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Fort Lauderdale sued over security for OAS
Associated Press
Published May 22, 2005
FORT LAUDERDALE - Civil rights groups have sued Fort Lauderdale and Broward County over an ordinance that would restrict protests at next month's Organization of American States meeting, saying it stifles free speech.
The lawsuit filed Friday in federal court seeks to overturn the city ordinance that limits the number of demonstrators, restricts the signs they can carry and keeps them at least a mile from Broward's convention center, where the OAS meeting will be held June 5-7. "The government's milewide security perimeter keeps protesters out of sight and out of mind, and essentially sends a message that people's fundamental right to express themselves is no longer tolerated," said Zeina Salam, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union.
City officials defended the ordinance.
"These are not draconian measures," said Fort Lauderdale City Commissioner Dean Trantalis.
The OAS is an organization of 34 Western Hemisphere countries that deals with expanding democracy and trade and protecting human rights.
[Last modified May 22, 2005, 01:06:16]
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