ally can literally snatch people off the street, designate them as “enemy combatants,” and assert that they are beyond the reach of either U.S. or international law? Many are transported to a facility under total U.S. control and funded by Congressional appropriations, where they are held incommunicado, indefinitely, without charges and some are threatened with trials before a military commission that falls short of basic standards of justice.

If the Supreme Court upholds these actions, it will condone the President’s claim of virtually unlimited “wartime powers” without a formal declaration of war by the Congress, and with no or extremely limited oversight by the courts or the Congress.

On April 20 the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on the President’s alleged right to create a “law free zone” at the Guantanamo detention center in Cuba. And on April 28, the Court will hear oral arguments on the President’s asserted right to designate citizens as “enemy combatants,” hold them at the U.S. Navy base in Charleston, SC, and deny them the ability to challenge the lawfulness of their detention.

We believe that the President cannot be allowed to create a “legal Black Hole” into which people are dropped with no recourse to the courts or to international law. Among us we hold many varied views on how and why this situation has arisen and what is ultimately needed to ensure justice. But we all agree that this dangerous new presidentially-designated category of “enemy combatants” who have no legal rights is unjust, illegal, and immoral, and cannot be allowed to stand.

The silence over this perilous issue must be broken, and public opposition must be manifested. Join us in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on April 20 and April 28 to declare a resounding NO! Legally permitted, non-violent demonstrations will occur on both days from 9:30 am to 12:30 pm with a program of speakers beginning at 11:am.

Our future and the future of hundreds of anonymous detainees now hang in the balance. This is a watershed event in history. What is at stake is just how much the President will be allowed to get away with. Your silence will be taken as assent.

Endorsing Organizations (list in formation)

National and International Organizations

American Friends Service Committee

American Muslim Voice

Amnesty International USA

Arab American Institute

Bill of Rights Defense Committee

Blue Triangle Network

Cambios Planetarios

Community Solutions Foundation Trust, LLC.

Council on American-Islamic Relations

Equal Justice USA/Moratorium Now!

First Amendment Foundation

Freedom Socialist Party

Guantanamo Human Rights Commission

Japanese American Citizens League

La Resistencia

Muslim Civil Rights Center

National Committee Against Repressive Legislation (NCARL)

National Lawyers Guild

Not in Our Name Project

Oct. 22nd Coalition to Stop Police Brutality, Repression and the Criminalization of a Generation

Pax Christi USA

Proposition One Committee

Refuse & Resist!

Solidarity USA

Two-Edged Sword Incorporataed

United for Peace and Justice

Regional and Local Organizations

ACLU of Wake County, North Carolina

American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee Los Angeles, Orange County Chapter (ADC LA/OC)

American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) DC Area Chapter

Communities United Against Police Brutality (Minneapolis)

Greensboro Justice Fund

Immigrant Justice Solidarity Project-NYC

New Jersey Civil Rights Defense Committee

Individuals*

Jeanne A. Butterfield, attorney, Washington, DC

Elaine Cassel, Civil Liberties Watch

Riva Enteen, Chair, KPFA Local Station

Linda Gettier, ACLU of Wake County, NC

Deborah Gordon-Brown, C.S.W.

Connie Hogarth, for Connie Hogarth Center for Social Action, Manhattanville College, Purchase NY

C. Clark Kissinger, contributing writer for the Revolutionary Worker

Robert Meeropol, Rosenberg Fund for Children

Dr. and Mrs. Michael C. Milam, Professor, University of South Florida

Robert E. Moran, Digital Constructs, Inc.

Efia Nwangaza, African Am Institute for Policy Studies

Rev. Jim Oines, Lutheran Pastor and worker in the Sanctuary Movement for Central American Refugees, Thousand Oaks, CA

Stephen Rohde, civil liberties lawyer

Jennifer Martin Ruggiero, Freesherman.org

Bud and Ruth Schultz, most recently the authors of "The Price of Dissent"

Edwin Schultz, Plymouth Meeting, PA

Pamela Shorey, Willimantic, CT

Shoba Sivaprasad, atttorney, Washington D.C.

B.M. Vocking o.p., Dutch Member of the Dominican Order

Immanuel Wallerstein, Yale University

* Individuals' organizations listed for identification purposes only

For your organization to sign this call, email eccases@nlg.org

For internet resources on these cases click here.

For legal resources for demonstrations click here.

In addition to the organizations and individuals signing this call, many other groups have demonstrated their concern by representing the plaintiffs or by filing amicus briefs with the court. Among those who have filed briefs are:

On the Guantanamo issue:

Center for Constitutional Rights represents Shafiq Rasul, Asif Iqbal, and David Hicks

American Civil Liberties Union

Retired Military Officers Amicus

Fred Korematsu Amicus

Commonwealth Lawyers Association Amicus

Former Federal Judges Amicus

Former POW Amicus

US Diplomatic Amicus

Former Diplomats Amicus to Supreme Court

Int'l Bar Assoc. Amicus to Supreme Court

Legal Historians Amicus to Supreme Court

Omar Ahmed Khadr Amicus to Supreme Court

Ret. Military Officers Amicus to Supreme Court

Nat'l Inst. for Military Justice Supreme Court Amicus

Fred Korematsu Supreme Court Amicus

Int'l Comm. of Jurists Supreme Court Amicus

British Parliamentarians Supreme Court Amicus

Consortium Supreme Court Amicus

Emerging Democracies Supreme Court Amicus

Commonwealth Lawyers Assoc Supreme Court Amicus

Former Guantanamo Officials Supreme Court Amicus

Military Defense Counsel Supreme Court Amicus

Saudi Prisoners Supreme Court Amicus

Hungarian Jews Supreme Court Amicus

Former POW Supreme Court Amicus

International Law Professors Supreme Court Amicus

On the case of Yaser Hamdi:

Frank Dunham of the Federal Defenders office represents Yaser Hamdi

ACLU Amicus Brief

Nat'l Ass'n of Criminal Defense Lawyers Amicus Brief (Filed in 4th Cir. Court of Appeal)

Center for Constitutional Rights Amicus Brief (Filed in 4th Cir. Court of Appeal)

On the case of Jose Padilla:

Donna Newman represents Jose Padilla

Center for Constitutional Rights and National Lawyers Guild Amicus

American Civil Liberties Union Amicus

National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and NYS Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers Amicus

Experts on the Laws of War Amicus

The Cato Institute, Lawyers Committee for Human Rights Amicus

Hon. John J. Gibbons, et al. Amicus

American Bar Association Amicus

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