Huntsville: Anarchist says police 'got me for a bandana'

Submitted by Anarcho:

Huntsville police warned him once. The second time Joshua Gilliam slipped the black bandana over his nose, officers led him away in handcuffs.

On April 15, Huntsville police charged Gilliam with "being masked" at the end of an antiwar demonstration. Gilliam spent four hours in jail. The next morning, he pleaded not guilty in Municipal Court. He goes before a judge May 19.

"They got me for a bandana," Gilliam said. "I guess I'm not too bad of a criminal."

Gilliam, 21, is a self-described anarchist. He said the black bandana is a form of political speech, a show of solidarity with anarchists across the country.

Gilliam was arrested after a protest involving 30 to 40 people at Wellman Park in Five Points. Police said he was the only one there in a mask. Huntsville police spokesman Wendell Johnson said Gilliam was free to protest peacefully and could have avoided arrest by not putting the mask back on.

"The arrest was made because of Joshua's belligerence and noncompliance," he said.

But the only police charges involved the mask. Alabama law states a person commits the crime of loitering if he or she "being masked, loiters, remains or congregates in a public place." There are exceptions for masquerades, parades and sporting events.

The misdemeanor holds a maximum penalty of 180 days in jail and a $500 fine.

Michigan recently struck down a similar law, following a legal challenge by the American Civil Liberties Union. Michael Steinberg, legal director for the ACLU of Michigan, said the Alabama law also appears overbroad and illegal.

People may wish to cover their faces during a demonstration to make a political statement, such as wearing a rubber mask of Saddam Hussein, said Steinberg. Or protesters may want to protect their identity out of fear of political retaliation.

"It's a long tradition in this country of protecting anonymous speech, going back to the revolution," Steinberg said. "A lot of these statutes across the country have been struck down as unconstitutional if they make it a crime solely to wear a mask during a demonstration."

In Huntsville, some masked protesters escape arrest.

The Women in Black gather outside the Huntsville-Madison County Public Library every Saturday to silently protest the war in Iraq. Some wear mourning veils, which obscure their faces.

"No one has ever said anything to us one way or the other," said organizer Debbie Esslinger.

Johnson, the police spokesman, said he was not initially aware of the antimask law. After the arrest, he did some checking.

The state prohibition is one of seven criminal definitions of loitering, which also include loitering with the intent to use drugs, to gamble or to beg. The antimask law originally was intended to control gatherings of the Ku Klux Klan, said Johnson.

"Since then it has assisted law enforcement to make sure you don't have gang-bangers standing outside of a convenience store with bandanas on," he said.

Living among anarchists

Gilliam, who grew up in the Monrovia area, said he spent the last four years hitchhiking across the country. At times, he found himself living among anarchists in California, Colorado and Ohio. He started reading authors like Noam Chomsky and online magazines such as www.infowars.com. He said he began to question the role of the U.S. government in world affairs.

"Democratic socialism is what I would vote, " Gilliam said, "if I voted."

In December, Gilliam returned to Huntsville. When the U.S. attack on Iraq began, he started protesting in public, often alone and often masked, he said. On Tuesday nights, he joined the weekly rallies of the North Alabama Peace Network.

On April 15, after the fall of Baghdad, the weekly protest was somewhat smaller than those before the war. Witnesses say three or four police officers observed from nearby.

Rosemary Urban, a librarian, saw the police warn Gilliam as he held a sign that read: "Why do we kill people that kill people to show people that killing people is wrong?"

The officer "didn't talk to anyone else," Urban said. "Josh pulled his mask down. As far as I know, he kept it off during the protest."

Protester was leaving

The protest ended. Gilliam, believing police had left, slid the bandana back over his nose as he walked toward his car.

A patrol car pulled up. Officer Micky Brantley Jr. pointed toward Gilliam and beckoned. Gilliam said Brantley told him he had been warned not to wear the mask. Gilliam answered that the bandana guarded against pollen. Brantley made the arrest.

Gilliam said police would not tell him the charge.

Brantley declined to comment for this report, Johnson said.

Organizer posts $400 bail

Tom Moss, one of several organizers of the Tuesday rallies, posted $400 bail for Gilliam that night.

Since October, the North Alabama Peace Network has been meeting on Tuesday nights, rotating to various sites in Huntsville, to protest the war in Iraq. There have also been Saturday morning protests and Sunday night vigils.

Moss said all the group's previous dealings with Huntsville police have been positive. Police did ticket one driver for violating a noise ordinance for excessive honking one night in January, but that hasn't been a problem since. There had been no arrests.

"I really don't see what purpose is served by taking this young man and locking him up," Moss said.

Gilliam has a job, a car, a cell phone. He said he pays his bills. He said his only crime is disagreeing with the federal government.

Now he is saving money to buy a ticket to move overseas, possibly to New Zealand.

"Love it or leave it?" he asked. "Buy me a ticket. I'll leave."

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