The formal trial is scheduled for August 15, 2011. If convicted, each student faces up to six months in jail.

7 of the Irvine 11 stand outside the courtroom after their arraignment on Friday April 15, 2011. Photo by Sahar Jahani

In addition to the pleas, the Orange County District Attorney’s office filed an opposition to the defendants’ request for DA Tony Rackauckas to be removed from the case.

At the March 11, 2011 hearing, lawyers of the Irvine 11 filed a request to remove Rackauckas from the case on grounds of unlawful conduct in the proceedings leading up to the conviction.

According to defense attorneys, the means by which the prosecution obtained evidence, including search warrants, grand jury subpoenas, and internal documents titled “UCI Muslim Case,” demonstrate a clear bias and conflict of interest on behalf of the DA’s office.

At a press conference held after Friday’s hearing, Dan Stormer, an attorney representing the Irvine 11, called for a prosecution that is “more objective, more fair and has a more reasonable basis for prosecution, to take on the case.”

In the motion to refute these allegations, the DA expressed that these complaints are meritless and do not demonstrate any possibility that the DA will treat these proceedings unfairly.

“The content of the protest is not in question here,” stated Deputy District Attorney Dan Wagner during the press conference held after the arraignment, “The protestors could have been standing up and yelling gibberish, the fact of the matter is that the disruption that they caused trampled upon other people’s first amendment rights and that is what this prosecution is based upon.”

Jacqueline Goodman, one of the attorneys representing the Irvine 11, discusses the proceedings of the April 15 hearing. Photo by Sahar Jahani

A decision regarding the DA’s removal from the case will be made on June 17.

More than 100 supporters of the Irvine 11 appeared at the courthouse, some waiting nearly three hours for the proceedings to conclude. Parents, students, community members and activists of various backgrounds were in attendance.

Estee Chandler, a representative of the Jewish Voice for Peace, an organization that collected over 5,000 signatures demanding the Orange County DA to drop all the charges against the Irvine 11, was also present along with Jeff Warner, Action Coordinator for LA Jews for Peace.

“This same type of protest has been conducted in other parts of the country by Jewish and Israeli students, without any severe consequences for the protestors,” explained Chandler, “It is clear that the Irvine 11 are being targeted because of their cultural and religious background.”

“Although our numbers are smaller at this hearing, our support for the Irvine 11 is solid” stated Jasmine Riad, a first year student at UC Irvine, “we will continue to come out and show the prosecutors and the judge that the conviction of these students is not only unjust but it goes against the principles that we value in this country, the most important of which is freedom of speech.”

However these clashes were escalating quickly and the Los Angeles Police Department and the Highway Patrol were called in to separate the two parties.

The supports of President Assad were sent to the parking lot and the anti-government supporters remained on the corner of Wilshire Blvd and Veteran Ave. Police officers and state troopers remained on scene to take reports and to make sure no further conflicts occur.

Pro Assad Supporters

Supporters of the anti-government movement

]]> http://al-talib.org/2011/04/16/rival-syrian-supports-clash-in-front-of-the-federal-building/feed/ 1 http://al-talib.org/2011/03/28/pictures-from-los-angeles-protest-in-support-of-movements-in-libya-and-bahrain/ http://al-talib.org/2011/03/28/pictures-from-los-angeles-protest-in-support-of-movements-in-libya-and-bahrain/#comments Tue, 29 Mar 2011 01:51:28 +0000 Naseem Golestani http://al-talib.org/?p=1406 More than one hundred people gathered today in front of the Federal Building in Los Angeles to show solidarity with movements in the Middle East and North Africa, in particular Libya and Bahrain.

Speakers at the protest also emphasized the fact that the movement in Bahrain is a matter of an oppressed people seeking freedom and reform, not a sectarian issue, as is claimed by Bahraini as well as other Arab governments.

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Protesters hold signs at a demonstration at the Federal Building in Los Angeles to show solidarity with movements in Libya and Bahrain.

As protests go, the one held on February 20th was small compared to one’s held in previous weeks for Egypt and Tunisia, yet it’s sometimes the smallest of events, the moments people tend to overlook, that can impact a community in ground-breaking ways. That is, if its people have enough courage to evaluate themselves.

The purpose of this protest, like many others, was to show solidarity and support for movements taking place in the Middle East, specifically in Libya and Iran.

For the Iranians, the protest took place on a day meant to commemorate the death of two student protesters killed in Iran’s February 14th demonstrations, with several cities in Iran, Europe, and America also holding protests to mark this day.

Protesters of both ethnicities (Libyan and Iranian) appeared to be supportive of each other, repeating and cheering for each other’s chants.

“Libyans would chant for change in Iran and Iranians would chant for change in Libya. It was going back and forth and it was actually really nice to see,” says a twenty-three year old Iranian protester, who recently graduated from UCLA.

Despite this show of support, however, the physical separation between these groups, with the Libyans and Iranians standing apart from each other, along with the homogeneous composition of these two sides, points to the existence of division amongst these demonstrators along ethnic lines.

Such a divide can also be seen in the MSA setting and our community at large, where for the past few weeks since protests in the Middle East began, members have come out strong to support their ‘brothers and sisters’ in the Middle East and their struggles for freedom.

Yet in the midst of all of the duas and prayers made for the people of Libya, Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen, Bahrain, etc, Iran has consistently been left unmentioned, seemingly forever destined to remain in the ‘etc’ category, never mentioned by name.

The causes for this and their implications for our community are worth a deeper look, because the movements and causes we support say a great deal about where we are as a community.

Is Iran left out of the equation simply because of ignorance? Yet how can the community remain almost completely ignorant about one of the most populated nations in the Middle East, with over 70 million people? This is especially strange given the enormous Iranian-American population in Los Angeles, numbering in the hundreds of thousands and by some counts, over a million.

Or could the cause be more ethnic in nature, and therefore more troubling, where certain groups (such as nearly all Black-African nations) don’t even register in the community’s ‘struggles abroad’ radar? Do people subconsciously categorize Iran as ‘other’ because it is a Shia majority nation and should just deal with its own problems?

Whatever the case may be, the community needs to broaden their scope beyond Arabic-speaking countries in order to truly be supportive of their brothers and sisters worldwide.

A-T: Describe the social, political situation that led to the protests. why are people out there?

Ghoneum: Egyptians are in the streets because they feel that their basic rights as humans have been violated. That they have been living under oppression, under a tyranny led by Mubarak. This revolution came from the youth, it was led by youth who wanted to end the corruption in the Egyptian government and to have better lives for their families in the future. My well-learned cousin Khalid stated:

For the youth, they felt that they had no hope. All of the jobs and opportunities are with only 2% of the Egyptian population and the other large sector have no promising opportunities with regards to their careers.

We all know that Mubarak’s administration, with all of its corrupt ways and constant stealing from the public funds, are to blame for this injustice. How can a “leader of the people” have 40 million dollars in the bank with multiple mansions and villas, leave his people in such oppression?  He is like a filthy rich king sitting on top of an abused country. We refuse to be in such a position any longer.

In addition, before this revolution, the youth had been afraid of the police. But now they feel liberated, part of something bigger than themselves and feel that no one can stop them now from changing their country and their future. Politically speaking, during the past few days Mubarak has appointed new people in his office (including a prime minister) and promised not to run for re-elections. His wish is to stay for the remaining 7 months. No doubt, these changes have led to progression, but are not enough to quench the anger of the Egyptian public. We want him to get out of office now. His thirty year regime should have ended many, many years ago.

A-T: You have family in Egypt right now, what has this unrest been like for them? Have you been able to contact them?

Ghoneum: Yes, I was able to contact them several days ago and they are safe, Alhamduillah. Even though my family has been away from the commotion in Cairo and Alexandria, there have been several protests and the people there are very happy that this long awaited revolution is finally taking place. Additionally, there have been “masakeen” or prisoners who have been released by the government to scare the general public. These prisoners have come all the way to my home and my cousins’ homes in Egypt. They are the main reasons for the looting and burning that have occurred throughout the major cities in Egypt. Fortunately, my cousins formed a local street patrol to protect our people and thus no rape, killings or serious raids have occurred in my village. These local patrol groups have been the major source of protection for the people living in the smaller cities in Egypt. The police themselves have offered very little protection for the people during the past week. (The Army however, has stood behind the Egyptian public stating that the public has a right to be protected).

Downtown Cairo. AP Photo/Ben Curtis

A-T: How have you been affected by these recent events?

Ghoneum: Initially, we were all filled with fear and anxiety as we did not know how our families were doing. The internet and phone lines had been disconnected, and there was virtually no way to contact family in Egypt. We were horrified to see people on Al-Jazeera being run over by ambulances and buildings burning in the streets. It looked like scenes from a Hollywood horror movie!

However, these feelings turned into a most unexplainable feeling of pride and patriotism for us. Despite the challenges that our people faced, namely being sprayed with tear gas, being pushed down with powerful hoses while performing salaat in the Friday Jummuah prayer, being hit and shot at by police, the Egyptian people have stayed strong in their position and we refuse to back down. We are so proud of the Egyptian youth and our people there for enduring so much. This goes to show that the youth can take control of their future and change things for the better.

A-T: From here in the U.S., have you done anything to take part in the movements in some way?

My parents’ eyes have been glued to the channel Al-Jazeera watching every action that the governments, both in Egypt and in America, are taking. Now, we are all just waiting for Mubarak to step down and we will not rest until he does. On a personal level, I have advocated for protests in Los Angeles and urged others to sign various petitions to stop the violence and kick Mubarak out. To be honest, I only wish I could do more. I wish I were in Tahrir Square now, waving the Egyptian flag and fighting for the country’s liberation and for the liberation of all nations in this Ummah tal-Islam.

-In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful-

Assalamu alaykum (peace be upon you),

You may have heard of the recent event at UC Irvine with Michael Oren, the ambassador of Israel to the US.

While he was invited by a student organization to speak on US-Israeli relations, the UCI Law School and the Political Science Department cosponsored the speech by Oren, a public figure who represents a state that continues to commit more human rights violations than any other country. See the MSU’s statement regarding his presence on campus for more details: msuuci.com

At the event, 11 students who chose to protest by making clear and organized statements were arrested and held in a room until after the event. The school is also currently threatening to punish the students, aiming to send a political message by selective enforcement of university policies.

Contact UCI Chancellor Michael Drake NOW to declare that it is unjust to arrest these students. Supporters of the arrests are contacting administration in large numbers, and your support is needed desperately!

Ask to speak with Chancellor Drake or leave a message at: (949) 824 – 5011 and email him at: chancellor@uci.edu

Speak to the Dean of Students office, who are determining the punishment at: (949) 824-5181 and email them at: deanstu@uci.edu

Here are some important points to bring up:

• · It was unjust to arrest students for simply having the courage to stand up and speak out against a man responsible for propagating the deaths of thousands of innocent people.
• · Civil disobedience has historically played an instrumental role in the civil rights movement in America the eventually ensured equality and human rights for all minorities.
• · Michael Oren is a representative of a state that is condemned by more UN Human Rights Council resolutions than all other countries in the world, and he should not be honored at UC Irvine.
• As concerned community members, we will not support an educational institution that threatens to punish its’ students with suspension and expulsion for standing up for their principles.

Thank you for your support.

Jazakum Allahu khairan.