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“Freedom of the Press Has Gone Up in Smoke”: Protesters Demand U.S. Drop Charges Against Assange

HeadlineJul 11, 2023

In Washington, D.C., protesters are demanding the U.S. government drop its espionage charges against WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and for his immediate release from a British prison as he faces extradition from the U.K. to the U.S. Ben Cohen, co-founder of the ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s, and Jodie Evans, co-founder of the antiwar group CodePink, were arrested in the peaceful action last Thursday. Ben Cohen spoke to the crowd as he set fire to a copy of the Bill of Rights, saying, “Freedom of the press has gone up in smoke.”

Ben Cohen: “If the U.S. is allowed to continue this prosecution, the precedent that it sets is that the U.S. can arrest any journalist, of any nationality, in any country around the world, if they print something that the U.S. doesn’t like.”

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