On The Front Lines
Rutherford Institute Calls on Tom Perriello to Champion the Right of Tea Party Activists and Others to Peacefully Protest Outside His C'ville Office
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.-- John W. Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute, is calling on Congressman Tom Perriello to lend his full support to constituents belonging to the Jefferson Area Tea Party and the Charlottesville Center for Peace and Justice (CCPJ). These organizations plan to exercise their First Amendment rights to free speech and assembly on June 14 and June 16, respectively, by protesting in front of Perriello's Charlottesville office. In his letter to Perriello, Whitehead urges the congressman to contact Lisa Murphy, his landlord at the Glass Building, in order to voice his "support for these upcoming exercises in freedom and request that neither group's protest be threatened or disrupted by police."
A copy of The Rutherford Institute's letter is available here.
"As the Supreme Court has noted, although the First Amendment is often inconvenient, that does not absolve the government of its obligation to tolerate speech. I would go one step further to say that the government not only has an obligation to tolerate speech but to champion it," stated Whitehead. "The ideals of the First Amendment are not served when citizens have their right to speak and demonstrate restricted to designated locations such as public sidewalks remote from their congressman's office. Thus, offering to have staffers meet with protesters at a remote location is not an acceptable compromise."
Whitehead's letter follows up on concerns he first raised in December 2009 that the location of Perriello's office impinges on the ability of his constituents to freely and peaceably assemble and petition him as their government representative for a redress of grievances. Furthermore, Whitehead points out, The Rutherford Institute remains concerned about the location of Perriello's Charlottesville office, situated as it is in a business complex that has shown itself to be unwelcoming to protesters--at least, conservative-minded protesters. Illustrating his point, Whitehead noted that a group of 15-20 members of CCPJ conducted an uninterrupted anti-war demonstration in front of Perriello's office in May 2010, on the very same private property from which members of the Jefferson Area Tea Party and the University of Virginia College Republicans were barred last fall.
Whitehead was careful to point out that his complaint is not with the private business owners located in and near the Glass Building. "Indeed," wrote Whitehead, "we have great sympathy for them. These are difficult times economically, and it is understandable that business owners would want to ensure that nothing discourages customers from frequenting their establishments. Moreover, The Rutherford Institute fully recognizes the right of an individual to limit access to his or her private property. To this end, their priority must be the financial viability of their businesses. That said, however, your priority as you swore in your oath of office must be to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. To this end, you have a duty to ensure that all of your constituents with their varied viewpoints are able to freely exercise their rights."
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