Sherman Austin has been released into the custody of a Los Angeles halfway home, where he will begin his three years of federal probation. He will not be allowed to return to his home until the end of August.

The terms of his probation are a continuing attempt to keep Sherman away from anything that might allow him to exercise his right to organize with political groups that he identifies with, in addition to opening him up to further intense monitoring by the federal government. Every phone, computer or other digital device he comes in contact with will only be under the strict supervision of his probation officers and the government.

Read the full story at :
www.indybay.org

For more information on how you can support Sherman Austin and his family's attempts to pay off their legal fees, check out:
http://freesherman.org/

TONIGHT! KILL RADIO AIRS AN INTERVIEW WITH SHERMAN recorded upon his release!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tune in live at: http://killradio.org/
9pm, Tonight, 7.14.04

can we send him letters to the halfway house?

this picture is copyright Heidi Werntz. all rights reserved.

I published this image in 2002 on indymedia after I heard about the raid on Sherman's home. To the best of my knowledge, none of Sherman's property has been returned.

Cartoon c 2002, 2004 by charles amsellem. all rights reserved. left leaning and anti authoritarian activists may reproduce for non profit use only.

On January 24, 2003, the one year anniversary of the raid on Sherman's home, I attended a rally at the Federal Building in Westwood along with Sherman and several others in protest of the persecution of this brave young activist.

This cartoon is c 2003,2004 by charles amsellem. all rights reserved. left leaning and anti authoritarian activists may reproduce for non profit use only

When I heard that Sherman was going to Jail I created this cartoon in frustration. This injustice has succeeded in shutting down Raise the Fist but not the struggle that it represented and it has only served to raise Sherman's stature as an activist and freedom fighter!

This cartoon c 2003, 2004 by charles amsellem. all rights reserved. left leaning and anti authoritarian activists may reproduce for non-profit use only.

This cartoon is copyright 2003, 2004 by charles amsellem. all rights reserved. left leaning and anti authoritarian activists may reproduce for non-profit use only

On the day Sherman turned himself in to the custody of the feds, I sat helpless along with many others as someone we all cared about was being taken to a horrible place because we live in a country that refuses to live by it's creed of a society organized of, by, and for We, The People.

It was obvious that Sherman was becoming a force to be reckoned with as young people who never even met him started Raise The Fist chapters, and activists all over the world looked to his website as a hub for information and communication on his open publishing newswire.

The climate of fear, created by the spectacular atrocities on 9-11 has given the Bush administration, and agencies like the fbi and the police a suspiciously convenient excuse to terrorize activists like Sherman Austin, one of the first casualties of the USA PATRIOT ACT.

When I heard that neo-nazis were threatening Sherman's life in jail, I hoped this cartoon would help in keeping him from being forgotten. I wish I could have done more. Austin and I are not close, as we are different people, but I admire this young man and his website was an avenue of inspiration and expression for me and a source of rebellion as a victim of extreme harrassment and torture at the hands of the fbi, the rcmp, and "law enforcement" including 'agents' of the law enforcement intelligence unit. They and the Bush Administration are the real terrorists.

This is a picture of Sherman (shown at right) at the Tuscon airport on the day of his release!