No Police State Coalition

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The No Police State Coalition is a liberal activist group from New York City. It was formed in protest to the Iraq War. Aside from protesting the war, it also preaches freedom of speech and socialism. The group stages regular demonstrations in New York's Union Square Park.

It is the group's belief that the Iraq War is an act of imperialism, and that the root cause is capitalism. It contrasts the United States's system with that of Cuba, and advocates adopting socialism.

During one of the Union Square demonstrations the president of the Coalition, Geoffrey Blank, was arrested for using a megaphone without first obtaining a permit. Blank and the group argue that the permit law is unconstitutional, violating the first amendment. Citing the Supreme Court case Saia v. People of State of New York, they say that it is reasonable to control volume and hours of speech by permits, but the specific New York City law that prohibits electronic amplifiers such as megaphones is used to create a chilling effect on anti-government speech.

Critics of the group consider them to be inflammatory. For example, the group often carries a banner that reads "Stop Bush", with the "S" of "Bush" replaced by a swastika. The No Police State Coalition says that a comparison between the United States under the Bush administration and Nazi Germany is apt, but many believe that the banner is an exaggeration, and is unnecessarily offensive.