THE COMMONWEALTH OF
MASSACHUSETTS
Be it enacted by the Senate and
House of Representatives, Sitting as the Great and General Court:
A RESOLUTION AFFIRMING
THE CIVIL RIGHTS AND LIBERTIES OF THE PEOPLE OF MASSACHUSETTS
WHEREAS
the struggle to establish democracy and secure the rights and
liberties of Americans began in Massachusetts; and
WHEREAS
the Declaration of Rights of the Inhabitants of the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts was the first
enumeration of the civil rights and liberties of Americans, provided
a model for the
United States Constitution and its
Bill of Rights, and continues to serve the citizens of the
Commonwealth; and
WHEREAS
every duly elected public official in Massachusetts has sworn to
uphold the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of
the Commonwealth; and
WHEREAS
in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001, the
United States Congress passed without public hearings and with
little debate the USA PATRIOT Act (Public
Law 107-56), provisions of which
threaten the fundamental rights and liberties of citizens and
non-citizens; and
WHEREAS
through executive orders, changes in procedures, and other actions,
the United States Department of Justice has adopted practices which
infringe upon the rights and liberties of citizens and non-citizens;
and
WHEREAS
forty-nine Massachusetts cities and towns and more than three
hundred and fifty- eight cities and towns across the United States
have passed resolutions that affirm their support for our
fundamental freedoms and that state their opposition to provisions
of the USA PATRIOT Act and the practices of the United States
Department of Justice; and
WHEREAS
on November 2, 2004, in the nine state legislative districts where
it appeared on the ballot, voters approved, by overwhelming margins,
a referendum question requesting legislators to support a
Massachusetts resolution asserting that the campaign against
terrorism should not be waged at the expense of civil rights and
liberties, and to support legislation barring the use of state
resources for racial and religious profiling, for secret
investigations without reasonable grounds, and for maintaining files
on individuals and organizations without reasonable suspicion of
criminal conduct; and
WHEREAS
the States of Alaska, Hawaii, Vermont and Maine have passed
resolutions opposing provisions of the USA PATRIOT ACT and federal
practices which threaten our civil liberties; and
WHEREAS
in recent testimony and through legislative initiatives the United
States Department of Justice has indicated an intention to seek even
greater powers of surveillance, investigation, and prosecution;
THEREFORE, THE SENATE AND THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE
COMMONWEALTH OF
MASSACHUSETTS:
RESOLVE
that the Great and General Court of the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts affirms the rights and liberties of the people of
Massachusetts and our system of checks and balances as specified in
the United States Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the
Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts; and
FURTHER RESOLVE
that the Great and General Court of the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts affirms that measures taken to protect our local and
national security must be guided by and must respect principles of
American liberty and the rights of persons as enshrined in the
Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the United States
Constitution, and the Bill of Rights; and
FURTHER RESOLVE
that the Great and General Court of the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts requests state and local law enforcement authorities
to refrain from actions that impinge and infringe upon and violate
constitutional rights, such as racial and religious profiling,
conducting warrantless searches, and maintaining files on
individuals and organizations without reasonable suspicion of
criminal conduct; and
FURTHER RESOLVE
that the Great and General Court of the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts asks the United States Congress to allow to sunset, to
repeal, and to amend those sections of the USA PATRIOT Act which
allow the Executive branch to infringe upon the rights and liberties
of persons as specified in the United States Constitution, the Bill
of Rights, and the Constitution of the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts, and to oppose any additional legislation that would
infringe upon these rights and liberties; and
FURTHER RESOLVE
that the Great and General Court of the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts asks the United States Department of Justice and other
federal agencies and departments to refrain from any investigations,
procedures, or prosecutions which infringe upon the liberties of
persons as specified in the United States Constitution, the Bill of
Rights, and the Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts,
or which single out individuals for legal scrutiny or enforcement
activity based upon their race, religion, ethnicity or country of
origin; and
FURTHER RESOLVE
that the Great and General Court of the Commonwealth of
Massachusetts asks the United States Congress to exercise its
constitutionally necessary and proper oversight responsibilities
with regard to the operations and actions of the Departments of
Defense and Justice and the Central Intelligence Agency that may
adversely affect and impinge upon civil rights and liberties, and to
ensure the publication of its findings; and
FURTHER RESOLVE
that copies of this Resolution shall be transmitted to the Honorable
George W. Bush, President of the United States; to the Attorney
General of the United States; and to the United States Attorney for
Massachusetts, Michael J. Sullivan; and
FURTHER RESOLVE
that copies of this Resolution shall be transmitted to Senators
Edward Kennedy and John Kerry; to Representatives Michael Capuano,
William Delahunt, Barney Frank, Stephen Lynch, Edward Markey, James
McGovern, Marty Meehan, Richard Neal, John Olver and John Tierney;
to Governor Mitt Romney; to Massachusetts Attorney General Tom
Reilly; to Massachusetts State Police Colonel Thomas G. Robbins; and
to all city and town halls and public libraries within the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts. |
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