The NonProfit Times - August 1, 2008 - (Page 6)

DEMONSTRATION PERMITS Continued from page 1 The actual process of gaining a permit can be more difficult.“We want a permit to carry on demonstrations that best deliver the group’s message,” Cagan said.“We don’t want a demonstration that takes you away from the Xcel Energy Center.” She explained that the city of St. Paul offered a permit that included a march through a bottleneck around the spot where the parade route would be required to turn upon itself.The logistics would become chaotic, according to Cagan. The UFPJ linked up with the Coalition to March on the RNC and Stop the War, based in Minneapolis, a grassroots organization built through some nonprofits and community groups. The coalition includes trade unions, low- income groups, immigrant rights movements, student groups, environmental groups and multiissue organizations. The UFPJ’s request for a permit went through the Coalition.“We’re a national organization and we bring the vast scope of national organizing activities, like the convention in New York four years ago,” Cagan said. “The Coalition comes from people on the ground in St. Paul so it didn’t make sense for us to get the permit since they are there.” When the Coalition first applied for a permit after the Republican National Committee announced the convention date, the city didn’t respond because it was too early to apply, according to Jessica Sundin, a Coalition staff person. “We re-submitted it several times, then found a loophole in the statute that mentions a group having a repeating event can apply much sooner,” Sundin said.“All year, we’ve been having a march from the state capitol in St. Paul to The Xcel Center, which is the route of our original permit application.” The city granted the Coalition’s permit for every month except September. For that month, an alternative route and differ- said. “They want the march done on the quick without any chance for demonstrators to speak to the people,” he said. The Coalition expects 50,000 people to march during the parade.The proposed city plan has the marchers turn back on themselves within a confined area.The logistics would make for a harrowing situation and delay the duration of the parade, according to Samuelson. ent time became the granted “conditional alternative permit.” Chuck Samuelson, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Minnesota, filed a brief in U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota this past June seeking an adequate permit response. “We have a number of concerns because of the stalling by the government about the permit process,” Samuelson said. The city’s version places the time of the march between noon and 2 p.m., which is prior to the delegates’ arrival, he “We don’t know how many will come since this is on Labor Day,” he said.“All the colleges are in session so we could have 100,000 people.” Said Sundin,“We can’t ask people who have come from across the country to turn around and avoid reaching their goal.” One concern of the St. Paul Police Department is its force of only 600 officers. “They will have to get support from outside,” Samuelson said. “One big problem we saw in the Seattle World Trade Organization demonstration was that the police brought in out-of-town officers who failed to communicate, which led to overreaction and a mess.” The city of St. Paul doesn’t know why the ACLU thought the city was stalling. “Delays could depend on the nature of the event because groups have to supply the city with answers about the crowd size, the time, and the duration,” said Tom Walsh, public information coordinator for the St. Paul Police Department.“The time to respond varies because we have to see if the type of event is different from what we’ve seen before.” Walsh explained that the city has to make sure traffic will not interrupt the event.“For example, each year we host the Twin Cities’ Marathon,” he said. “We have to make sure we have the staff so that cars don’t bother the runners.” Walsh further stated that the size of an event would probably not be a limiting factor. “We are obligated to provide for First Amendment rights,” he said. “Size would only be a factor in providing resources that we might not have.” The St. Paul force could obtain assistance from other police agencies to augment forces to between 3,000 and 3,500 police officers. These would be public forces as stipulated by the State of Minnesota, according to Walsh. In the event of the march exceeding the crowd expectation or time frame, Walsh called a Plan B discussion “inappropriate” and declined further comment on it.“We have an expectation of the parade disbanding at a certain time,” he said. Demonstration Permits, page 7 6 AUGUST 1, 2008 THE NONPROFIT TIMES www.nptimes.com http://www.nptimes.com

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The NonProfit Times - August 1, 2008 Demonstration Permits Frustrate Groups Green Universities Helping To Produce Greener Pastures Mr. Bill Doesn’t Say ‘NOOOO’ To Awareness Campaign Contents Who...When...Where...How...What? On Dangerous Ground Association Management Travel Nightmare The 2008 NPT Power & Influence Top 50 Leaderless Unusual Special Events On The Move Lost: The Donors Consistent Messaging New UK Standards Business Briefs National Movement Calendar NPT Jobs Resource Directory

The NonProfit Times - August 1, 2008

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