Houston Democrats

HOUSTON, TX June 13, 2005

On May 18th 2005 the Halliburton Shareholders were met by activists from around the country to protest Halliburton's war profiteering, less than honest recruitment methods for their civilian workers in Iraq, and questionable accounting practices. The Houston Police Force had at least thirty officers in riot gear, on horses and armed with batons, sidearms, and tazers, to greet fewer than 300 activists. Many more officers were present on the ground in uniform and plain clothes. Peaceful anti-war demonstrators and onlookers alike were terrified by officers who late in the morning charged their horses into the crowd, assaulted people with nightsticks, and then galloped their horses at full speed through a neighboring park, jumped over a protester, and toppled the Halliburton "cash cow." Citizens were stepped on by horses and videographers were targeted and arrested for filming these incidents.

On Tuesday June 21 at 7:30 PM local Houston anti-war organizers and concerned citizens will meet with Mayor White, City Council members, and other public officials for a public forum on police actions at the Halliburton protest. The forum will be held at the Architecture Theatre in the Gerald D. Hines College of Architecture at the University of Houston central campus. The architecture building faces Elgin Street between Cullen and Calhoun Streets. Metered public parking is available in the lot in front of the building at entrance 18.

Overstated police presence, the use of arbitrary force and the safety of future protests in this city will be specifically addressed. Concern will be raised over the content of a recently released report by the City of Houston police department, which is clearly disputed by written accounts of protesters and actual video footage taken by attendees. The mayor and public officials will be urged to answer questions about who authorized such an excessive police presence, why constitutional rights to assembly and free speech were not respected by the police, and what can be done to create a common ground of communication between protesters and police.

This forum will be hosted by activists from such community based groups as Code Pink, Progressive Action Alliance, Mama's Brigade and Houston Global Awareness. To learn more about the protesters' and independent media accounts of the police action visit www.houston.indymedia.org.

*FOR MORE INFO PLEASE CONTACT:*
*Katie Heim: 832-607-0375*
*Email: keh1022@yahoo.com