GaslightingAssange Part 20: Ordinary Seagull or a Canary? A Sentinel for Global Freedoms
Journalists need workplace safety in order to report news which matters to the public but powerful people might want to keep secret. Global citizens need speech freedom in order to participate in democracy.
I’m still reflecting on the powerful theatre art installation that Dame Vivienne Westwood did last month. She dressed in a fashionable, beautifully fitted yellow suit, adorned her face with make up mimicking the face of a canary, entered a bird cage and was elevated up off the ground right out front of a British court where Julian Assange’s extradition hearing will be held in less than a month.
Vivienne is an un-charged British citizen with no criminal record. — Julian Assange is an un-charged Australian citizen on remand at the behest of the United States.
Vivienne was in a cage. — Julian Assange is in a cage, maximum security cell at Belmarsh prison, uncharged.
Vivienne dressed like a canary in a coal-mine to draw attention to the upcoming extradition case. — Julian Assange is the canary in the coal-mine who is being put down the shaft of the mine which unearths important news, data and documents (journalism, publishing).
Julian Assange is the “Sentinel” for Press Freedom. He is a human sentinel on behalf of every journalist in the world who will be within prosecutorial reach of the U.S. along with all bloggers, activists and protesters. Sentinel species are organisms, often animals, used to detect risks to humans by providing advance warning of a danger.
Here is an explanatory piece about the practice of putting a canary in a cage to be shuttled into a mine shaft came. In short, it’s a low-tech, effective method for testing workplace safety for the miners working deep under the earth for long periods of time. They used a canary to test the air quality. If the canary surfaced alive, the workplace was safe (ish) and if it came back dead, then it was not safe.
(from Wikipedia, Sentinel Species entry)
The idea of placing a canary or other warm blooded animal in a mine to detect carbon monoxide was first proposed by John Scott Haldane, in 1913 or later. Well into the 20th century, coal miners brought canaries into coal mines as an early-warning signal for toxic gases, primarily carbon monoxide. The birds, being more sensitive, would become sick before the miners, who would then have a chance to escape or put on protective respirators.
Julian Assange is the proverbial Canary in the Coal Mine for Press Freedom because if a British court who allows him to be sent to the United States, where he will be “shafted”. If the UK permits his extradition to the US where everyone knows he will not get a fair trial, be tortured, is high risk for suicide, be subject to coercion and plea bargaining in a court with an almost 100 percent track record of “successful” prosecutions (and plans to expand its deployment of the Espionage Act on more journalists, bloggers, activists, whistleblowers and sources), then it will be very clear that the work environment of all journalists from around the world is not safe. It will be clear that investigative journalism and publishing is prosecutable and the US has an appetite to do more prosecuting. It will be clear that even people who aren’t journalists, publishers or employees of news organizations will be investigated, hounded and prosecuted for volunteer and/or paid work they do on behalf of climate change, animal welfare, Black Lives Matter, anti-white-Nationalism or any other “cause”. Essentially, the prosecution of Assange erodes everyone’s ability to participate in dissent, either online, at work, doing volunteer work or showing up for rallies/protests. Just like China.
The message coming from China to anyone fighting for democracy, free speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of association, freedom of religion and all civil liberties is this: Do not resist our power. If you do, you will be punished, jailed, beaten, some of you will be maimed or murdered by our sanitized police forces. This will happen in shopping malls, at protests, at university campuses and at media organizations. You will be arrested on camera and you will be subjected to a “perp walk”. Just like Julian Assange.
If the US can prosecute Julian Assange as an example to all other human, environmental, social justice and animal rights defenders then the hazards to every Global citizen increase. Julian Assange has exposed vast amounts of crime, war crimes, injustice, collusion and illegalities, therefore his life will be publicly exposed to maximum punishment, degradation, deprivation and humiliation. He will be robbed of all of his belongings, his family, children and any human comfort and permanently installed into the equivalent of a human mausoleum (my short hand for S.A.M.S, Special Administrative Measures, maximum security).
WATCH: Vivienne Westwood who is the whistling canary in the coal mine. “Let me out!”. She speaks in persona Julian Assange. She chirps, squaks and speaks for all of us.
If the US can indict Julian Assange, improvise its case before UK courts, disregard rule of law and conventions against torture and pervert justice with impunity then Greta Thunberg is next. She is a sentinel for climate activism. Assange is no ordinary seagull. He is a sentinel for press freedom and all other human rights.
WATCH this panel discussion about What Assange would face if he is extradited to the U.S.. Compelling 90 min. — must watch.
Last word goes to Assange’s father, John Shipton.