Anonymous is at it again, but this time the hacker collective is taking their online campaign to the real world, urging citizens in San Francisco to wear red on Monday evening at BART’s Civic Center Station.
The Bay Area Rapid Transit system was responsible for the denial of freedom of speech recently according to Anonymous members who posted:
“In the Bay Area, we’ve seen people gagged, and once more, Anonymous will attempt to show those engaging in the censorship what it feels like to be silenced.”
Anonymous has asked that the protest remain peaceful and that those participating carry video cameras to “record further abuses of power by the police and to legitimize the protest. The media will certainly spin this in an attempt to make our actions appear to be violent or somehow harmful to the citizenry at large.”
Jim Allison, a BART spokesman told the SFGate that his agency is aware of the project and that
“The safety of our customers is our No. 1 priority, and we’re going to do what we can to keep people safe,” while adding, “We’re just going to leave it at that.”
Allison would not say whether or not cellular service would once again be shut off at the station if protests occur, a fact in itself that puts passengers in danger as they lose the ability to contact emergency services.
If you are unfamiliar with the reason behind the original phone shutoff, a protest was planned on Thursday against the July 3 fatal shooting by BART police, however upon learning of those plans the organization turned off access to their underground cell phone numbers in downtown San Francisco.
After learning of the shutdown State Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco noted:
“I am shocked that BART thinks they can use authoritarian control tactics,” while he added, “BART’s decision was not only a gross violation of free speech rights; it was irresponsible and compromised public safety.”
According to Anonymous plans:
“We will be wearing ‘blood’ stained shirts for remembrance to the blood that is on the hands of the BART police.”
Will you be attending the protest?
