So much for the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.To quote Tallyrand,* it is worse than a crime, it is a mistake.
Despite well-established freedom of the press protections that outline and guarantee the rights of reporters who cover breaking news stories—including confrontations between demonstrators and authorities—North Dakota officials have charged Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman with criminal trespassing after she documented private security personnel’s use of dogs to attack Native American foes of the Dakota Access Pipeline project.
Video footage obtained by Goodman, an internationally respected and frequently honored independent journalist, helped to alert Americans to the tactics being used to stop demonstrations against the pipeline by the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and their allies. On Friday, the Obama administration halted work on key portions of the $3.8 billion pipeline project—recognizing concerns raised by the tribe and environmental activists.
The behavior of the pipeline company, as well as the behavior of local and state law enforcement has been abhorrent, and their natural response is to go after the reporter.
I think that contaminants in North Dakota from fracking have melted their so-called minds.
*Again, this is probably not an actually a quote from Tallyrand. It was likely said by Joseph Fouché, but, "C'est pire qu'un crime, c'est une faute," is all too frequently credited to Talleyrand.
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