Guest guest Posted September 10, 2004 Report Share Posted September 10, 2004 > r > No Patriot Act Victims? > Tell It To Summer Starr! > The RNC's " Little Guantanamo " > mauinews.com > 9-9-4 > > A young girl visiting NYC during the time of the > Republican National > Convention, NOT a protester, gets thrown into a > makeshift GITMO! > > Erin Starr - Makawao, Maui, Hawai'i > > LETTER BY ERIN STARR > > My 21-year old daughter disappeared from NYC last > Tuesday afternoon when > walking with friends through a park where no protest > was being held -- > and was held prisoner -- without being charged -- by > the NYPD for three > days. > > The first day and night she spent in an unsafe and > inhumane facility at > Pier 57 ( " Little Guantanamo " ) provided by the > Republican Party. Yes, it > was managed by the Republican National Committe. It > was leased by the > RNC to hold political dissenters who disagreed with > the Bush > administration. The second two days, my daughter was > in a city jail in > Manhattan, where her treatment improved. She > practices Buddhist precepts > of compassion (she told the NYPD officers that she > knew they must be > tired and overworked also, and she did not resist > arrest). She is a > graduate student in Poli Sci at the University of > Hawaii and is a > MortarBoard honor society/service club member. The > notorious Pier 57 > (owned by the HudsonRiver Trust--a city/state > consortium) was dubbed > " Little Guantanamo " by reporters who also got caught > up in police sweeps > and who said it looked like the Guantanamo Bay > prison built by the USA > to hold the Al Qaeda terrorist political prisoners > in Cuba. Pier 57 was > leased by the RNC before their convention. They > arranged for the NYPD to > put up the chain link holding pens with razor wire > on top in the old > Pier 57 warehouse that had oil, gas and asbestos > dust on the floor from > a previous fire. My heart was in my throat when I > got a call from one of > my daughter's friends on Oahu who told me she had > been arrested and > taken to Little Guantanamo. I looked it up on the > internet and fear > crept into me. > > I called my daughter's cell phone over and over > ( " it's mom, where ARE > you, call me " ). She didn't answer. Only hours > before, she had been > calling us with joy, telling us of the peaceful > protests and beautiful > march. But now, nothing. I had nightmarish visions > of a fire sweeping > over the combustible floor with hundreds -- nearly a > thousand -- trapped > in the chainlink pens, razor wire on the top of the > pens making escape > impossible. My husband called the NYPD to ask who > had issued a > Certificate of Occupancy or Fire Safety Inspection > Certificate and who > wasmanaging Pier 57. He was given the number for the > Republican National > Committee. Yes. My husband and I looked at each > other in silent, cold > horror. In America? The Republicans have set up a > private detention camp > for their political prisoners that can hold 1000 > under inhumane and > unsafe conditions!? My husband slowly dialed that > number, got the RNC, > and the Republican rep who answered the phone said, > in answer to my > husbands' inquiries about safety: " those protesters > don't deserve a > Holiday Inn, and they're all criminals anyway! " > > ....Say what?! My daughter, who doesn't smoke or > drink or do drugs and > is a practicing Buddhist Vegan? A criminal? Warning > signs that reporters > saw posted around Pier 57 said not to enterwithout > protective clothing > and mask. My exhausted daughter, with hundreds of > others, tried to sleep > that first night ...on the chemical-covered oily, > cold cement floor of > these pens, without food or water, without being > read her rights, > without being offered a chance to post bail, without > seeing a judge > although the National Lawyers Guild offered to > represent them pro bono, > without being charged or told why she was arrested > and handcuffed and > taken there, without being allowed to make a call to > a lawyer or friend > or parent or anyone -- all cell phones were > confiscated as " terrorist > weapons. " Her purse was taken. She had nothing but > the clothes on her > back. Meanwhile...ordinary criminals arrested that > same day in NYC for > burglary, rape and heinous crimes were processed by > the courts in less > than 10 hours. My daughter, who had committed no > crime, was incarcerated > for three days incommunicado. People suffered > chemical burns, bug bites, > overcrowding and medical problems because their > medicine was > confiscated. A pregnant woman sat crying on the > floor in the oil. It > wasn't until my daughter was taken out of the > Republican-managed " Little > Guantanamo " and placed in a cell in a Manhattan city > jail that a guard > kindly brought her Vegan food and gave her a blanket > to lay her > grime-smeared body on at night in her crowded cell. > I never thought I'd > be grateful to get a call from a friend saying that > my daughter was in a > Manhattan city jail cell, but the knowledge that she > was out of that> > Little Guantanamo actually gave me relief. I called > Hawaii's Republican > Party Headquarters, and asked them to report it to > Hawaii's Governor > Linda Lingle, who was at the convention in NYC and > could intervene for > my daughter and other UH students incarcerated > illegally by her > party. > > The Republican rep woman who answered the phone told > me " Linda knows, > and you're blowing it all out of proportion. " Say > What!! That's MY > daughter, not YOURS, sitting in that > instant-conflagration-fire-trap at > Pier 57! Well, thanks a BUNCH, Linda Lingle. The UH > students mean that > LITTLE to you??? The Republicans wanted to " teach > those protesters a > lesson. " They wanted to terrorize my daughter. But > the lesson that the > hundreds and hundreds of prisoners were taught... > was not the one that > the Republican Party intended, I would wager. My > daughter had gone to > NYC to walk in the peaceful protest of 500,000 > people the day before the > Republican National Convention began. She was not > engaged in protest at > the time of her arrest. She had been walking with > friends near a park. > There was no protest in action when they were > arrested along with > tourists and city employees going to work. Anyone > caught in the NYPD > orange fence netting was told to sit on the ground, > handcuffed, and > pushed into large NYC busses. Our sweet daughter, > born and brought up in > a small rainforest in Hawaii, was placed in > detention at Pier 57, the > notorious " Little Guantanomo. " I recall that when > the Democrats held > their convention to nominate Senator John Kerry as > their candidate for > President, there were only 6 people arrested, if I > remember correctly. > At the Republican National Convention to elect Bush > as their candidate, > there were thousands arrested. I suspect that > Republicans might say this > was a good thing. Being tough. This group-roundup > tactic is called by > the Republican party " preventative detention " (like > the " pre-emptive > war " in Iraq). It is used to terrorize those who > might protest Bush's > agenda when he is in town. America, wake up. Hitler > told the German > people that they would have to " give up a few of > your rights > ...temporarily...so that we can fight the enemy. " > That's what Ashcroft > said, about the misnamed PATRIOT ACT. Wake up, > America. The American > flag that proudly waves by MY front gate and is on > the back window of MY > car...doesn't seem to be the same American flag that > the Republican > Party is waving. > > -- Erin Starr, Makawao, Maui, Hawaii > > > Maui student caught up in mass arrests at convention > > By MELISSA TANJI > Staff Writer > > http://www.mauinews.com/story.aspx?id=1082 > > > > > HONOLULU - A 21-year-old Olinda woman says she was > unjustly arrested and > held in inhumane conditions last week in New York > City while she and > other Hawaii students were involved in protests at > the Republican > National Convention. > > Summer Starr, a graduate student in political > science at the University > of Hawaii at Manoa, was among 1,821 people arrested > during the > convention last week. > > According to reports, New York police allegedly > corralled people who > were walking down the street so they could not move, > then arrested all > of them, often without first ordering them to > disperse and giving then a > chance to do so. > > The New York Civil Liberties Union is compiling > stories from protesters > who say they were arrested for no reason, detained > for unnecessarily > long periods or held in unsafe conditions. The group > is also considering > suing the city over police conduct. > > " I went up to New York initially to protest the > Republican National > Convention. Actually at the time of the arrest, I > wasn't physically > engaged in protest, " Starr said in a telephone call > from Manoa on > Monday. > > She said a group of people were cornered by officers > near Bryant Park in > Manhattan and were arrested on Aug. 31. They has > been at the New York > Public Library protesting when police made them > scatter toward Bryant > Park, Starr said. > > " They didn't inform us why we were being arrested, " > she said. " At least > I didn't hear it. " > > Starr said the arrest " was not justified in anyway. > We weren't violent. > We were absolutely peaceful. " > > If police were under the impression that the > protesters were doing > something wrong, Starr said they should have been > arrested at the site > of the protest, should have been told what they were > being arrested for > and not " shuffled down the street. " > > Following her arrest, Starr said all of the people > with her were placed > in plastic cuffs and were bused to Pier 57, a large, > dirty building with > concrete floors. The holding area was a former bus > terminal. > > " It was absolutely inhumane and not a proper place > to be holding > people, " Starr said. > > One of the individuals being held was a girl dressed > up in a black > dress. Starr said the girl had been stepping out of > her apartment to go > out when she was swept up with a group and arrested. > > > Starr said about five others from Hawaii were among > the people arrested. > > In news reports last week, Mayor Michael Bloomberg > speaking on his radio > show, seemed to imply that the arrests of innocent > people were > inevitable. > > " You can't arrest 1,800 people without having > somebody in the middle who > shouldn't have been arrested. That's what the courts > are there to find > out afterwards, " he said. > > Starr, who was born and raised in Olinda and > attended Makawao School, > Seabury Hall, the Maui Ocean Academy and Maui > Community College, said > she just thought about her home on Maui while in > jail. > > At home on Maui, Starr's mother, Erin, got a call > from one of Summer's > friends on Oahu that Summer was arrested and taken > to Pier 57. Erin > Starr said Pier 57 was nicknamed " Little > Guantanamo, " referring to the > holding facilities set up at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba, > where detainees > from Afghanistan are being held without charges. > > " I looked it up on the Internet and fear crept into > me, " said Erin > Starr. " I called my daughter's cell phone over and > over, saying 'It's > mom, where are you? Call me.' " > > Summer Starr's personal belongings were taken away > from her when she was > arrested. > > She said that she and others were kept at Pier 57 > for about a day. > > " Every single one of us were covered in black > grease, " she said about > being held at the former bus terminal. > > Starr said did not eat because she is a vegetarian > and the only food > provided was a meat sandwich. > > " I wasn't expecting to be treated like a queen, > (but) I wasn't expecting > to be treated like a political prisoner, " she said. > > On the day after the arrest, Starr said she was > taken to a Manhattan > jail where she and others were regularly moved from > cell to cell. She > said they were told they were going to be released > soon and that the > fingerprinting process was slow. > > She said she was released around 10 p.m. on > Thursday, about two days > after she was arrested. > > It was on that day that Judge John Cataldo of the > State Supreme Court in > Manhattan ordered the city to release more than 550 > protesters who had > been detained, in some cases, for as long as 60 > hours. > > Starr said as the New York detainees were being > released, there was a > person handing out tickets to those arrested. She > said she was cited for > disorderly conduct and has a summons to appear in a > New York City court > on Oct. 6. > > She had asked that she not be required to return to > New York for court > proceedings because she lives in Hawaii, noting that > some others > arrested did not have to return. But she was told > she would have to > appear. > > Erin Starr said the family has retained an attorney > in New York who is > trying to dismiss the summons. > > Summer Starr said she was denied a lawyer during > proceedings in New > York, but " didn't want to make a big fuss. " She said > she was frightened > by the treatment. > > " I didn't want them to put me back in, " she said. > > " We were scared out of our minds to get arrested > again, " she said. " It > was a horrible, horrible experience. " > > Back on Oahu on Monday, Starr was trying to get back > to normalcy, > working on a 10-page paper, and battling what seemed > to be a cold. > > > Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services > contributed to this report. > > Melissa Tanji can be reached at mtanji. > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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