Independence Day, July 4, 2008
For 40 years civil liberties attorney and champion advocate for the public, Norman Siegel has observed the Fourth of July by reading the Declaration of Independence and selections from the US Constitution with an emphasis on the Bill of Rights.
Last year for the first time he was joined by members of the Granny Peace Brigade in Strawberry Fields, Central Park to read sections of these documents aloud. We were back again this year joined by Grandmothers Against the War, CodePink and Reverend Billy to honor the good principles in these founding documents: free speech, freedom of religion, freedom of the press, equal protection under the law, and due process of the law.

Norman Siegel reading the Declaration of Independence
Photo - Richard Leigh

Joan Wile assisted by Jonathan Tasini reading a poem by Yoko Ono
Photo - Richard Leigh

Jenny Heinz reading the Bill of Rights
Photo - Richard Leigh

State Senator Bill Perkins reading the Bill of Rights
Photo - Richard Leigh

Molly Klopot reading the Bill of Rights
Photo - Richard Leigh

Listening to Molly
Photo - Richard Leigh

Laura Newman a member of Reverend Billy’s Church of Stop Shopping Choir belting out the 1st Amendment
Photo - Richard Leigh

Thank you, Norman Siegel
Photo - Richard Leigh
We’ve got a lot of work to do to move this country in a better direction. Hope to see you in the streets.
- Eva-Lee Baird
July 5th, 2008 at 8:00 pm
It’s great to see that Tasini was there. I really admired his primary challenge against Hillary Clinton.
August 27th, 2008 at 4:07 pm
Yeah, I admire the challenge, but not the man — he’s a pompous little guy.