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Know Your Rights

Given the current climate of increasing state and institutional repression against organisers and activists, both student and non-student alike, it is important that we have access to the resources that we need to keep ourselves safe and confident in taking action. Despite the repression and scare tactics used by institutions to try and quell us, many laws and services exist to defend our right to protest. Organisers and professionals have dedicated lots of time to making this information publicly available, but it is not always clear where to look. Though we would ideally like to summarise here all the information you may need when taking action, the constantly changing laws and the variable levels of repression seen on different campuses make it very difficult to do so. So, we’re signposting you to resources where you can access updated information to suit your different needs. This includes the information you need to know before going on a protest, how to plan for action safety, and what to do during and after actions.

Sections

Key Resources for Protesting on Campus

Your Rights as a Member of a Marginalised Group

Stop and Search, Arrest and Legal Support

Key resources for university protests

(add disclaimer about this not being legal advice):

Liberty’s practical protest guide campus edition

Who are they?

Liberty: an independent organisation campaigning for civil liberties and human rights.

What will you find?

  • What to bring and what not to bring to protests
  • Some laws to be aware of (‘locking on’ during protests, or the use of face coverings)
  • Information about interactions with the police
  • What to do if you are arrested

Protesting at University: What are my rights?

What will you find?

  • The laws which define your right to protest in public universities
  • What to do if your university takes disciplinary action against you
  • What law enforcement powers university staff have
  • Police powers in university
  • Legal information on university occupations and encampments
  • Where to find protest legal support and legal observers (EXPLAIN)

Legal briefing for University encampments

What will you find?

  • The relevant legislation including:
    • Directions to leave
    • Aggravated Trespass
    • Violating conditions on public assemblies
    • Public Order Acts
    • Criminal Damage
  • Risks from Bailiffs or Civil Action:
    • Possession orders
    • Injunctions
  • Risks from University:
    • Disciplinaries
    • Fire safety
    • Risks for international students

Disciplinary procedures

  • Universities have their own disciplinary procedures. You should research this; the policy should be accessible through a quick google search.
  • If you have been subject to disciplinary action, you should contact a solicitor specializing in education law and human rights law. You can contact us or your SU for support with this.
  • Other external organisations have provided support to students facing disciplinary procedures related to political campaigns:
    • The European Legal Support Center
    • CAGE International

Disciplinary procedures often include:

  • An informal/initial opportunity to respond to allegations, often conducted through an ‘informal’ meeting. However, you should not treat these meetings as ‘off the record’; universities may use them as an opportunity to get an admission of guilt the cheap and easy way.
  • A preliminary investigation, where the university will attempt to collect information and assess whether or not a formal procedure should follow.
  • A written version of the offence you are being accused of, including the possible consequences if you are found to be guilty.
  • An investigator being appointed, who may ask to meet you. You will be given notice for this meeting, a copy of the relevant procedure, and should be provided with information on how to access support. Do not attend these meetings alone.
  • You will be informed of the next steps. The investigator may report back to a senior member of staff or to a disciplinary panel.
  • If a panel is set up, you should be informed of:
    • Who will sit on the panel
    • What is expected of you in front of the panel
    • Who can accompany you on the panel
    • Whether or not you will be ‘questioned’ on the panel, and whether or not witnesses will be called
    • How to access support prior to and during the proceedings
    • Whether or not any previous offences will be taken into account
    • A written report of all the hearings or meetings
  • Following the panels, you will be informed of the proceedings, including the possible penalties that could apply.
  • Should a penalty be selected, you will be informed of the reason for that decision. The decision makers ought to have taken into account various factors and implications, including extenuating circumstances. These may include:
    • Whether or not it is your first offence
    • Whether or not you admitted the offence at an early stage
    • Whether or not you expressed remorse
    • Whether or not you have personal circumstances which ‘affected’ your judgement
  • Once the outcome has been decided, you should be given information about:
    • Your right to appeal and how to appeal
    • The grounds on which you can appeal and the time limit for submitting an appeal
    • Where and how to access support
  • More in-depth information can be found here.

Liberty has a useful guide on how to proceed if you are subject to disciplinary action, including:

  • Who you should contact for support
  • How to prepare for meetings with the university
  • What may occur during the meeting
  • How to proceed after the meeting


Know Your Rights Training

What will you find?

Regular Know Your Rights and Legal Observer training sessions (the latter of these is currently paused). You can request a workshop for your own group.

How to run a Know Your Rights training

  • Check out this workshop design template
  • Make sure your group is informed about the possible laws that may be relevant during actions. You can find more information on this here.
  • You may consider including a ‘no comment’ roleplay section, to emphasize the importance of not interacting with the police, even when they seem friendly and sympathetic. You can find a template on page one of this guide.
  • Make sure your group is informed of stop and search procedures. You can find more information on this here.
  • Make sure your group is informed about how the experience of protest and relevant legislation can vary according to your social background. You can find some further information about this here.
  • Make sure your group is informed of the arrest process. This process includes:
    • Possibly being given a warning prior to your arrest, with conditions such as being asked to step off the road
    • Being told what you are being arrested for and possibly being placed in handcuffs
    • Being taken to the back of a police car or a van and being driven to a police station
    • Being ‘booked in’ by a Custody Sergeant, where you will be asked a set of questions. Make sure you inform your group that you SHOULD NOT answer any questions or provide any details to the Custody Sergeant, apart from your name, address and date of birth when asked.
    • Being given the opportunity to have someone informed of where you are and the opportunity to contact a solicitor.
    • Being searched and having your property taken from you and recorded
    • Being placed in a holding cell. After a while, your fingerprints, DNA and photographs will be taken.
    • Being given the right to have a ‘personal’ call with a friend or family member. Bear in mind that these calls likely will not be secure.
    • Being released from the cell within 24 hours, before which property which is not deemed to be evidence is returned to you.
    • To make this section more interactive, you can find guidance on this guide.
  • Make sure your group is informed on security culture. This includes:
    • Making sure you do not bring anything on protests which can be construed as a weapon or an item with which you can commit a protest offence
    • Making sure your phones are password protected with a pin rather than biometrics.
    • Making sure you only use Signal to communicate anything related to protests
    • Making sure people do not protest alone; they should be ‘buddied’ up with another and stick together during the protest.
    • A more in-depth look at security culture can be found here. A quiz can be used to make this section more interactive, found on page 4 of this guide.
      For bigger protests and demonstrations, make sure someone is prepared to do a ‘mic check’ announcement. These occur just before a demonstration begins to ensure people remember key information. A useful guide can be found here.

Your rights as a member of a marginalized group

Disclaimer:

The resources provided below do not contain campus-specific information regarding your rights as a member of a marginalized group. Rather, they outline how this membership affects your relationship with the law and law enforcement officers. Although the manifestations of this relationship will be similar in regards to your university, it is important to recognise that there may be particular issues to consider in a campus context. These include but are not limited to:

  • Whether or not you are on a student visa: the information listed under ‘arrest and immigration’ status is not student-specific. What happens to your legal status when you protest on a visa is largely up to home office discretion. Thus, the consequences for those on a student visa may include removal from your course.
  • The fact that university management may be more likely to target racialized students for disciplinary action
  • The possible use of Prevent: the legislation which enforces Islamophobia under the guise of ‘counter-terrorism’.

Being trans and protesting

Who are they?

Green & Black Cross: An independent, grassroots project providing resources and training for legal observers and arrestee support

What will you find?

  • Your rights as a trans person under the equality act
  • ‘Key messages’ to take into protests (no comment, no personal details, under what power, no caution)
  • Specific issues trans people may face during police stop and searches
  • Specific issues trans people may face if they are arrested

Arrest and Immigration Status

Who are they?

Informed Dissent: A group of volunteers providing activist legal support

What will you find?

  • The various factors which make it impossible to know for certain the implications of arrest on
  • What to consider in relation to your immigration status before going on a protest including:
    • What kind of visa you are on
    • Whether or not you have any planned future applications to the Home Office or other countries
    • The right to appeal and judicial review
    • Employer checks and insurance
  • Potential consequences including:
    • Deportation
    • Cancellation
    • Risk for future applications
    • Risk for asylum and humanitarian protection
    • Risk for naturalisation

Disabled people’s protest rights

Who are they?

Liberty x Disability Rights UK: the UK’s pan-disability charity set up to represent the needs of disabled people in the UK

What will you find?

  • Disabled people’s rights during protest and right not to be discriminated against
  • Information related to the police confiscating assistive equipment and ‘kettling’ (when the police surround and block protestors from moving)
  • Interactions with the police including:
    • Do you need to answer their questions?
    • What happens if the police believe you are ‘vulnerable’
    • What assistance should be provided at the police station
    • Can the police use force against you?
  • How to make a complaint against the police in relation to disability rights
  • Useful tips when attending a protest including:
    • Managing medication
    • Voicing access needs
    • Preparation for protest
  • Useful tips when organising a protest:
    • Prioritising accessibility in planning
    • Providing notice to the police
    • Information regarding the ‘Post-Rwanda’ Immigration Act and how it relates to disability rights

Stop and search, arrest and legal support

Stop and Search

What will you find?

  • Information on when you can be stopped, when you can be searched and what you can be searched for
  • Information on what happens when you get searched, what to be weary of when being searched, and what happens should you be caught with an item they suspected you of possessing
  • Having items seized and getting receipts for this
  • Information on what police can do with your phone
  • How to register a complaint against a stop and search

Laws commonly used at protests

What will you find?

  • The laws which may be in play during protests, both campus and non-campus, including:
    • Obstruction of the Highway
    • Trespass/Aggravated Trespass
    • Dispersal Order
    • Obstructing Workplaces: Trade Union Law

Arrest Process

What will you find?

  • What details to give the police, and what not to give
  • What happens during arrest
  • Your rights in police custody
  • What happens during a police station interview
  • Why you shouldn’t usually accept a caution
  • What happens when you are released from custody

What happens after arrest

What will you find?

  • What the different kinds of bail refer to, and what to do if you’ve been bailed
  • How to contact a solicitor and which solicitors to consider using
  • Writing statements and gathering evidence for a trial
  • What will happen to your personal belongings
  • How to access mutual support with other defendants
  • How to access emotional support for the arrest process

Palestine Action Proscription

Recently the direct action movement Palestine Action was proscribed by the UK government meaning that showing public support for the group could be prosecuted as a terror offence. Althought this ruling is being challenged, it is important to know your rights around what you can and can’t do under the current laws.

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