Chicago, IL – Over 100 people rallied and marched here March 10 at Daley Plaza. They came to defend civil liberties, demand an end to suppression of dissent and to call for a stop of government attacks on immigrant, Arab, Muslim, Black and Latino communities.

Protestors win victory; continue plans to march on NATO Summit May 19

Chicago, IL – The White House announced today, March 5, that the G8 summit, scheduled for Chicago on May 19-20, will be moved to Camp David, although the NATO summit will still take place in Chicago.

Chicago IL – 50 workers at Serious Materials, the window factory formerly known as Republic Windows and Doors, reported to work the morning of Feb. 23 only to be told that today would be their last day of work. Workers talked throughout the day and at 2:30 p.m. they came off the line and told the boss that they were not leaving the factory. They would not let the factory be stripped of its machines and sold piece by piece while they were out of a job.

Chicago, IL – Yellow buses from across the city arrived with students, parents, staff and community members for a rally at Lake View High School, Feb 20. Their message to Mayor Rahm Emanuel: “Support our schools, don't close them.”

In February, the National Lawyers Guild reached a $6.2 million settlement in the case of Vodak v City of Chicago, which arose from the arrest of 800 protesters on the night the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq began. The case is named after Kevin Vodak, an attorney who attended the protest as a legal observer for the National Lawyers Guild. Vodak was arrested along with the protesters. Under Mayor Emanuel, the city has frustrated attempts by organizers to get permits for protests against NATO/G8. Emanuel has attempted to force drastic changes to ordinances governing protests, trying to restrict the right to protest. Fight Back! posed questions to Jim Fennerty, one of the lawyers in this nine-year legal fight for the right to protest. Fight Back!: What is the Vodak case about?

*Fight Back! interviews Joe Iosbaker, the Chicago spokesperson for the United Antiwar Coalition, on the protest that will coincide with the NATO/G8 Summit that is scheduled for May 19.*

Chicago, IL – “We flooded the Chicago U.S. Attorney’s office with phone calls demanding that they stop investigating anti-war and international solidarity activists,” says Tom Burke of the Committee to Stop FBI Repression, describing a Feb. 16 national call-in day.

_Holy Land Foundation prosecutor now working on case _

Chicago, IL – The Northern Illinois Assistant U.S. Attorney Barry Jonas stated that the “investigation is continuing” into the case of the anti-war and international solidarity activists who have been hit with FBI raids and grand jury repression. Barry Jonas played a leading role in prosecuting the leaders of the Holy Land Foundation while he was trial attorney for the Department of Justice Counter-terrorism Section.

Chicago, IL – Alderman Rick Munoz will introduce legislation at the next City Council meeting, Feb. 15, prohibiting the Chicago Police Department from attempting to block access to social networking sites and cell phone networks during the upcoming NATO/G8 summits. The measure will also restrict the police from cooperating with any agency involved in attempts to limit access to social networking sites, such as Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and YouTube. “These summits are a chance for us to show the best of Chicago off to the rest of the world,” Rick Munoz said. “That should include our commitment to civil rights and our democratic right to protest.”

Chicago, IL – As part of the pressure campaign to stop Mayor Emanuel from restricting the freedom to assemble, the Interfaith Committee of the Coalition Against NATO/G8 War & Poverty Agenda (CANG8) circulated the following statement to faith leaders in the Chicago area. The letter with the signatures of 35 prominent ministers and faith leaders was presented to Mayor Emanuel's office Wednesday morning, Jan. 18, just before the opening of the City Council meeting.