Coldsnap Legal Collective to provide legal services related to 2008 RNC in St. Paul

Want to get involved during the RNC?

Are you planning to be on the streets—or not?

Do more than just exercise your rights—

PROTECT THEM for yourself and your community!

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Coldsnap Legal Collective is working to protect our communities up to, during, and after the RNC.

You (yes, YOU!) can get involved by helping us:

• Coordinate a street team of legal-support activists

• Answer phones for our 24-hour jail-support hotline (651.356.8635)

• Staff our legal-support office

• Facilitate jail and court solidarity as needed

That’s right, you can do any or all of this! It’s easy and you’ll get to hang with some awesome people.

Seriously, legal-support folk are radtastic.

“Wow, Coldsnap, this sounds amazing. I’m dying to help out. How can I get involved?”

Why, just come to one of our meetings (e-mail coldsnap(a)riseup.net for more info). We will also be doing a series of open training sessions in August to train as many people as possible … and so you have no excuse not to come! Dates are to be determined, so stay posted! All of our activities can be done in conjunction with your other protest activities, or you can dedicate all your protest energies to us. We’ll welcome you either way!

To find out about future meetings, trainings, and other events and announcements, subscribe to our announcement listserv.

Here’s more info on our activities…

STREET TEAM

The street team will be made up of activists who are in the middle of the action and can keep an eye on what the cops are doing, so they can help protect people’s rights in the moment. Distinct from both legal observers and copwatchers, the street team will have a more interactive role of being trained to provide ad hoc legal rights trainings as needed on the street, serving as a vital part of the Coldsnap communications team, and witnessing and reporting police actions. For those of you who were planning on being on the streets anyway, all of this can be done while still participating in any demonstrations you would like to be a part of.

JAIL-SUPPORT HOTLINE

Our hotline will be available 24-hours a day before, during, and after the RNC. Protestors will be calling this hotline when they or people they know are arrested. We’ll take down their relevant info and facilitate getting them the support they need as they are processed through the system … turning their one phone call from jail into many. We’ll also be working closely with the National Lawyers Guild to ensure people have access to good lawyers while they’re being held and when it comes time to fight the charges levied against them.

LEGAL-SUPPORT OFFICE

We’ll need a ton of help to manage our jail-support database, make phone calls on behalf of political prisoners, and coordinate our efforts with other support groups.

JAIL & COURT SOLIDARITY

After activists are arrested, they often need people on the outside to put pressure on the jails and courts to ensure they are treated fairly, are not being abused, and are receiving the care they need. And they always need to know their communities support them! Coldsnap can help affinity groups learn their options for creating jail and court solidarity strategies, mobilize the community to call in to the jails to demand fair treatment, stage rallies outside the jails and courthouses, pack the courts during hearings, and bring media attention to the way political prisoners are being treated.

About Coldsnap…

We formed in January of this year to help radical activists create the legal-support infrastructure they need to protect themselves and their communities. We work to educate, empower, and support the radical community in the Twin Cities. As an open collective, we’re always looking for new volunteers and collective members. While our immediate focus is on the RNC, we plan to be around long after the Republicans all go home!