How to Have a Rally for Bradley Manning
Next Bradley Manning Action Days
Date: March 19-20
Location: Everywhere
Facebook event
Individuals and activists will take to the streets to show support for accused WikiLeaks whistleblower on March 19-20.
On March 19-20, groups and individuals will call on the United States government to drop the charges against Army Private First Class Bradley Manning. Twenty-three year old Manning, held in solitary confinement since May 2010, has been charged with releasing classified documents including a video that shows American troops shooting and killing Reuters journalists in 2007. (Watch the video at www.collateralmurder.com) Manning’s imprisonment has resulted in an international outcry, with groups and activists throughout the US and abroad demanding his release and calling for transparency in America’s war policies. Famed Pentagon Papers whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg has called Mr. Manning, “A new hero of mine.”
Activists should work within their communities to organize events locally during the International Days of Action. If you aren’t involved with a local group, contact your local affiliate of Veterans for Peace, Iraq Veterans Against the War or Code Pink or look for other activist groups in your area. You may also try reaching out to the tradtional peace churches, Friends, Brethern, Mennonites, Unitarian, Pax Christi and United Churches and other churches’ ‘social concerns’ committee.
Many activist groups are planning vigils, marches and rallies in support of Bradley Manning – but there are other ways to get involved. Some ideas:
- Consider throwing a Whistleblower Party – with whistles as party favors and a donation bucket for Bradley Manning’s defense fund
- Work with a restaurant or club in your area to organize a fundraising event
- Host a lecture with a local college and sympathetic professors or anti-war activists to talk about the importance of transparency in government
- Organize a public screening of Collateral Murder
- It’s okay if you can’t pull together a big protest — just so long as you are there were a sign proclaiming your support of Brad and taking a few pics, you’ve helped push the movement forward.
Anything that spreads the word about Bradley Manning’s wrongful imprisonment will help. If you act during the International Days of Action, your actions will be part of a global support effort.
Coordinate Your Event with the Bradley Manning Support Network!
If you are organizing an event locally, please email press [at] bradleymanning [dot] org– we can help!
- Tell us the date, time and location of your event and we’ll help promote it via website, social networks and affiliates
- We’ll send you Bradley buttons! If we have them available, we’ll do our best to send you some promotional materials. http://www.couragetoresist.org/x/content/view/851/
- We’ll post pictures of your event on our website – so remember to take photos and send them to press [at] bradleymanning [dot] org
If you’re organizing an event, let people know. Many groups have shown support for Bradley Manning – you just have to get the word out!
- Print up flyers and leave them in local coffee shops (some materials can be found on the bradleymanning.org wiki)
- Ask local activist groups to put your event on their calendars
- Contact peace organizations in your area and ask them to notify their mailing lists about the event
- Search Meetup.com for groups locally that might be interested in your event and ask them to add your event to their calendars
- Put up posters at local colleges and libraries
- Add it to community calendars in local newspapers
- Post it on Craigslist.org under the Community tab. Cross list it under Politics, Events, Activities and General
- Email the event details to press [at] bradleymanning [dot] org and we’ll get the word out, too!
If you are hosting an event in a public space, be sure that you do not block traffic or prevent people from using the sidewalk. If you are having a large event, examine whether you need to get permits.
The National Lawyers Guild can offer legal observers for events. Contact your local or regional National Lawyers Guild chapter or email press [at] bradleymanning [dot] org if you are unable to reach a nearby chapter.
The National Lawyers Guild has a good run down on your rights to petition your government for redress. [Protest] This one is for California, but it has much general applicability.
http://www.nlg-la.org/index_files/free_speech_rights.pdf
The ACLU also has valuable information about these issues, and is far more common than the NLG. Here’s one of their “Right to protest” brochure:
http://www.aclufl.org/pdfs/right_to_protest_brochure.pdf
Once you’ve had a fun event in support of Bradley Manning, send your pics to press [at] bradleymanning [dot] org. Feel free to write an article describing how the event went, send pics or send video. We’ll get everything up on our site so the world can see the many supporters taking action on behalf of Bradley Manning.
Once again, you folks are being manipulated and steered to the sideshow while Coombs and the Army JAG bubbas are concocting some backroom deals. I know that it may be hard for you all to understand however, Quantico is merely housing Manning! The Army is the one who is placing the “Capital” as in “Death Penalty” eligible charges on Manning – Is any of this making sense to you folks? I’m sure that poor Bradley will find comfort in the fact that you were more concerned about his course blanket than the Capital Charges as he is marched toward the hangman’s noose!
The article looks excellent and should not be date specific, because it can be used again.
Other groups to be considered are the tradtional peace churches, Friends, Brethern, Mennonites, etc., Also, Unitarian, Pax Christi and United Churches and other churches ‘social concerns’ committees.
The National Lawyers Guild has a good run down on your rights to petition your government for redress.[Protest] This one is for California, but it has much general applicability.
http://www.nlg-la.org/index_files/free_speech_rights.pdf
While the Guild is well represented in California and major metropolitan areas, pickings are real slim other places.
The ACLU, while is not as friendly to Bradley is very friendly to the Bill of Rights and are far more common than the NLG. They provide SOAW with legal help.
Here’s a brochure from them:
http://www.aclufl.org/pdfs/right_to_protest_brochure.pdf
@Tom Baxter — Thanks, we’ll reformat the page after the events next week and remove the “date specific” stuff. Thanks for the other great tips — I’ll work them in.
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Suggestion: the phrase “Manning Day” works. It could even enter the public vocabulary permanently, as a day to honor a very American hero, and remember his work and principles.
It’s too late to use it for the demos tomorrow. But there could be another Manning Day planned for months ahead. It could be the anniversary of some relevant event.
The phrase has been used for at least one other day, but you can check that on Google.