[imc-milwaukee] Milwaukee, WI Protest Against US Supreme Court Chief Justice Rehnquist

[KMurphySmith@aol.com]

--part1_80.fc89b06.28cd17a6_boundary
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable



Please Circulate Widely To The Far Corners of the WWW=20
Feel free also to forward this e-mail in its entirety or in part=20
to chat rooms and listservs.=20

Angela Davis Cop Watch & Coalition Partners=20
C/OKaren Murphy-Smith=20
7165 North 42nd Street=20
Milwaukee, WI =A053209=20
(414) 228-9962=20
kmurphysmith%20at%20aol.com=20

September 9, 2001=20

URGENT ACTION ALERT!=20
=A0http://www.geocities.com/justice_watch=20
http://www.againstthewalls.org=20

WE'RE CALLING ON SHOREWOOD HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS AND ALUMS, CIVIC ACTIVIST,=20
PROGRESSIVES, ANARCHIST, CITIZENS FROM THE MILWAUKEE AREA, THROUGHOUT THE=20
STATE OF WISCONSIN, THE MIDWEST, AND ANYWHERE ON THE PLANET TO JOIN IN=20
PROTEST:=20

On this Friday, September 14, 2001, of United States Supreme Court Chief=20
Justice William Rehnquist will come home to Milwaukee to speak and receive a=
n=20
award for "excellence" at Shorewood High School and later at the Pfister=20
Hotel, sponsored by the alumni of Shorewood High School.=20

An ad hoc coalition of organizations including Shorewood High School=20
students, the Milwaukee Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild, National=20
Organization for Women-Milwaukee, and the Angela Davis Cop Watch, will be=20
present to peacefully protest against Chief Justice Rehnquist:=20
- outside the High School, which is located at Capital Drive and Oakland,=20
at 3 p.m.; and - outside the Pfister hotel starting at 5:30 p.m., both on=20
Sept. 14th.=20

This concerns the decision by Shorewood School District to give its first=20
"Tradition Of Excellence" award to Chief Justice William Rehnquist, and=20
growing opposition, based on his record in sabotaging civil rights & voting=20
rights, culminating in the order to stop counting votes after the November=20
2000 elections & the selection of Bush.=20

"The Angela Davis Cop Watch will video tape the demonstrations in order to=20
capture incidents of police brutality, intimidation, and harassment of=20
citizens if any, by members of the Shorewood Police Department, Milwaukee=20
County Sheriffs, US Marshals, or other Law Enforcement Agencies who will be=20
on hand."=20
Karen Murphy-Smith, Human Rights Activist (Angela Davis Cop Watch)=20

For further information contact:=20
For more information contact Art Heitzer at the National Lawyers Guild at 41=
4=20
273-1040; Karen Murphy-Smith of the Angela Davis Cop Watch at=20
KMurphySmith%20at%20aol.com; or Shorewood High School Student Activist, Jesse Guten=
=20
at Gutio14%20at%20aol.com.=20



REHNQUIST'S RECORD:=20
Rehnquist, as a clerk to Justice Robert Jackson, wrote the memorandum "A=20
Random Thought on the Segregation Cases," wherein he advised Justice Jackson=
=20
to reaffirm Plessy v. Ferguson and its endorsement of state supported=20
segregation and its acceptance of the Jim Crow "separate but equal"=20
principle.=20

Rehnquist testified under oath that the memorandum did not reflect with his=20
views, but rather the views of Justice Jackson.=A0 Rehnquist went so far as=20=
to=20
attribute his statements to Justice Jackson.=A0 Justice Jackson was deceased=
=20
at the time and therefore unable to defend himself against these attacks.=20
Elsie Douglas, Justice Jackson's former secretary, defended her boss and=20
sharply criticized Rehnquist for smearing the name and reputation of Justice=
=20
Jackson.=A0 Several scholars have suggested that Rehnquist may have committe=
d=20
perjury.=20

Rehnquist, as law clerk for Justice Jackson, wrote memoranda endorsing=20
Texas' white primaries and Texas' practice of restricting the rights of=20
blacks to vote in private primaries. Rehnquist wrote "I take a dim view of=20
this pathological search for discrimination . . . and as a result I now have=
=20
a mental block against the case."=A0 In another memo he wrote: "The=20
Constitution does not prevent the majority from banding together, nor does=20
it attaint success in the effort.=A0 It is about time the Court faced the fa=
ct=20
that the white people of the south don't like the colored people; the=20
constitution restrains them from effecting thru (sic) state action but it=20
most assuredly did not appoint the Court as a sociological watchdog to rear=20
up every time private discrimination raises its admittedly ugly head."=20

As President Nixon's Assistant Attorney General, Rehnquist wrote a proposed=20
constitutional amendment designed to limit the enforcement of Brown v. Board=
=20
of Education.=A0 According to Rehnquist, the amendment was designed to permi=
t=20
northern schools to preserve de facto segregation through "neighborhood=20
schools" initiatives.=A0 He believed the amendment would allow gerrymanderin=
g=20
of schools districts even if the neighborhood plan was "adopted by the local=
=20
school board at least partly because they would make some schools largely=20
white, and others largely black."=20

Rehnquist fought passage of a Phoenix, Arizona ordinance permitting blacks=20
to enter stores and restaurants.=A0 He=A0 appeared before the Phoenix City=20
Council voicing opposition to the city's proposed public accommodations=20
ordinance.=A0 Additionally, he wrote a letter criticizing the council's=20
decision to the Arizona Republic after the ordinance was passed.=20

Rehnquist was actively involved in operation "Eagle Eye" which harassed=20
minority voters in Arizona.=A0 James Brosnahan, a former assistant U.S.=20
attorney in Phoenix from 1961 to 1963, said in a statement to Congress that=20
on election day in 1962 he and several assistant U.S. attorneys were=20
assigned the task of reviewing complaints alleging illegal interference with=
=20
the voting process.=A0=A0 Brosnahan visited a precinct in South Phoenix.=A0=20=
When=20
he arrived he saw Rehnquist.=A0 Brosnahan said the complaints involved=20
Rehnquist.=A0 Brosnahan did not witness Rehnquist engage in harassing conduc=
t.=20

Several witnesses stated they personally observed Rehnquist harassing=20
minority voters in Arizona.=A0 Indeed, former Arizona State Senator Manuel=20
Pena reported that poll watchers had to physically push Rehnquist out of a=20
polling place to stop him from interfering with the voting rights of the=20
minority citizens.=A0 Rehnquist denied under oath that he was personally=20
involved in harassing voters.=20

Rehnquist owned one or more properties with restrictive covenants barring=20
the sale of his property to nonwhites and Jews.=A0 Rehnquist, a sophisticate=
d=20
lawyer, professed ignorance of the restrictive covenant.=20

Justice Rehnquist voted to grant Bob Jones University tax exempt status.=20
In 1970, the IRS ruled that Bob Jones University could not enjoy tax exempt=20
status because of its racially discriminatory policies.=A0 Bob Jones=20
University began admitting blacks on a limited basis.=A0 For instance, Black=
s=20
could enroll at the school, but only if they were married to other blacks or=
=20
promised not to date or marry outside the black race.=A0=A0 Bob Jones Univer=
sity=20
applied for tax exempt status and was denied.=A0 Bob Jones University sued t=
o=20
restore its tax exemption and won.=A0 The case went before the U.S. Supreme=20
Court.=A0 The Court in an 8-1 decision held that the university's policy=20
violated deeply accepted views of elementary justice and therefore it could=20
not enjoy tax exempt status.=A0 The Court held that nonprofit private school=
s=20
that prescribe and enforce racially discriminatory admission standards on=20
the basis of religious doctrine do not qualify as tax-exempt organizations=20
under the Internal Revenue Code, nor are contributions to such schools=20
deductible as charitable contributions.=A0 Justice Rehnquist was the sole=20
dissenter!=20

Chief Justice Rehnquist in Bush v. Gore disregarded his long-standing=20
approach to Equal Protection analysis; ended the 2000 Election by stopping=20
the Florida hand count in the name of Equal Protection, which effectively=20
disenfranchised thousands of African-American voters; and as Justice Stevens=
=20
so eloquently stated damaged the "Nation's confidence in the judge as an=20
impartial guardian of the rule of law." More than 790 legal scholars stated=20
that this was a ruling, not of a court of law, but of political partisans.=20

For the above reasons, we, the undersigned members of an ad hoc coalition=20
protesting Chief Justice Rehnquist's receipt of the Tradition of Excellence=20
Award, respectfully request the Shorewood School District to reconsider its=20
decision to present the district's Tradition of Excellence Award to Chief=20
Justice Rehnquist, and urge it to present the award to an individual or=20
group more reflective of the values the Shorewood School District=20
represents.=A0 In the event the school district refuses to reconsider its=20
decision, we request that the students be given equal time and access to=20
civil rights lawyers from the Milwaukee Branch NAACP, the Milwaukee Chapter=20
of the National Lawyers Guild and/or the Individual Rights and=20
Responsibilities Section of the State Bar of Wisconsin who are critical of=20
Chief Justice Rehnquist's record.=20















THIS ARTICLE APPEARED IN THE LATEST EDITION OF A MILWAUKEE AREA NEWSPAPER=20

Shepherd-Express Newspaper=20
Volume 22, Issue 36=20

September 5, 2001=20

Justice Will Get Chiefly Reception=20
BY Geoff Davidian=20

Like many who are awaiting intelligence from Washington, DC, Shorewood polic=
e=20
announced this week they have canceled unscheduled leave for officers and ar=
e=20
"awaiting intelligence" from federal agents in order to plan security for a=20
Sept. 14 visit by U.S.=20

Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist. The announcement comes after=20
police learned of a planned protest in opposition to Rehnquist's record of=20
alleged "undermining of civil rights." The protesters plan to picket=20
Shorewood High School when Rehnquist returns to his alma mater, where he wil=
l=20
be recognized "by former students, graduates and staff" of the school for hi=
s=20
"outstanding individual achievement." The party moves from there to the=20
Pfister Hotel, where the justice may see some of the same pickets and=20
protesting faces that welcomed him to his old campus-including Shorewood Hig=
h=20
School students and members of the Milwaukee chapter of the National Lawyers=
=20
Guild, Milwaukee NOW (National Organization for Women) and the Angela Davis=20
Cop Watch.=20


It's not as though Shorewood hasn't had enough police problems lately, with=20
former chief Bob Surdyk ousted from office for reckless driving after a=20
tavern visit, and threats of a lawsuit by the Milwaukee County Corporation=20
Counsel's Office over the department's handling of public records requests.=20
Now, the specter looms of helmeted, truncheon wielding Shorewood cops,=20
possibly shoulder to shoulder with U.S. Marshals, Milwaukee County deputies=20
and suburban police, facing off against high school students, women and=20
lawyers planning to protest.=20


Rehnquist will receive the first ever "Tradition of Excellence Award," but=20
organizers of the protest say Rehnquist has a tradition of promoting a polic=
e=20
state. =A0A press release sent out last week by Milwaukee attorney Arthur=20
Heitzer says that in addition to "stopping the counting of presidential vote=
s=20
from Florida in the November 2000 presidential election and awarding the=20
presidency to George W. Bush," Rehnquist in 1964 "fought passage of a Phoeni=
x=20
ordinance permitting Blacks to enter stores. =A0"During the late '50s and ea=
rly=20
'60s, "Rehnquist personally participated in operation Eagle Eye," an Arizona=
=20
Republican attempt to challenge voting rights of minorities.=20

During his Senate confirmation hearings, =A0Rehnquist testified under oath t=
hat=20
"he had not personally challenged voters," but Heitzer notes "this has been=20
called into serious question by the testimony of four others involved,=20
including a former assistant U.S. attorney for that district who affirmed=20
that he witnessed Rehnquist in 1962 personally confronting voters and=20
attempting to challenge their right to vote." =A0"He's a very smart guy," sa=
ys=20
Heitzer, "but his positions are extreme. His role in the court has been to=20
undermine civil rights protections. He's advocated a police state under=20
Nixon."=20

So what does Rehnquist care about pickets? =A0"I don't have a major concern=20
about what he thinks," Heitzer says. "I mind the way he undermines civil=20
rights. =A0"Heitzer says "the problem in this country is we don't have enoug=
h=20
participation," and Rehnquist has stood for limiting participation-from=20
getting blacks off juries to putting George W. Bush in the White House even=20
though Al Gore received more votes. =A0Heitzer also organized a protest when=
=20
Rehnquist's colleague and fellow conservative Antonin Scalia spoke in=20
Milwaukee earlier this year.=20

Unseemly as protests are for the North Shore's most southerly province, it=20
comes with the territory when you send your youth off to Stanford and Harvar=
d=20
and have them gain international prominence, like Rehnquist. =A0
For example, The Irish Times reported in its Jan 15, 1999 editions that the=20
impeachment trial of President Clinton began with the Senate's oldest member=
=20
and president, Strom Thurmond, handing over the chair to the Rehnquist. "All=
=20
the talk was of law and justice and history. However, it would be hard to=20
find in any liberal democracy a pair of high officials whose eminent presenc=
e=20
at such an occasion was such a transparent charade," wrote The Times' Fintan=
=20
O'Toole.=20

O'Toole continues by acknowledging that Rehnquist was a "brilliant" young=20
clerk for Supreme Court Justice Robert Jackson. But when the court was=20
hearing arguments about the racial segregation of schools in Brown v. the=20
Board of Education (generally agreed to be one of the most significant cases=
=20
of the century), "Rehnquist wrote a memo for his boss" in which he urged=20
"upholding the idea of segregated transport facilities, schools, toilets,=20
etc.=20

=A0"Heitzer also cites the 1952 legal memorandum, titled, "A Random Thought=20=
on=20
the School Desegregation Cases. =A0"In it, the release says, Rehnquist claim=
ed=20
"that it would be unconstitutional for the courts to order school=20
desegregation." =A0"Racial segregation might still be the rule of law today=20=
if=20
this view had been accepted," comments Heitzer.=20

In Milwaukee, Heitzer says his group has asked Shorewood officials to give=20
the NAACP and other civil rights groups equal time to voice their opinions o=
n=20
whether they think Rehnquist should be held out as a role model.=20


-End-









--part1_80.fc89b06.28cd17a6_boundary
Content-Type: text/html; charset="ISO-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

<HTML><FONT FACE=3Darial,helvetica><FONT  SIZE=3D2>
<BR>
<BR><P ALIGN=3DCENTER><I>Please Circulate Widely To The Far Corners of the W=
WW=20
<BR>Feel free also to forward this e-mail in its entirety or in part=20
<BR>to chat rooms and listservs.<B>=20
<BR><P ALIGN=3DLEFT></I>
<BR>Angela Davis Cop Watch &amp; Coalition Partners=20
<BR>C/OKaren Murphy-Smith=20
<BR>7165 North 42nd Street=20
<BR>Milwaukee, WI =A053209=20
<BR>(414) 228-9962=20
<BR>kmurphysmith%20at%20aol.com=20
<BR>
<BR>September 9, 2001=20
<BR><P ALIGN=3DCENTER>
<BR>URGENT ACTION ALERT!=20
<BR>=A0http://www.geocities.com/justice_watch=20
<BR>http://www.againstthewalls.org=20
<BR><P ALIGN=3DLEFT>
<BR><P ALIGN=3DCENTER>WE'RE CALLING ON SHOREWOOD HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS AND AL=
UMS, CIVIC ACTIVIST,=20
<BR>PROGRESSIVES, ANARCHIST, CITIZENS FROM THE MILWAUKEE AREA, THROUGHOUT TH=
E=20
<BR>STATE OF WISCONSIN, THE MIDWEST, AND ANYWHERE ON THE PLANET TO JOIN IN=20
<BR>PROTEST:=20
<BR><P ALIGN=3DLEFT>
<BR>On this Friday, September 14, 2001, of United States Supreme Court Chief=
=20
<BR>Justice William Rehnquist will come home to Milwaukee to speak and recei=
ve an=20
<BR>award for "excellence" at Shorewood High School and later at the Pfister=
=20
<BR>Hotel, sponsored by the alumni of Shorewood High School.=20
<BR>
<BR>An ad hoc coalition of organizations including Shorewood High School=20
<BR>students, the Milwaukee Chapter of the National Lawyers Guild, National=20
<BR>Organization for Women-Milwaukee, and the Angela Davis Cop Watch, will b=
e=20
<BR>present to peacefully protest against Chief Justice Rehnquist:=20
<BR>- outside the High School, which is located at Capital Drive and Oakland=
,=20
<BR>at 3 p.m.; and - outside the Pfister hotel starting at 5:30 p.m., both o=
n=20
<BR>Sept. 14th.=20
<BR>
<BR>This concerns the decision by Shorewood School District to give its firs=
t=20
<BR>"Tradition Of Excellence" award to Chief Justice William Rehnquist, and=20
<BR>growing opposition, based on his record in sabotaging civil rights &amp;=
 voting=20
<BR>rights, culminating in the order to stop counting votes after the Novemb=
er=20
<BR>2000 elections &amp; the selection of Bush.=20
<BR>
<BR></B><I>"The Angela Davis Cop Watch will video tape the demonstrations in=
 order to=20
<BR>capture incidents of police brutality, intimidation, and harassment of=20
<BR>citizens if any, by members of the Shorewood Police Department, Milwauke=
e=20
<BR>County Sheriffs, US Marshals, or other Law Enforcement Agencies who will=
 be=20
<BR>on hand."<B></I>=20
<BR><P ALIGN=3DCENTER></FONT><FONT  COLOR=3D"#000000" SIZE=3D1 FAMILY=3D"SAN=
SSERIF" FACE=3D"Arial" LANG=3D"0">Karen Murphy-Smith, Human Rights Activist=20=
(Angela Davis Cop Watch)</FONT><FONT  COLOR=3D"#000000" SIZE=3D2 FAMILY=3D"S=
ANSSERIF" FACE=3D"Arial" LANG=3D"0">=20
<BR>
<BR><P ALIGN=3DLEFT>For further information contact:=20
<BR></B>For more information contact Art Heitzer at the National Lawyers Gui=
ld at 414=20
<BR>273-1040; Karen Murphy-Smith of the Angela Davis Cop Watch at=20
<BR>KMurphySmith%20at%20aol.com; or Shorewood High School Student Activist, Jesse G=
uten=20
<BR>at Gutio14%20at%20aol.com.=20
<BR>
<BR><B>
<BR>
<BR>REHNQUIST'S RECORD:=20
<BR>Rehnquist, as a clerk to Justice Robert Jackson, wrote the memorandum "A=
=20
<BR>Random Thought on the Segregation Cases," wherein he advised Justice Jac=
kson=20
<BR>to reaffirm Plessy v. Ferguson and its endorsement of state supported=20
<BR>segregation and its acceptance of the Jim Crow "separate but equal"=20
<BR>principle.=20
<BR>
<BR>Rehnquist testified under oath that the memorandum did not reflect with=20=
his=20
<BR>views, but rather the views of Justice Jackson.=A0 Rehnquist went so far=
 as to=20
<BR>attribute his statements to Justice Jackson.=A0 Justice Jackson was dece=
ased=20
<BR>at the time and therefore unable to defend himself against these attacks=
.=20
<BR>Elsie Douglas, Justice Jackson's former secretary, defended her boss and=
=20
<BR>sharply criticized Rehnquist for smearing the name and reputation of Jus=
tice=20
<BR>Jackson.=A0 Several scholars have suggested that Rehnquist may have comm=
itted=20
<BR>perjury.=20
<BR>
<BR>Rehnquist, as law clerk for Justice Jackson, wrote memoranda endorsing=20
<BR>Texas' white primaries and Texas' practice of restricting the rights of=20
<BR>blacks to vote in private primaries. Rehnquist wrote "I take a dim view=20=
of=20
<BR>this pathological search for discrimination . . . and as a result I now=20=
have=20
<BR>a mental block against the case."=A0 In another memo he wrote: "The=20
<BR>Constitution does not prevent the majority from banding together, nor do=
es=20
<BR>it attaint success in the effort.=A0 It is about time the Court faced th=
e fact=20
<BR>that the white people of the south don't like the colored people; the=20
<BR>constitution restrains them from effecting thru (sic) state action but i=
t=20
<BR>most assuredly did not appoint the Court as a sociological watchdog to r=
ear=20
<BR>up every time private discrimination raises its admittedly ugly head."=20
<BR>
<BR>As President Nixon's Assistant Attorney General, Rehnquist wrote a propo=
sed=20
<BR>constitutional amendment designed to limit the enforcement of Brown v. B=
oard=20
<BR>of Education.=A0 According to Rehnquist, the amendment was designed to p=
ermit=20
<BR>northern schools to preserve de facto segregation through "neighborhood=20
<BR>schools" initiatives.=A0 He believed the amendment would allow gerrymand=
ering=20
<BR>of schools districts even if the neighborhood plan was "adopted by the l=
ocal=20
<BR>school board at least partly because they would make some schools largel=
y=20
<BR>white, and others largely black."=20
<BR>
<BR>Rehnquist fought passage of a Phoenix, Arizona ordinance permitting blac=
ks=20
<BR>to enter stores and restaurants.=A0 He=A0 appeared before the Phoenix Ci=
ty=20
<BR>Council voicing opposition to the city's proposed public accommodations=20
<BR>ordinance.=A0 Additionally, he wrote a letter criticizing the council's=20
<BR>decision to the Arizona Republic after the ordinance was passed.=20
<BR>
<BR>Rehnquist was actively involved in operation "Eagle Eye" which harassed=20
<BR>minority voters in Arizona.=A0 James Brosnahan, a former assistant U.S.=20
<BR>attorney in Phoenix from 1961 to 1963, said in a statement to Congress t=
hat=20
<BR>on election day in 1962 he and several assistant U.S. attorneys were=20
<BR>assigned the task of reviewing complaints alleging illegal interference=20=
with=20
<BR>the voting process.=A0=A0 Brosnahan visited a precinct in South Phoenix.=
=A0 When=20
<BR>he arrived he saw Rehnquist.=A0 Brosnahan said the complaints involved=20
<BR>Rehnquist.=A0 Brosnahan did not witness Rehnquist engage in harassing co=
nduct.=20
<BR>
<BR>Several witnesses stated they personally observed Rehnquist harassing=20
<BR>minority voters in Arizona.=A0 Indeed, former Arizona State Senator Manu=
el=20
<BR>Pena reported that poll watchers had to physically push Rehnquist out of=
 a=20
<BR>polling place to stop him from interfering with the voting rights of the=
=20
<BR>minority citizens.=A0 Rehnquist denied under oath that he was personally=
=20
<BR>involved in harassing voters.=20
<BR>
<BR>Rehnquist owned one or more properties with restrictive covenants barrin=
g=20
<BR>the sale of his property to nonwhites and Jews.=A0 Rehnquist, a sophisti=
cated=20
<BR>lawyer, professed ignorance of the restrictive covenant.=20
<BR>
<BR>Justice Rehnquist voted to grant Bob Jones University tax exempt status.=
=20
<BR>In 1970, the IRS ruled that Bob Jones University could not enjoy tax exe=
mpt=20
<BR>status because of its racially discriminatory policies.=A0 Bob Jones=20
<BR>University began admitting blacks on a limited basis.=A0 For instance, B=
lacks=20
<BR>could enroll at the school, but only if they were married to other black=
s or=20
<BR>promised not to date or marry outside the black race.=A0=A0 Bob Jones Un=
iversity=20
<BR>applied for tax exempt status and was denied.=A0 Bob Jones University su=
ed to=20
<BR>restore its tax exemption and won.=A0 The case went before the U.S. Supr=
eme=20
<BR>Court.=A0 The Court in an 8-1 decision held that the university's policy=
=20
<BR>violated deeply accepted views of elementary justice and therefore it co=
uld=20
<BR>not enjoy tax exempt status.=A0 The Court held that nonprofit private sc=
hools=20
<BR>that prescribe and enforce racially discriminatory admission standards o=
n=20
<BR>the basis of religious doctrine do not qualify as tax-exempt organizatio=
ns=20
<BR>under the Internal Revenue Code, nor are contributions to such schools=20
<BR>deductible as charitable contributions.=A0 Justice Rehnquist was the sol=
e=20
<BR>dissenter!=20
<BR>
<BR>Chief Justice Rehnquist in Bush v. Gore disregarded his long-standing=20
<BR>approach to Equal Protection analysis; ended the 2000 Election by stoppi=
ng=20
<BR>the Florida hand count in the name of Equal Protection, which effectivel=
y=20
<BR>disenfranchised thousands of African-American voters; and as Justice Ste=
vens=20
<BR>so eloquently stated damaged the "Nation's confidence in the judge as an=
=20
<BR>impartial guardian of the rule of law." More than 790 legal scholars sta=
ted=20
<BR>that this was a ruling, not of a court of law, but of political partisan=
s.=20
<BR>
<BR>For the above reasons, we, the undersigned members of an ad hoc coalitio=
n=20
<BR>protesting Chief Justice Rehnquist's receipt of the Tradition of Excelle=
nce=20
<BR>Award, respectfully request the Shorewood School District to reconsider=20=
its=20
<BR>decision to present the district's Tradition of Excellence Award to Chie=
f=20
<BR>Justice Rehnquist, and urge it to present the award to an individual or=20
<BR>group more reflective of the values the Shorewood School District=20
<BR>represents.=A0 In the event the school district refuses to reconsider it=
s=20
<BR>decision, we request that the students be given equal time and access to=
=20
<BR>civil rights lawyers from the Milwaukee Branch NAACP, the Milwaukee Chap=
ter=20
<BR>of the National Lawyers Guild and/or the Individual Rights and=20
<BR>Responsibilities Section of the State Bar of Wisconsin who are critical=20=
of=20
<BR>Chief Justice Rehnquist's record.=20
<BR>
<BR>
<BR><P ALIGN=3DCENTER>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>THIS ARTICLE APPEARED IN THE LATEST EDITION OF A MILWAUKEE AREA NEWSPAPE=
R=20
<BR><P ALIGN=3DLEFT>
<BR>Shepherd-Express Newspaper=20
<BR>Volume 22, Issue 36=20
<BR>
<BR>September 5, 2001=20
<BR>
<BR>Justice Will Get Chiefly Reception=20
<BR></B>BY Geoff Davidian</FONT><FONT  COLOR=3D"#000000" SIZE=3D3 FAMILY=3D"=
SANSSERIF" FACE=3D"Arial" LANG=3D"0">=20
<BR>
<BR>Like many who are awaiting intelligence from Washington, DC, Shorewood p=
olice=20
<BR>announced this week they have canceled unscheduled leave for officers an=
d are=20
<BR>"awaiting intelligence" from federal agents in order to plan security fo=
r a=20
<BR>Sept. 14 visit by U.S.=20
<BR>
<BR>Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist. The announcement comes af=
ter=20
<BR>police learned of a planned protest in opposition to Rehnquist's record=20=
of=20
<BR>alleged "undermining of civil rights." The protesters plan to picket=20
<BR>Shorewood High School when Rehnquist returns to his alma mater, where he=
 will=20
<BR>be recognized "by former students, graduates and staff" of the school fo=
r his=20
<BR>"outstanding individual achievement." The party moves from there to the=20
<BR>Pfister Hotel, where the justice may see some of the same pickets and=20
<BR>protesting faces that welcomed him to his old campus-including Shorewood=
 High=20
<BR>School students and members of the Milwaukee chapter of the National Law=
yers=20
<BR>Guild, Milwaukee NOW (National Organization for Women) and the Angela Da=
vis=20
<BR>Cop Watch.=20
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>It's not as though Shorewood hasn't had enough police problems lately, w=
ith=20
<BR>former chief Bob Surdyk ousted from office for reckless driving after a=20
<BR>tavern visit, and threats of a lawsuit by the Milwaukee County Corporati=
on=20
<BR>Counsel's Office over the department's handling of public records reques=
ts.=20
<BR>Now, the specter looms of helmeted, truncheon wielding Shorewood cops,=20
<BR>possibly shoulder to shoulder with U.S. Marshals, Milwaukee County deput=
ies=20
<BR>and suburban police, facing off against high school students, women and=20
<BR>lawyers planning to protest.=20
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>Rehnquist will receive the first ever "Tradition of Excellence Award," b=
ut=20
<BR>organizers of the protest say Rehnquist has a tradition of promoting a p=
olice=20
<BR>state. =A0A press release sent out last week by Milwaukee attorney Arthu=
r=20
<BR>Heitzer says that in addition to "stopping the counting of presidential=20=
votes=20
<BR>from Florida in the November 2000 presidential election and awarding the=
=20
<BR>presidency to George W. Bush," Rehnquist in 1964 "fought passage of a Ph=
oenix=20
<BR>ordinance permitting Blacks to enter stores. =A0"During the late '50s an=
d early=20
<BR>'60s, "Rehnquist personally participated in operation Eagle Eye," an Ari=
zona=20
<BR>Republican attempt to challenge voting rights of minorities.=20
<BR>
<BR>During his Senate confirmation hearings, =A0Rehnquist testified under oa=
th that=20
<BR>"he had not personally challenged voters," but Heitzer notes "this has b=
een=20
<BR>called into serious question by the testimony of four others involved,=20
<BR>including a former assistant U.S. attorney for that district who affirme=
d=20
<BR>that he witnessed Rehnquist in 1962 personally confronting voters and=20
<BR>attempting to challenge their right to vote." =A0"He's a very smart guy,=
" says=20
<BR>Heitzer, "but his positions are extreme. His role in the court has been=20=
to=20
<BR>undermine civil rights protections. He's advocated a police state under=20
<BR>Nixon."=20
<BR>
<BR>So what does Rehnquist care about pickets? =A0"I don't have a major conc=
ern=20
<BR>about what he thinks," Heitzer says. "I mind the way he undermines civil=
=20
<BR>rights. =A0"Heitzer says "the problem in this country is we don't have e=
nough=20
<BR>participation," and Rehnquist has stood for limiting participation-from=20
<BR>getting blacks off juries to putting George W. Bush in the White House e=
ven=20
<BR>though Al Gore received more votes. =A0Heitzer also organized a protest=20=
when=20
<BR>Rehnquist's colleague and fellow conservative Antonin Scalia spoke in=20
<BR>Milwaukee earlier this year.=20
<BR>
<BR>Unseemly as protests are for the North Shore's most southerly province,=20=
it=20
<BR>comes with the territory when you send your youth off to Stanford and Ha=
rvard=20
<BR>and have them gain international prominence, like Rehnquist. =A0
<BR>For example, <I>The Irish Times</I> reported in its Jan 15, 1999 edition=
s that the=20
<BR>impeachment trial of President Clinton began with the Senate's oldest me=
mber=20
<BR>and president, Strom Thurmond, handing over the chair to the Rehnquist.=20=
"All=20
<BR>the talk was of law and justice and history. However, it would be hard t=
o=20
<BR>find in any liberal democracy a pair of high officials whose eminent pre=
sence=20
<BR>at such an occasion was such a transparent charade," wrote <I>The Times'=
</I> Fintan=20
<BR>O'Toole.=20
<BR>
<BR>O'Toole continues by acknowledging that Rehnquist was a "brilliant" youn=
g=20
<BR>clerk for Supreme Court Justice Robert Jackson. But when the court was=20
<BR>hearing arguments about the racial segregation of schools in Brown v. th=
e=20
<BR>Board of Education (generally agreed to be one of the most significant c=
ases=20
<BR>of the century), "Rehnquist wrote a memo for his boss" in which he urged=
=20
<BR>"upholding the idea of segregated transport facilities, schools, toilets=
,=20
<BR>etc.=20
<BR>
<BR>=A0"Heitzer also cites the 1952 legal memorandum, titled, "A Random Thou=
ght on=20
<BR>the School Desegregation Cases. =A0"In it, the release says, Rehnquist c=
laimed=20
<BR>"that it would be unconstitutional for the courts to order school=20
<BR>desegregation." =A0"Racial segregation might still be the rule of law to=
day if=20
<BR>this view had been accepted," comments Heitzer.=20
<BR>
<BR>In Milwaukee, Heitzer says his group has asked Shorewood officials to gi=
ve=20
<BR>the NAACP and other civil rights groups equal time to voice their opinio=
ns on=20
<BR>whether they think Rehnquist should be held out as a role model.=20
<BR>
<BR>
<BR><P ALIGN=3DCENTER>-End-
<BR>
<BR><P ALIGN=3DLEFT>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR>
<BR></P></P></P></P></P></P></P></P></P></P></P></P></FONT></HTML>

--part1_80.fc89b06.28cd17a6_boundary--