchists, we can systematically remove them from positions of prestige and power. EXCELLENT.","author":"KOBE SBM","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 20:03:24","modified":"2003-09-24 20:03:24","fileurl":""},{"id":84226,"heading":"Then I'll try again.","article":"Chomsky is a self-important pompous windbag who traded an imaginary theory in linguistics into a lifetime of political celebrity, talk show appearances, and endless printed drivel blaming America for every ill under the sun, real or imagined, using "evidence" carefully crafted to prove his ideas, blithely ignoring facts which contradict his pronunciations.\r\n\r\nThose who hang on his every word are no better than Limbaugh's dittoheads, using fawning hero-worship instead of independent thought.\r\n\r\nHis obvious hatred of America is made even more disgusting by the fact that he doesn't hesitate to take advantage of its opportunites. His hypocrisy knows no bounds, and yet is not recognized by his sycophants. To them, he is a folk hero, rather than what he actually is: a hack, riding the wave of the self-loathng Left, grabbing after fame and fortune within a system he professes to abhor.\r\n\r\nThere...that sounds pretty accurate, doesn't it?","author":"nonanarchist","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 20:17:42","modified":"2003-09-24 20:17:42","fileurl":""},{"id":84228,"heading":"nonanarchist","article":"nonanarchist... That is absolutely the finest, most accurate description of Chomsky I've ever had the pleasure of reading. Well done!","author":"Reality Check","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 20:21:04","modified":"2003-09-24 20:21:04","fileurl":""},{"id":84229,"heading":"" Now that we know who sympathizes with anarchists..."","article":"Relax, KOBE. Sympathizing is all they CAN do.\r\n\r\nIt's not like there will EVER be an anarchist revolution, after all. \r\n\r\nLet them have their little dreams of their little Utopia, because we all know it's never going to happen.\r\n\r\nMeanwhile, they're easy to spot, muttering into their coffee, peeking over their shoulders to see who might be watching them...","author":"nonanarchist","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 20:21:43","modified":"2003-09-24 20:21:43","fileurl":""},{"id":84231,"heading":"Thanks, RC.","article":"But I'm afraid the imc crowd will sentence me to 10 "Hail Mumia"s as pennance for my blaspemy.","author":"nonanarchist","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 20:23:39","modified":"2003-09-24 20:23:39","fileurl":""},{"id":84232,"heading":"to nonanarchist, fresca and other FBI trash","article":"Fresca , nonanarchist, smashtheleft, Real check and KOBE are the same pitiful shit .I know,You know, everybody know.You postings are ZERO intellectual ZERO interested and you help on this board is - ZERO.Only you believe you poor opinions and arguments. You online harassment are Unbelievably pathetic and highly ineffective . You are unloved and unwelcome.Don't waste you time here. Fuck off !!!","author":"anti-troll alert","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 20:24:03","modified":"2003-09-24 20:24:03","fileurl":""},{"id":84233,"heading":"Don't forget....","article":"...... Chomsky is riding this "Blame American First" gravy train all the way to the bank. Good capitalist!","author":"kgj;lc","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 20:24:50","modified":"2003-09-24 20:24:50","fileurl":""},{"id":84234,"heading":"anti-troll alert","article":"What, exactly, are you afraid of?","author":"nonanarchist","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 20:25:14","modified":"2003-09-24 20:25:14","fileurl":""},{"id":84236,"heading":"anti-troll alert","article":">Fresca , nonanarchist, smashtheleft, Real check and KOBE are the same pitiful shit .I know,You know, everybody know.You postings are ZERO intellectual ZERO interested and you help on this board is - ZERO.Only you believe you poor opinions and arguments. You online harassment are Unbelievably pathetic and highly ineffective . You are unloved and unwelcome.Don't waste you time here. Fuck off !!!\r\n\r\nIgnore us! Pretend we're not here. Don't react to any of our comments. Don't acknowledge us. If you do that, eventually we'll leave. I've already told you this. You still haven't done it. Just how stupid are you?","author":"attention: anti-toll alert","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 20:28:58","modified":"2003-09-24 20:28:58","fileurl":""},{"id":84262,"heading":"OneEyedMan","article":"Fido : "His obvious hatred of America is made even more disgusting by the fact that he doesn't hesitate to take advantage of its opportunites."\r\n\r\n...oooh...he takes ADVANTAGE of OPPORTUNITIES...without HESITATION!\r\n\r\n...what a scoundrel!","author":"KPC","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 22:04:29","modified":"2003-09-24 22:04:29","fileurl":""},{"id":84267,"heading":"Indeed he is.","article":"Because he's taking advantage of the very system he abhors.\r\n\r\nYou know, like you complaining about the erosion of civil rights as you sit there safe and secure, freely expressing your opinion to a (theoretically) world-wide audience.","author":"nonanarchist","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 22:22:23","modified":"2003-09-24 22:22:23","fileurl":""},{"id":84270,"heading":"You are abso-fucking-lutely right, nonanarchist.","article":""It's not like there will EVER be an anarchist revolution, after all. "\r\n\r\nWell put. You know, I was watching my neighbor wash her car, and I saw her point the hose at the corner of her yard while doing so. Suddenly, about 2 million little ants started boiling out of the ground, some carrying eggs, others struggling in the water (which to them must be a flood of epic proportions). I thought to myself "That is anarchy".\r\n\r\nEvery living creature, plant and animal, organizes their kind in hierarchial structures (proto-government), based on dominance and submission. The fossil record shows that all humanoids, and prehumans also did this. New evidence is emerging that the dinosaurs did it too. There is NO analogy to functional anarchy in nature, except: fire, plasma, explosions, gas, and the spread of disease.\r\n\r\nI find the efforts of "anarchists" to be unproductive and pointless. Perhaps they think its cool?","author":"KOBE SBM","parent_id":84147,"mime_type":"text\/plain","created":"2003-09-24 22:25:54","modified":"2003-09-24 22:25:54","fileurl":""}]}