Save free speech in Madison
By
MADISON, Wis.--Until about a year ago, Madison police generally respected the First Amendment right to sell political literature on State Street, a pedestrian street downtown between the University of Wisconsin (UW) campus and the state Capitol.
But over the past year, the Madison Police Department has ticketed the International Socialist Organization (ISO) several times, with fines totaling several hundred dollars, for distributing literature.
Madison has a reputation as a progressive town. The UW campus and downtown were centers of political activity for the movement against the Vietnam war in the 1960s and '70s, with many different groups taking part in lively debate. In that tradition, the ISO has been distributing Socialist Worker on State Street for more than 20 years.
Over the last few years, city politicians and officials and the police have been slowly restricting activities on State Street. They began with cracking down on panhandling, then developed plans to "renovate" Lisa Link Peace Park--a place where the homeless gather and activists table--with a carousel.
Now, city Alderman Mike Verveer is talking about requiring that street musicians buy vendor's licenses. The objective is to turn State Street into a shopping mall, devoid of anything political or anything else deemed "undesirable" by city government.
It is in this atmosphere that the police have been repeatedly ticketing the ISO for supposedly violating city ordinances, such as placing a table on the sidewalk or vending without a license.. Other groups such as the Madison Area Peace Coalition, the local antiwar group and Iraq Veterans Against the War have also been harassed for simply leafleting. One activist was even ticketed for sidewalk chalking, which is legal.
We won't take this violation of our right to free speech without a fight. Everyone should be outraged at these efforts to stifle left-wing voices. We must take this outrage to the city to demand that they guarantee and defend our right to free speech.
Sign a petition to demand that Madison's public spaces remain available, free of charge, to artistic and political expression, including the sale and distribution of literature.
