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When protests against terrorizing communities, terrorize communities
In Providence, there seems to be no concern about loud demonstrations happening at locations that have nothing to do with the issue being demonstrated about. They wear their First Amendment rights as a steel shield. Anything goes. Or does it?
One such event happened on Thursday when a group identifying themselves as the RI Party for Socialism and Liberation conducted a 4-hour noise demonstration, complete with snare drum, non-stop chanting led in a call and response using a powered microphone and a megaphone, with about 80 or more people chanting and shouting in unison. Some wore orange vests. Most wore masks. They positioned themselves on the sidewalk across from Rhode Island Hospital, occasionally spilling into the streets, and occasionally blocking vehicles.
The issue was the protest of an arrest of an individual who was said to have been tasered during the arrest attempt at a house in the West End of Providence. Note the attorney for the individual has not confirmed his tasering. He was taken to Rhode Island Hospital’s ED at some point in the arrest process, the exact reason why undisclosed. Sources say he was cleared medically, rather quickly, and the arrest was completed with the person being removed out another entrance.
The Rhode Island Deportation Defense Coalition told the Boston Globe – “Because of the protest and community members who called in to [Department of Homeland Security] Enforcement and Removal Operations, ICE was forced to smuggle our community member out of the hospital through a side entrance.”
ICE responds
ICE later told the Providence Journal that the man had entered the country illegally from the Dominican Republic. He was tased “after becoming combative and attempting to grab an officer’s belt during an attempted arrest”. The man had a “violent history, which includes domestic violence and assault charges” – “the man was previously arrested for domestic violence – assault and battery; domestic violence unlawful breaking and entering a dwelling or house; domestic violence – refusal to relinquish/damaging/obstructing telephone; resisting arrest; assault of a police officer; and disorderly conduct.
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Regarding attorney claims
While the attorney secured for the arrested individual now says he has spoken to his client, those who thought he was being denied at the time of arrest, or at the hospital, of speaking to the attorney need to know, for arrestees by ICE:
- They do not have the right to have a lawyer at the moment of ICE arrest or interrogation (like in a criminal arrest with Miranda rights).
- They do have the right to hire a lawyer before or during immigration court hearings (removal proceedings).
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Noise demonstration
One of the upfront people in the noise demonstration was June Rose, Chief of Staff of the Providence City Council. Rose spoke to WPRI saying the Council stands by their immigrant neighbors & will support them. “ICE does not belong in Providence without judicial warrants.”
In an article with The Rhode Island Current, “Among the demonstrators gathered outside the hospital Thursday afternoon, was Providence City Council Chief of Staff June Rose, who attended on behalf of Council President Rachel Miller, whose ward includes the address where the man was detained by ICE. “This community will not stand idly by as the Trump administration disappears our neighbors off the street,” Rose said in an interview Friday. “ICE shouldn’t be in our city at all.”
Providence City Council
RINewsToday asked Providence City Council President Rachel Miller to confirm Rose’s comments. Her response: “I can. I unfortunately was unavailable with a family emergency that afternoon. When I heard that ICE tased someone in my neighborhood, I asked June to be present on my behalf. The information that has come out since – that this person was detained violently the same day as his interview for a green card, that he and his wife are expecting a child, that he was initially denied access to his lawyer – how this is accepted behavior by federal officers is beyond comprehension.
Our community is being terrorized by officers of our federal government. It is not making us safer. It is not solving any of the problems our community is facing, and it is not ok. I was grateful that June could be there when I could not. Happy to answer any other questions.” – Rachel Miller
When RINewsToday asked about the impact on the many people inside the hospital, Miller responded, “I share my solidarity and support for any family in crisis. The actions of these ICE agents and the policies of ICE are putting people in an impossible situation – the person detained that day should never have been in the hospital. I will not accept that force was merited or that this person should have been detained at all, never mind that he was already in the full light of the system. I am sorry for negative impacts on people in crisis. I can’t speak to broad behaviors of people outside of the hospital that day since I wasn’t there, but I can say with certainty that had I been available, I would have been there and believe that free assembly is a just response to abhorrent state behavior.” – “As I have shared, I am sorry people were disturbed.”
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What do people say about Rhode Island Hospital and the disruption to patients?
RINewsToday, after hearing from a person inside Rhode Island Hospital about the disruption and noise, we asked several people their opinions. Here is what we learned:
Lt. Governor Sabina Matos:
As the situation was developing, Lt. Gov. Matos issued this statement: “My office and I are closely monitoring reports that ICE agents may be refusing a Rhode Islander their right to due process by preventing them from speaking with their lawyer. We are still learning all of the facts involved in today’s events, and I cannot speak with certainty about every detail of this incident. However, there are no circumstances under which we can tolerate the erosion of the Constitution. If this man is being prevented from speaking with his attorney, then I call on ICE to immediately to allow him access to counsel. The rights enshrined in our Constitution, especially the right to due process, are our only safeguard against authoritarianism. If we do not immediately and vocally protect the first people to be stripped of those rights, then eventually all people will be stripped of those rights.”
We requested clarification in response to questions – here is the reply from David Folcarelli in her office:
Q: I would like a statement from the Lt. Gov. about the disruption caused to patients and family members at Rhode Island Hospital – while restricted to a section of the sidewalk, the noise traveled well inside the facility. Does the Lt Governor support this?
A: “Our understanding, based on public statements from the hospital and the Providence Police Department, is that the operations of the hospital were not disrupted. However, hospitals are a place where people and their loved ones are often going through difficult, emotional times. We were very sorry to hear about [a patient] who was affected by the noise that resulted from ICE’s alleged refusal to allow a detained person access to their lawyer. ICE’s pattern of conducting operations in sensitive places like hospitals, schools, and courthouses harms vulnerable people, and the Lieutenant Governor has spoken out against the practice previously.” (Editor’s Note: the original arrest happened on the West End of Providence, inside a home, not at the hospital)
Q: Does the Lt. Gov. agree with the statement of the chief of staff of the Providence City Council that “ICE does not belong in Providence without judicial warrants,” Rose said.
A: “It is very important that Rhode Islanders, especially immigrants, understand the difference between a judicial warrant and an administrative warrant. The removal warrant used by ICE (Form I-205) is an administrative warrant, not a judicial warrant. There are some important differences between the two: for example, an I-205 does not give ICE the right to enter someone’s home, while a judicial criminal warrant does. ICE needs an administrative warrant to detain Rhode Islanders. Knowing those differences is one reason that the Lieutenant Governor has worked to help Rhode Islanders understand immigration law. That person [June Rose] doesn’t work for our office, so I can’t speak to their phrasing or the full context of their statement. I would encourage you to reach out to them for more information.
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From Rhode Island Hospital:
We asked Rhode Island Hospital about the disruption of amplified shouting, chanting and drumming to those in the hospital emergency department. The below was sent to us by Kelly Brennan, senior public relations officer:
“Our priority is the safety and well-being of patients, families, and staff. Demonstrations are not permitted on the hospital’s private property. We worked with local authorities to manage activity on nearby public sidewalks. We are aware of concerns about noise, and our clinical teams worked to ensure patient care was not affected. Rhode Island Hospital remained fully operational throughout.”
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From Mayor Smiley:
Attributed to Anthony Vega, Mayor Smiley’s office:
“While we remain unaware of the full details surrounding the detainment by federal officials yesterday, Mayor Smiley supports the right to peaceful protest and understands the deep concerns that prompted this demonstration.”
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From RI Senator Jack Reed:
“We have to get the facts. We don’t want to jump to a conclusion,” he continued. “That’s done too often by others. We want to get the facts.” – statement to WPRI.
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What does the FIRST AMENDMENT guarantee? Are there exceptions?
The ACLU publishes an article – Five ways the First Amendment protects your speech – and Three ways it does not.
What are the three ways – and how would this apply to the disturbing noise demonstration on Friday outside a hospital?
Although the First Amendment offers powerful free speech protections, it does have its limits. Here are three major ways that the First Amendment does not protect your speech.
1. The First Amendment protects you from government censorship, but not from censorship by private organizations or individuals.
2. The First Amendment protects protest, but not civil disobedience.
3. The First Amendment protects your right to express yourself, but allows the government to restrict when, where, and how you do it.
It is #3 we bring to consideration: Even in “traditional public forums,” the local and federal government can place reasonable restrictions on the time, place, and manner of your expression in order to minimize disruption. For example, the government is allowed to say that a demonstration cannot happen during rush hour, outside the entrance of an emergency room, or with the use of a loudspeaker at high volumes. These restrictions, though, must be applied in a content – and viewpoint – neutral way, so the government cannot allow certain actions by one group, but not allow the same actions by another group with a different viewpoint or message.
We ask the question – should the noise demonstration – with no direct reason for it to take place at that location – nothing against the hospital – be asked to move or to cease the amplified noise by the local police department – even at the hospital’s request?
What are the rights of patients who have no way to move or leave the area, having sleep and their own reasonable expectation of peace and quiet and medical care in their time of need disturbed for hours on end?
The Rhode Island Hospital Patients’ Bill of Rights notes: “Respect and Dignity: Patients have the right to be treated with respect and dignity by all healthcare staff, regardless of age, sex, race, ethnicity, or other personal characteristics”. In the Rhode Island Hospital Bill of Patients’ Rights, the very first right is: “You have the right to: Kind, safe and respectful care”.
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From Providence Police Department:
We requested a statement from the Providence Police Department, and received a statement from Anthony Vega, attributable to him: “The Providence Police Department supports the right to peaceful protest and is focused on maintaining public safety, ensuring access to essential services and minimizing disruption to the community.”
Would PPD have responded if the hospital called about the disruption – or a family member – or a patient? Would they have intervened to “minimize disruption to the community” – asking the demonstrators to move further away from the hospital or to cease the amplification and drumming?
The psychology of group behavior is on display wherever demonstrations take place – from the small dozen or so, to the hundreds, to the thousands. Group behavior is defined as the collective actions and decision-making processes of a group in order to achieve common goals, which can include activities such as terrorism or criminal acts beyond political motives. Groupthink often has individuals take on a collective set of values, and doing behaviors they would never do as a party of one, or two, or three. Loss of perspective, being accepted in the group, even helping shy, introverted people a whole new personnae as they are led by more Machiavellian “friends” are all powerful influencers of groups on individuals.
The situation with the ICE detention will work its way through the criminal justice system. For those who were in or going in to the Emergency Department, RI’s only Level 1 Trauma Center, at Rhode Island Hospital, we beg the question of demonstrations like this at all medical facilities. Should they be off limits?
We invite your responses, below…
From a local reader: “Best article I’ve read in a long time. Very thorough and thoughtful. It amazes me the people that turn it back around on ICE. I appreciate your explanation of detainee rights. I wasn’t aware.”