Three anti-war activists were arrested in front of the White House today after the U.S. Park Police moved to suppress a press conference called to protest the fines and threats against the ANSWER Coalition for putting up anti-war posters promoting the September 15 March and Die-In in Washington DC.

The arrested were Tina Richards, CEO of Grassroots America and mother of Iraq War Veteran Cloy Richards; Adam Kokesh, the Co-Chair Elect of the Iraq Veterans Against the War and member of Veterans for Peace; and Ian Thompson, an organizer with the ANSWER Coalition.

The press conference became a chaotic scene as U.S. Park Police interrupted the event on the basis that there was no permit for a folding table that was used as a speaker’s stand for media microphones. As U.S. Park Police officers surrounded the group, an officer on horseback rode into the crowd to disperse the media and onlookers.

Tina Richards and Adam Kokesh had announced that they would put a September 15 March to Stop the War poster on a lamppost following the press conference. The ANSWER Coalition has been fined over $30,000 in the last three weeks in an unprecedented action aimed at suppressing the September 15 mobilization. The three were taken to the Central District Substation of the United States Park Police. They will later be transferred to a jail in which they will spend the night before being arraigned in U.S. Superior Court tomorrow afternoon.

Attorneys at the Partnership for Civil Justice have filed a Free Speech lawsuit to strike down the unconstitutional postering law. The ANSWER Coalition has refused to pay these illegal fines.

Why was this arrest carried out in this manner? To intimidate you and me and anyone else who might think of attending the march. I guess Bush has decided to go the Mayor Daley route with anti-war protests: smash 'em up. Here's an account of the arrest by the Washington Post:

The officer then got into a tussle over a bucket of paste with Tina Richards, the mother of an Iraq war veteran. "Let go of this," he shouted. "If you don't, you will be arrested."

More officers arrived, including several dressed in black commando-style uniforms and one atop a horse that he maneuvered to push back the crowd.

"Back up!" he shouted.

An officer placed handcuffs on Richards, of Missouri, and put her in the back of a police car. A few feet away, Kristine Klein, 13, Richards's daughter, started crying. She said that another officer had grabbed her arm and pushed her.

As Richards tried to call to her daughter from the cruiser, another officer closed the window.

When an officer went to speak to Kristine, a member of the Park Service's SWAT team advised him to stay away from her. "Don't feed into that, the cameras are rolling. Let her go," the officer said.

By then, officers had also handcuffed Adam Kokesh, a Iraq war veteran who lives in Washington and had been putting up one of the posters. Ian Thompson, 31, of Los Angeles was also arrested.

Black commando style uniforms? SWAT teams? Beating up children? All for one tiny press conference and a few individuals putting up posters? Can anyone say fascist state?

Don't let them intimidate you. Attend the march if you can.

Update [2007-9-9 11:24:27 by Steven D]: WaPo story about the selective enforcement of the DC poster law:

The coalition asked a federal judge to stop the city from regulating signs posted on D.C. property until the city creates a "constitutionally allowable and non-discriminating system" for determining the rules on sign posting. The coalition alleges the city gives preferential treatment to signs for political candidates, commercial businesses and crime prevention, while bankrupting grass-roots campaigns with massive fines. [...]

City law allows people and organizations to hang posters on lampposts as long as they can be easily removed and there are no more than three on one side of a block. Sign hangers must date the signs when they are posted and register two copies of the sign with the city.

Violations carry fines of $150 for each offending sign.

Coalition organizers said they use water-soluble paste to hang the signs and provide all people who hang signs with a copy of the rules. They argue that electrical boxes are equivalent to lampposts and that no individuals or groups should have to notify the government of their political opinions.

It is common for the city to fine organizations for illegally posted signs of all sorts, said Public Works spokeswoman Linda Grant, adding that the department does not base its decisions on the content of posters. Work crews began removing the posters two weeks ago, she said.