Colourful Colorado no longer This is starting to take place.. now.. Over 500 people have been issued tickets for camping.. They are expecting 20k.. af > > > > I need your help to protect the "family," the collective efforts of > > tens of thousands of citizens known as the "Rainbow Family." This > > week, near Steamboat Springs, Colorado, the U.S. Forest Service has > > taken illegal action to stop this annual assembly for expression and > > prayer, in gross violation of the participants' essential > > Constitutional rights. > > > > The 'Rainbow' Gatherings have borne a legacy of spiritual & cultural > > pilgrimage to the National Forests since 1972, the purest exercise of > > open consensual assembly in our time. The annual 'Gathering of the > > Tribes' draws thousands over the first week of July, focusing on the > > 4th as a holy day of prayer for peace and freedom. In recent years > > small regional events in this mode have emerged, and such gatherings > > have taken place in many nations around the world. > > > > THE GATHERING EXPERIENCE -- > > > > Some say the "Rainbow" Gathering is the continuation of the idealism > > of Woodstock. I think of it more as my annual spiritual retreat and > > family reunion. Since 1980, I have gathered with my family to > > compare ideas and pray for peace. I arrive loaded with the burdens > > of my work, depressed about the world situation. Each year I depart > > with my faith in humankind renewed and with the energy to fight the > > beast another year. > > > > The rainbow family is not organized in any way; it is an exercise in > > self-determination and cooperation in the public interest, without > > need of government controls. We understand that no matter what comes > > down, it is the respect and care for each other that win in the end. > > We have no leaders or leadership, we have no offices or officers, we > > have no treasurer or treasury. We sit in counsel, often for days at > > a time in order to make mutual decisions, but there is no power to > > enforce these decisions on any individual. In the end, just like in > > society, it works because enough responsible people make sure that > > what needs to be done gets done. > > > > We have been doing rainbow gatherings for over 30 years, each time in > > a different national forest across the country. We come in and set > > up a village in the woods. Cooperative kitchens pour out a wide > > variety of foods. Seminars on just about any topic are run by the hour. > > The Rainbow is known as a healing gathering; people with various > > ailments come for help. Here in one place they can receive healing, > > from herbalists, acupuncturists, chiropractors and masseuses working > > with osteopaths and physicians. These healers work as a team and > > share their knowledge in a holistic approach that teaches all > > involved a lot about the roots of medicine. > > Religious groups, ranging from Christians to Hare Krishnas set up > > camps. It's truly a free society. We go pretty far back in the > > woods to get away from the ills of civilization like alcohol and hard > > drugs. We have our gathering and then restore any damage we cause to > > the woods. And we have a perfect record of restoration of the forest. > > > > It's great to walk through a gathering and see so many people but not > > a scrap of paper on the ground, not a cigarette butt in sight. Each > > year we train thousands of newcomers how to get along in the woods > > without destroying the place. Knowledgeable Forest Servide > > 'Resource' personnel love us; it's the Federal bureaucrats and police > > from Washington who are on our case. > > > > REPRESSIVE FEDERAL POLICIES -- > > > > The Bush Administration has spent millions of dollars trying to stop > > the Rainbow Gatherings. They are enforcing a 'Noncommercial Group > > Use' permit regulation that is impossible for unaffiliated > > individuals to comply with. 36 CFR 251.54 They require that that > > someone sign as an agent for a fictional group entity named as permit > > Holder -- which then must assume full liability from the Government > > and bind participants vicariously to its terms. > > > > By the creed of the gatherings, no one can appoint themselves to such > > a position. More importantly, such an ad hoc gathering has no legal > > capacity to designate agents or act as a group party in any way. As > > a result, individuals are denied personal standing in First Amendment > > exercise and subjected to harsh criminal prosecution for being > > anywhere near the area. > > > > The Forest Service requires that a permit be applied for in advance > > of the gathering. And they use any excuse possible to deny a permit > > application when we manage to submit one. This year their denial was > > based on the fact that a logging company had a permit to log in a > > nearby parcel of the national forest, even though there is no logging > > activity present whatsoever. The site is far remote from any > > inhabitants -- but still the Forest Service is all over our case. > > > > Millions of taxpayer dollars are being spent to block this harmless > > gathering from taking place. The scariest aspect of all this is how > > Homeland Security is using these gatherings to perfect their > > techniques of martial law. Regulations written for the Federal > > Emergency Management Authority to deal with natural disasters are now > > being used to crush dissent in this country. > > > > Each year the Rainbow Gathering is declared a "National Incident" and > > federal military law ensues. A Special Agent is appointed "Incident > > Commander", with a Delegation of Authority, a large law enforcement > > "Team", and huge budget to control the gathering. Qualified Forest > > Service administrators lose their power, while the county sheriff and > > other officials are brought into targeted law enforcement actions by > > inclusion in the Incident Team and other inter-agency agreements. > > Each year Homeland Security gains more power over the individuals > > involved. > > > > RIGHTS CRISIS IN COLORADO -- > > > > At this writing Forest Service law enforcement has issued over 500 > > tickets to the early arrivals at the gathering in Colorado. They > > have blocked the road and have prevented food and water from reaching > > those who managed to get into the gathering before the police > > roadblock was set up. > > > > The 500 people with tickets are being herded into trials like none > > anyone has seen before in America. These pseudo trials are > > prototypes for what Homeland Security will use in the cases of > > insurrection or even a plague. Defendants lose the right to a public > > hearing (this year these hearings are being held behind closed doors > > in a firehouse garage near the site. > > > > Attorneys and legal observers have been denied the right to even view > > these trials. The defendants are not explained their rights nor > > afforded the right to an attorney, the right to summon witnesses, the > > right to a jury trial, etc. Defendants ordered to appear each day at > > 9:00 a.m. and sit in the hot sun without water or sanitary facilities > > until their trials. Some have now been waiting for several days. > > These abbreviated trials only take a few minutes. Last year I tried > > to help a string of defendants defend themselves in these "trials" > > but felt helpless to do much as the system was clearly stacked > > against them. > > > > This year is especially frustrating to me as I have to watch this > > come down from 6000 miles away. Right now I am in Hungary at a > > medical conference for my employment. I am flying home on Thursday > > and plan on being in court Saturday, July 1st, to defend some of my > > best friends who got a ticket for "illegally gathering" as they drove > > down a public highway. > > > > WHAT TO DO -- > > > > The confrontation this year is getting more intense by the minute, > > which is why I am asking for your help. The only way to stop a > > massive conflagration in Colorado in the next few days is to get > > thousands of people to contact their political representatives as > > well as the responsible administrators at the Forest Service to > > demand that this repression stop immediately. > > > > Please, even if you can never conceive of yourself at a Rainbow > > Gathering, you must understand that if these citizens lose their > > constitutional right to gather, we all lose such rights. This year > > the Rainbow Gathering is being used to set precedents that will be > > turned against drug policy, civil liberty, anti-war or other > > activists in the near future. > > > > Following are some instructions on who to write and/or call > > We hope to start flooding the Department of Agriculture and the > > Forest Service with complaints starting Monday morning and not > > stopping until harassment stops. It is especially important that we > > get a few Congressional representative and Senators concerned enough > > to write the Forest Service for an explanation of why so much money > > is being spent to keep people from camping in the National Forest set > > aside for exactly that purpose. > > > > Please keep the pressure on these bureaucrats until we are able to > > spread the word that the government has backed off and that the > > gathering can proceed unhindered. > > > > If you do not know the contact information for your Congressman or > > Senator, you can find this here. You can call your representative at > > 212-224-3121. Besides your representatives in Washington, please > > call and write the following people to voice your protest to this > > harsh treatment of people who just want to go on a camping trip in > > the woods. Keep the calls coming until word is passed around that > > the government has called off their dogs. Please forward this letter > > to your friends and feel free to re-post it on any listserv or > > website you wish. Email me if you have any questions. > > > > Don E Wirtshafter > > Attorney at Law > > Box 18 Guysville, OH 45735 > > 740 662 5297 > > don@xxxxxxxxxxx > > > > USDA, Natural Resources & Environment > > Mark Rey, USDA Undersecretary > > 1400 Independence Ave. SW, # 217-E > > Washington, DC 20250 > > 202-720-7173 Fax: 202-720-0632 > > mark.rey@xxxxxxxx > > > > Kathleen Gause, Director 202-205-8534 > > USDA Forest Service > > Civil Rights Staff > > Stop Code 1142 > > 1400 Independence Ave., S.W. > > Washington., DC 20250-1142 > > Tel (202) 205-1585 > > > > Office of the Chief > > Dale Bosworth, Chief > > USDA Forest Service > > Yates Federal Building (4NW Yates) > > 201 14th Street, SW - Washington, DC�20250 > > 202-205-1661; Fx: 202-205-1765 > > Executive Assistant...Karla Hawley, 202 -205-1195 > > > > Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests, > > Mary H. Peterson, Supervisor > > 2468 Jackson Street -- Laramie, WY 82070-6535 > > 307-745-2300 Fax: 307-745-2398 > > > > U.S. Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region (R-2) > > Rick Cables, Regional Forester > > Mail: P.O. Box 25127 -- Lakewood, CO 80225-0127 > > 303-275-5451 > > Richard Stem, Deputy Regional Forester, Resources: 303-275-5451 > > Steve Silverman, Office of General Counsel, Regional Attorney: > > 303-275-5536 > > Bill Fox, Law Enforcement & Investigations, Special Agent in > > Charge: 303-275-5253 > > Jerome Romero, Deputy Director of Civil Rights: 303-275-5340 > > > > Some resources to research these issues further: > > > > The best Rainbow website: http://www.welcomehome.org > > A good article written before the feds came down hard: http:// > > www.csindy.com/csindy/2006-06-22/cover.html > > More recent coverage: http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/ > > article/0,1299,DRMN_15_4795586,00.html and > > http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_3974355 > >