2013.03.19: ALAA E-Mail Group

From: Michael Letwin
To: Deborah Wright, ALAA MEMBERS
Date: Tue, 19 Mar 2013 16:25:41 -0400
Subject: ALAA E-Mail Group

In January, Brooklyn Criminal members voted 51-2 to propose points 1-2 below concerning ALAA e-mail communication to the ALAA Joint Committee. (Point 3 was not originally part of that original proposal, but is included here to implement its intent.)

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Brooklyn Criminal Proposal

If ALAA votes to create an independent email system, apart for management’s, ALAA will:

1: Subscribe (and keep current) all ALAA members via their LAS e-mail address. Members will have the individual choice to substitute a different e-mail address, filter messages, and/or remove themselves (“opt-out”) entirely from the list.

and 2: Other than reasonable “terms of use” and the individual options discussed above, there will be no content-based censorship, filtering, classification or segregation of messages.

and 3: The existing LAS-based e-mail discussion list will not be discontinued until the new independent ALAA e-mail discussion list is operational.

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From: Michael Letwin
Sent: Tuesday, March 19, 2013 11:27 AM
To: Wright, Deborah; ALAA MEMBERS
Subject: RE: Joint Council Meeting on 3/19

Prior to tonight’s meeting, please provide the language of any proposals regarding the ALAA listserv.

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From: Deborah Wright
Sent: Monday, March 18, 2013 6:32 PM
To: ALAA MEMBERS
Subject: Fwd: Joint Council Meeting on 3/19

Another friendly reminder about tomorrow night’s JC Meeting.

Working agenda:

1) Adoption of minutes from January 29, 2013 Joint Council Meeting

2) UAW CAP Report

a) report on endorsement candidate interviews and endorsements

3) State Budget Update

4) ALAA Office Move

5) ALAA Email Listserv

a) stay on management’s system or create our own email system?

Begin forwarded message:

From: Deborah Wright
Date: March 11, 2013, 10:54:23 AM EDT
To: ALAA MEMBERS
Subject: Joint Council Meeting on 3/19

Just a friendly reminder that we have a Joint Council Meeting scheduled for March 19, 2013, starting at 6:30 pm. Pizza and soda will be served.

The biggest item on the agenda is the issue of what ALAA plans to do regarding the ALAA listserv, especially whether or not we will be creating our own email system. This agenda item was tabled from our January Joint Council Meeting and must finally be discussed and voted upon.

I am working on the rest of the agenda and will send it around closer to the meeting.

Thanks,

Debbie

** Follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/alaa2325 and on Twitter @alaa2325

Deborah L. Wright, Esq.
President
UAW Local 2325 – Assoc. of Legal Aid Attorneys (AFL-CIO)
568 Broadway, Suite 702a
NY, NY 10012-3223
Phone: (212) 343-0708
Fax: (212) 343-0966
Email: Dwright@legal-aid.org
Cell: (609) 712-3818

———- Forwarded message ———-

From: Michael Letwin
To: ALAA MEMBERS
Date: Tue, 19 Mar 2013 17:08:49 -0400
Subject: Proposed Correction of Jan. 19 JC Meetings

In response to a motion from Brooklyn Criminal, the January 19, 2013 Joint Council meeting reaffirmed an earlier policy of providing members with written minutes of Executive Board and Joint Council meetings. However, minutes of the January 19 meeting (attached) include only those comments in favor of the proposed collective bargaining agreement, while omitting those against.

This violates the fairness requirements of Robert’s Rules of Order § 47, which states that minutes “should never reflect the secretary’s opinion, favorable or otherwise on anything said or done, and that “[w]hen ‘minutes’ are to be published, they should contain, in addition to the information described above, a list of the speakers on each side of every question, with an abstract or the text of each address.”

Before adoption at tonight’s JC meeting, therefore, I request that the January 19, 2013 minutes be corrected to list the names and comments of those (Azalia Torres, Susan Morris, Michael Letwin and any others) who spoke against the content and/or process of the proposed collective bargaining agreement.

2013.03.08: Muslim Defense Project of the NYC National Lawyers Guild open meeting March 19th

From: Ahmad, Bina
Sent: Friday, March 08, 2013 10:37 AM
To: ALAA MEMBERS
Subject: Muslim Defense Project of the NYC National Lawyers Guild open meeting March 19th

The Muslim Defense Project (MDP) of the NLG-NYC will hold an open meeting for attorneys, legal workers and law students interested in learning about our work and becoming involved on Tuesday, March 19th, at 7pm at the Urban Justice Center, 123 William Street, 16th floor, Manhattan.  We welcome those who wish to work with us in solidarity in this fight against the horrific and ever-growing anti-Muslim rhetoric and predatory policing in NYC and beyond.

What we’re about: MDP was formed to combat the anti-Muslim rhetoric and policies that have created a comprehensive system of illegal surveillance, predatory prosecutions, and the targeting of entire Muslim communities – in New York City and beyond. We stand in solidarity, as members of these communities and their allies, to seek the elimination of laws that enable the discrimination of Muslims. We arm our communities with the knowledge and information they need to protect themselves. We put our legal skills to use defending those who have fallen prey to predatory prosecutions. We recognize that community ties through trust and activism have been under attack over the past several years, and we endeavor to safeguard and build those precious relationships.  Through organizing and activism, we seek to build a strong front by developing alliances with other communities who have also been the subject of the government’s repression. Together, we will fight this government onslaught on our fundamental rights – as history has taught us that the rights of one community or individual belong to us all.

What we do: Facilitate Know Your Rights Workshops in Masjids, community centers, schools, etc; Operate a 24/7 Hotline (212-470-3431) for those who have been contacted or suspect they are being surveilled by a government agent, such as a member of the FBI or NYPD; Legal Observe; and provide general community support.

Please join us March 19th at 7 at UJC!

In solidarity,
NLG-NYC Muslim Defense Project