EVENTS IN AND NEAR FREEPORT
FREEPORT TALES
Chris Hayes: "If Susan Collins is re-elected, remember this, she will continue to rubber stamp the Trump agenda and all that means, and mark my words, there will be more chances for her to install right wing justices in the court to help cement conservative control of that institution for another generation. Sam Alito is 76 years old. He’s all but confirmed he’s retiring soon. Clarence Thomas is 77. He’s already threatened to quit at least once. If Republicans hold the Senate, it seems essentially assured that both men will announce their retirement. Donald Trump will replace them with ideological zealots four decades their junior, and Susan Collins will hem and haw about how concerned she is and then she’ll vote to confirm then anyway, as she did with Brett Kavanaugh. So that is what the stakes are in the [Maine] Senate race.”
News Center Maine - Robert Peck of South Portland filed on Thursday a federal lawsuit against immigration enforcement agents saying they violated his First and Fourth amendment rights following an incident in January when agents threatened to arrest him for observing them in public.
Amid an immigration enforcement surge in Maine, Peck was watching U.S. Department of Homeland Security agents on the road in Scarborough at what Peck and his attorney described as a safe distance. Peck eventually stopped his car on Milliken Road, where he saw an immigration enforcement vehicle pull over, and two masked agents came to the window of his car, accusing him of violating a federal law that prevents civilians from forcibly impeding law enforcement.
Peck’s lawsuit described the agents, who were captured on video, as attempting to “chill and punish protected free speech by falsely claiming that this statute makes it a crime for Americans merely to observe the public activities of federal agents.”
The most recent lawsuit was filed in United States District Court under the Maine Civil Rights Act, citing a right for Americans to peacefully observe public government actions. The complaint, which Webbert provided to The Maine Monitor, stated that, in response to the sweeping immigration action unfolding in Maine and across the county, Americans observed, documented and protested the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s “terror campaign targeting immigrant communities of color.”
10 places where you can get seeds for free (pressherald.com)
Maine Biz - The University of New England earned a STARS Silver Rating for its sustainability achievements from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. This is the first time UNE has participated in the internationally recognized assessment.
With more than 1,300 participating institutions in 53 countries, STARS is regarded as the leading framework for assessing sustainability in higher education. “A silver rating for our first time participating is a tremendous accomplishment,” said Alethea Cariddi, UNE’s director in the Office of Sustainability.
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