-------- Original Message --------
>Utah Senate Moves to Silence Dissent
>Feb 06, 2002 11:26 PST
>
>Today, Utah's Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously recommended Bill
>100 to the full Senate after denying opponents of the Bill an
>opportunity to testify.
>
>Already passed by the Utah House of Representatives, the bill defines
>the crime of "commercial terrorism," which can be a felony offense. The
>Bill reads, "a person is guilty of commercial terrorism if he enters or
>remains unlawfully on the premises or in a building of any business with
>the intent to interfere with the employees,customers, personnel, or
>operations of a business."
>
>The Bill seriously undermines First Amendment Rights - in its current
>form, historical leaders such as Sam Adams, Rosa Parks, Gandhi, and
>Martin Luther King, Jr. would be considered terrorists.
>
>This morning, members of the Kensington Welfare Rights Union and JEDI
>for Women attended the Utah Senate Committee's deliberations over Bill
>100. The Senator submitting the Bill spoke in its favor. Then, the Chair
>of the Advisory Committee asked "Who would like to speak against this
>bill?" When several of us raised our hands, he said that there were too
>many people wanting to speak against the Bill. Saying there wasn't time,
>he decreed that no one would be allowed to speak against the Bill and
>called for a vote. The committee voted unanimously to send the Bill to
>the full Senate.
>
>Denied any public comment, we held up our signs (which featured
>historical figures who would be labeled "terrorists" by this bill). The
>Chair informed us that we would be arrested unless we put our signs
>down.
>
>After we left the Senate chambers, the police threatened to arrest us
>because we were still carrying our signs. We left the building. The bill
>could become law within the next couple of days without any opportunity
>for a true public hearing.
>
>Watch our website, http://www.kwru.org for more information and
>continuing updates.