RNC protests

[sophia jane]

I'm in the middle of covering the police brutality happening at RNC protests and I need help.
I need news links
video footage
pics
contacts

If anyone can help, knows people, whatever, please let me know. We have a good friend whose 17 year old son went to protest and was brutally beaten by the police yesterday.

I'm covering it for the blog I write and trying to reach out to more media outlets to get more awareness. I can link people to my blogs if you're interested.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

The little bastard needs to stay home out of harm's way.

 

[Guest]

I'm in the middle of covering the police brutality happening at RNC protests and I need help.
I need news links
video footage
pics
contacts

If anyone can help, knows people, whatever, please let me know. We have a good friend whose 17 year old son went to protest and was brutally beaten by the police yesterday.

I'm covering it for the blog I write and trying to reach out to more media outlets to get more awareness. I can link people to my blogs if you're interested.

Links, please?

I hope he's okay.

 

[sophia jane]

Sending links via pm to those who are interested since it's under my real name, as well as his name and his parents.

 

[Guest]

The pictures are horrible, SJ.

He's obviously been seriously beaten.

I hope something positive comes from this.

 

[fieryjen]

Sending links via pm to those who are interested since it's under my real name, as well as his name and his parents.

I'd like the link, please, once you get a moment. I'm not sure whether I can help, but this sounds awful.

 

[sophia jane]

The pics I posted aren't even the worst. His mom literally has 87 different pics of the wounds.
Head to toe.

 

[Guest]

The pics I posted aren't even the worst. His mom literally has 87 different pics of the wounds.
Head to toe.

Forward the blog and the pictures to CNN.

They love pictures.

 

[Boxlicker101]

I'm in the middle of covering the police brutality happening at RNC protests and I need help.
I need news links
video footage
pics
contacts

If anyone can help, knows people, whatever, please let me know. We have a good friend whose 17 year old son went to protest and was brutally beaten by the police yesterday.

I'm covering it for the blog I write and trying to reach out to more media outlets to get more awareness. I can link people to my blogs if you're interested.

What was the kid doing there? I'm not implying that he had no business being there; I'm asking what he was doing while he was there. If he was peacefully protesting, that's one thing. If he was smashing and burning and destroying and resisting arrest when apprehended, that's quite another.

I think you will find that when you go looking for trouble, you will usually find it. If he was not looking for trouble, that's different.

 

[fieryjen]

Damn. That really is awful.

I hope you and his parents are successful in your actions, and something good will come of this terrible incident.

 

[fieryjen]

What was the kid doing there? I'm not implying that he had no business being there; I'm asking what he was doing while he was there. If he was peacefully protesting, that's one thing. If he was smashing and burning and destroying and resisting arrest when apprehended, that's quite another.

I think you will find that when you go looking for trouble, you will usually find it. If he was not looking for trouble, that's different.

Well SJ's blog says he was a practicing Buddhist - what do you think?

 

[rgraham666]

Oh shit. *HUGS* sj.

 

[Guest]

What was the kid doing there? I'm not implying that he had no business being there; I'm asking what he was doing while he was there. If he was peacefully protesting, that's one thing. If he was smashing and burning and destroying and resisting arrest when apprehended, that's quite another.

I think you will find that when you go looking for trouble, you will usually find it. If he was not looking for trouble, that's different.

Why do some always immediately blame the victim?

Box, I realize you haven't seen the blog but it says he was leaving. He was with a small group of friends, including his minister? far away from the action.

 

[Boxlicker101]

Why do some always immediately blame the victim?

Box, I realize you haven't seen the blog but it says he was leaving. He was with a small group of friends, including his minister? far away from the action.

Just asking, Sarah. No, I haven't seen the blog. I find it hard to believe the cops would go out of their way to attack someone when they have plenty of actual vandals and other law breakers to deal with. I have no affection for the cops, but I know they have priorities, and beating up innocent kids is not a high one.

 

[sophia jane]

Just asking, Sarah. No, I haven't seen the blog. I find it hard to believe the cops would go out of their way to attack someone when they have plenty of actual vandals and other law breakers to deal with. I have no affection for the cops, but I know they have priorities, and beating up innocent kids is not a high one.

He was just there. He had a bag, reached into it which provoked the cops but he put it down when they asked. It was, from what I know, an incident of over-reaction.
But honestly, I don't know that his actions even if he had been destroying property (which he wasn't) should have led to FIVE police officers beating him, leaving boot marks on his back, leaving open wounds filled with pepper spray, leaving him so bloodied that he required a trip to the ER when his parents finally found him.
AND no matter what, it is not okay to release a juvenile without ever contacting parents, just putting him on the street at night with no phone or belongings and his clothes ripped up by the beating.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

He found what he went looking for.

 

[Boxlicker101]

He was just there. He had a bag, reached into it which provoked the cops but he put it down when they asked. It was, from what I know, an incident of over-reaction.
But honestly, I don't know that his actions even if he had been destroying property (which he wasn't) should have led to FIVE police officers beating him, leaving boot marks on his back, leaving open wounds filled with pepper spray, leaving him so bloodied that he required a trip to the ER when his parents finally found him.
AND no matter what, it is not okay to release a juvenile without ever contacting parents, just putting him on the street at night with no phone or belongings and his clothes ripped up by the beating.

This still sounds fishy to me. Without defending the cops, which I will never do, they have better things to do than what you describe. It is not unknown for radical groups to beat up a willing member of their group, inflicting superficial wounds, and point at the "victim" and claim police brutality. I notice that is what you asked people to do in your first post.

I also believe in innocent until proven guilty, and that includes the cops.

 

[Guest]

This still sounds fishy to me. Without defending the cops, which I will never do, they have better things to do than what you describe. It is not unknown for radical groups to beat up a willing member of their group, inflicting superficial wounds, and point at the "victim" and claim police brutality. I notice that is what you asked people to do in your first post.

I also believe in innocent until proven guilty, and that includes the cops.

Here are the pictures from the blog. I think the third one, with the shoe print, is quite telling.

http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b318/sweetsubsarahh/arminjuries-brutality.jpg


http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b318/sweetsubsarahh/Bodyinjuries-brutality.jpg


http://i22.photobucket.com/albums/b318/sweetsubsarahh/shoeprintbrutality.jpg

I am a solid supporter of police, Box. In fact, whenever there is a police issue discussed here I'm usually one of the few on their side.

But this is just wrong. I sent the pictures to CNN along with the story. I know SJ has, too. We'll see what happens.

 

[sophia jane]

This still sounds fishy to me. Without defending the cops, which I will never do, they have better things to do than what you describe. It is not unknown for radical groups to beat up a willing member of their group, inflicting superficial wounds, and point at the "victim" and claim police brutality. I notice that is what you asked people to do in your first post.

I also believe in innocent until proven guilty, and that includes the cops.

Well that's not what happened, nor what I am trying to do. I personally believe that this is something people should know about because it's wrong. Not because I'm bored and want to start an issue about nothing.

 

[Guest]

Well that's not what happened, nor what I am trying to do. I personally believe that this is something people should know about because it's wrong. Not because I'm bored and want to start an issue about nothing.

Indeed.

And do you know that it made me nervous to send them the story?

In this political climate I actually felt uncomfortable alerting a news outlet as to something that had occurred outside of the RNC.

I cannot stand this feeling of looking over my shoulder because I will be seen as "unpatriotic" and against the president's wishes.

What has happened to this country?

 

[Shwenn]

This still sounds fishy to me. Without defending the cops, which I will never do, they have better things to do than what you describe. It is not unknown for radical groups to beat up a willing member of their group, inflicting superficial wounds, and point at the "victim" and claim police brutality. I notice that is what you asked people to do in your first post.

I also believe in innocent until proven guilty, and that includes the cops.

It is no less known for a cop to infiltrate a protest as a protestor and try to incite violence.

I have seen footage, which I can try to find for you, of one protestor getting violent. All the other protestors are telling the cops, "This guy is not with us. Nobody knows him. He hasn't a single friend among us."

Later, they have close up shots of the cops restraining this 'violent protestor' who is wearing the exact same boots as the cops who are restraining him.

 

[epiphany65]

Here's a link to a video. There's a shot of the police indiscriminately spraying a crowd (including reporters) with pepper spray -- although many of those I see in the video don't exactly look like innocent by-standers:
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1630487466?bctid=1768031599

 

[sophia jane]

Indeed.

And do you know that it made me nervous to send them the story?

In this political climate I actually felt uncomfortable alerting a news outlet as to something that had occurred outside of the RNC.

I cannot stand this feeling of looking over my shoulder because I will be seen as "unpatriotic" and against the president's wishes.

What has happened to this country?

I know it. I feel slightly safer behind my almost badge of free press and because our senator was alerted personally this morning as to what's going on. But it is scary to stand up and raise a stink about this kind of shit. Did you look at the pic I posted in my first blog today? Local media took that pic and it's pretty telling that he wasn't doing a damned thing wrong.

 

[Guest]

SJ - I just sent it to Twin Cities . com - the same folks who had the video that epiphany just posted (thanks for that, by the way!

Since they are more local perhaps there will be quicker results.

 

[epiphany65]

I know it. I feel slightly safer behind my almost badge of free press and because our senator was alerted personally this morning as to what's going on. But it is scary to stand up and raise a stink about this kind of shit. Did you look at the pic I posted in my first blog today? Local media took that pic and it's pretty telling that he wasn't doing a damned thing wrong.

Here's an article about 2 reporters who weren't doing anything wrong either. Yet one was attacked from behind by a police officer, kicked in the ribs and arrested:
http://www.twincities.com/allheadlines/ci_10358699?nclick_check=1