By Alex Davidson
Car horns, stereos blasting, subways screeching and, most importantly, people complaining — these are the things that made New York City a loud place where everyone and everything could be heard, the former head of the New York Civil Liberties Union said.
But these things, according to Norman Siegel, current executive director emeritus of the group, could all disappear over time, starting with Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s “Silent Night” initiative.
“We used to be the city of big mouths,” he said about the mayor’s initiative to fine people for certain loud noises on city streets, which he views as one of many plans to silence local residents.
“Where are all the big mouths now?” he asked.
Siegel came to the Macdeonia A.M.E. Church Saturday to speak to parishioners and Flushing residents about the noise issue and building bridges between races, classes and communities in the nation’s most ethnically diverse county.
About 30 whites, blacks and Middle Easterners turned out for the event, but oddly enough there were no Asians even though Flushing has a large Korean, Chinese and Filipino population.
Siegel, who was born in Brooklyn in 1943, described himself as a “technician” for change, not to build literal bridges but to help others bridge different races, classes and communities by teaching them how to organize and use their power to achieve their desired goals.
“You first have to get a movement going with a strategy, goals, and an agenda, then seek out the technicians, such as reverends or rabbis,” he said. “Then if they’re good technicians, they’ll lay out the options for you, not tell you what to do.”
The ethnically diverse crowd, including Arabs, whites and blacks, gathered at the Flushing church for a weekend conference on defending civil liberties in the wake of Sept. 11, which triggered a series of controversial arrests of immigrants and other people suspected of having possible links with terrorists. The federal government also has urged citizens to report any suspicious activity undertaken by neighbors and co-workers.
Siegel said he was asked to stand up and talk about issues that some people felt uncomfortable tackling because they could be viewed as unpatriotic.
Siegel spoke loudly and comfortably from behind the pulpit about grassroots political organizing as he glanced toward the open window where traffic sounds came inside from Union Street in Flushing. He talked about race relations, the anti-globalization movement and even addressed audience concerns that the present level of patriotism in the United States rivals the sentiment in Nazi-era Germany in the 1930s.
The most important thing, he said, was that people start talking, even if everyone disagrees. He said it is important to just be heard.
Siegel, who led the NYCLU from 1985 to 2001 until resigning to run for public advocate, challenged cases involving civil liberties against former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani’s administration 27 times, claiming partial or full victory 23 of those times, his biography states.
But Siegel seemed more concerned Saturday about the future of America, warning that the public has to be aware of governmental actions during times of crisis. He said the passing of the USA Patriot Act last October, which made it easier for the government to obtain wire taps and search warrants on suspected foreign and domestic terrorists, sets a dangerous precedent.
“We don’t lose freedoms with one big bang overnight,” he said. “We lose them incrementally over time.”
Siegel encouraged the audience to talk to one another about their local problems, and then decide on how they want to solve them. After all this is decided, he said, contact the appropriate “technician” to help in the fight.
“It’s about activism, not apathy,” Siegel said in discussing both race and civil liberties. “The status quo is something we don’t have to accept.”
Siegel began his career with the ACLU in Atlanta in 1968 when he joined the Southern Justice and Voter Law Project as staff counsel. There he focused on voters’ rights and disenfranchisement, participating in campaigns in South Carolina, Florida, Virginia and Alabama.
It was then, he said, that he learned about non-violent direct action and the importance of open dialogues between people who want to start movements. He said the Civil Rights Movement was a good example of people fighting for a common cause, which also crossed racial and economic lines.
“I want people (now) to adopt that same spirit and inclusiveness,” he said. “I was here today to inspire and encourage people, and to give my personal experiences.”
Reach reporter Alex Davidson by email at TimesLedger@aol.com or by phone at 229-0300, Ext. 156
