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"Police Brutality at the Democratic National Convention" (Christian children attacked)

August 29, 2008 by richardmyers

[excerpts] DENVER, Aug. 28 /Christian Newswire/ -- Police officers use excessive force and brutality in arresting two young women, aged 17 and 15 years old, at the Democratic National Convention in Denver for peacefully demonstrating yards away from where Senator Obama is staying.

Also arrested was the Rev. Patrick J. Mahoney, Director of the Christian Defense Coalition of Washington, DC.

Jayne White, 17, and Julia Giacopuzzi, 15, both from Lake Arrowhead, California, were arrested in front of the Westin Hotel where Senator Barack Obama is staying while at the Democratic National Convention.

The two young women were arrested, without warning, while peacefully writing pro-life messages on the sidewalk in front of the Westin Hotel with sidewalk chalk where Senator Obama is staying.

Rev. Mahoney was arrested and threatened with a felony for leading the event.

After being arrested, the group was later released.

The group had received permission to sidewalk chalk from Denver City Attorney David Fine and Denver Deputy Chief Police John Lamb and had been "sidewalk chalking" for six days prior to the arrests.

Jayne White

Jayne White, age 17, was rushed from behind, physically forced to the ground, had a police officer dig his knee into the back of her neck, pulled her arms and cuffed her behind her back.

Julia Giacopuzzi

Julia Giacopuzzi, age 15, was rushed by a police officer, had her arms twisted behind her back, lifted up off the ground and then cuffed.

Video of the arrests:

[video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Ev3QO3NzbM]

Jayne White, age 17, states, "I was peacefully sidewalk chalking when I was forcefully pushed to ground by a police officer from behind. As I was being cuffed on the ground, the police officer pushed his knee into the back of my neck. I was pulled roughly off the ground and taken away. I was given no warning to stop and was completely shocked when I was arrested. My back was throbbing from his knee."

Julia Giacopuzzi, age 15, comments, "As I was sidewalk chalking, I was rushed by a police officer without warning and lifted up off the ground and was cuffed. I was then dragged by the police into the Westin Hotel."

More info:

http://www.earnedmedia.org/cdc0828.htm

Comments

BS

August 30, 2008 by Anonymous, 1 year 12 weeks ago
Comment id: 676

Why is this on here? These girls were most likely arrested so that the DPD could cover their asses and avoid charges of targeting the left while leaving the right-wing protesters alone (which they did). Yes, it's ridiculous that these two girls were arrested, but it was obvious that the DPD was protecting the right-wing protesters and attacking the left all week long- this video and article serves no purpose except to protect the cops and it should be taken down from this site.

This is an important story

August 30, 2008 by Anonymous, 1 year 12 weeks ago
Comment id: 679

Why does it make you so uncomfortable to realize that in a police state, the right and the left may discover they have something in common?

living community against the State

September 3, 2008 by Anonymous, 1 year 11 weeks ago
Comment id: 883

"Common", as I understand it, is beyond left and right.

Common understanding is always alive and never a Truth written in stone. It is living in local, immediate/unmediated, spontaneous, informal, grassroots communication.

Commons are neither private or public property, they are our common anti-property. ("our" locally, immediately! not in any abstract - national, religious, ideological - sense)

All authority, be it public or private, political or religious, within the community or from without it, works to divide us from our community, and politics is the management of the fragments of these communities exploded by authority and property.

At this junction in history, we probably have nothing much in common outside of the struggle against authority, property and politics. Only in a shared struggle (a struggle to share) will we find out who "we" are.

Don't trust democratic anti-fascism

September 3, 2008 by Anonymous, 1 year 11 weeks ago
Comment id: 886

Anti-authoritarians and 'commonistas' should not put their trust on an anti-fascist alliance with liberals, democrats and socialists. Gilles Dauvés essay, drawing from experiences in Italy, Germany and Spain in the first half of the 20th century, is very helpful in understanding this.

"Fascism is the adulation of the statist monster, while anti-fascism is its more subtle apology. The fight for a democratic state is inevitably a fight to consolidate the state, and far from crippling totalitarianism, such a fight increases totalitarianism's stranglehold on society."

Gilles Dauvé: When Insurrections Die (1979)
http://libcom.org/library/when-insurrections-die

I don't see how this makes the cops look good.

August 30, 2008 by Anonymous, 1 year 12 weeks ago
Comment id: 680

If the police had made these arrests to cover up for partiality shown to Right-wing protesters in other instances, the arrests would have been carried out in a very different way. Perhaps a tap on the shoulder, followed by "Excuse me miss, you have to come with me. You're under arrest." Then there would be a big press release saying, "See, we busted some Right-wingers. We're fair and balanced!"

It looks to me like, whatever policy may have been handed down from the upper echelons of the police department, or whatever informal policy may have been followed by other cops, these two cops are nothing but brutes. They are obviously not committed to ANY ideas or values, except the perverse pleasure they get from perpetrating violence.

Jumping two children from behind, forcing a huge man's knee into a small person's neck, and pulling someone off the ground by her tied-up arms is brutality--plain and simple.

The Issue Here is Dissent & Democracy

August 30, 2008 by Anonymous, 1 year 11 weeks ago
Comment id: 682

The real story of DNC08 is the way that it has further exposed the militarization of our police forces and the criminalization of dissent. Just because I don't agree with the message that these women were trying to communicate doesn't mean that they didn't have a right - and a duty! - to communicate it. Creating a dialog with everyone, especially those we disagree with, is the heart of democracy.

It doesn't matter whether those on the streets were right-wing or left-wing, anarchists or right-to-lifers. The suppression of dissent is the suppression of dissent, and must be confronted. To call for the suppression of a story like this because you don't share the victims' political leanings does more to buttress the actions of the police and the DNC than telling it does.

We must not let ourselves become a party to the state's repression, nor let our beliefs become the walls of someone else's prison!

Show the "excessive force"

August 30, 2008 by Anonymous, 1 year 11 weeks ago
Comment id: 685

The excessive force is not visible, and without such visibility there is no case for that. They were arrested for chalking, and though they shouldn't have been, they may have been ordered specifically. What is the charge? This does seem like a C.Y.A. ploy by police. I sat and watched them do nothing to intervene when right winger violated the same city ordinances the cops noted as their reason for brutally attacking a crowd on Monday night. Why is there no footage of that police riot that we all remember on indymedia? It was on Democracy Now! and that was not all the footage available. What appeared on Amy Goodman's program was some of the footage gathered by CopWatch and maybe a couple of other people. Honestly folks, the place was swarming with camcorders and digital cams - where is that footage?

Did anyone get...

August 30, 2008 by Anonymous, 1 year 11 weeks ago
Comment id: 686

Did anyone get the name or badge number of the cops? How do we know this video is authentic? When did this happen, what officers were involved? Prove this wasn't staged!

Excellent opportunity for you to contribute

August 30, 2008 by richardmyers, 1 year 11 weeks ago
Comment id: 687

If you follow the "More Info" link, you will find the original webpage, with additional information and phone numbers. I'd appreciated seeing more information, and i expect that it can be obtained simply by dialing those numbers.

richard myers

What were their parents thinking?

September 1, 2008 by Anonymous, 1 year 11 weeks ago
Comment id: 831

Their parents apparently brought them to Denver and allowed them to be exposed to police brutality. Shame. Maybe the realization that the police are not their friend will cause a change of heart and mind. I know it did for me.

Lake Arrowhead is an insular mountain community in Southern California. At the base of the mountain sits "Campus Crusade for Christ."

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Open Newswire

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Lo que los curas del CEM no quieren es que el pueblo Mexicano, unido al SME, siga la trayectoria de don Miguel Hidalgo y les arrebate la jugosa ganancia.

Yo les pido a los curas del CEM que ya no nos “salven”.
¡¡Larguense de aquí!! ¡¡Larguense!! ¡¡Larguense!! ¡¡Larguense!! ¡¡Larguense!! ¡¡Larguense de México y de todo este continente!!
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Chickenhawk Hall of Shame
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<p>Compiled by <a href="http://www.nhgazette.com/">The New Hampshire Gazette</a></p>

<p>When an American male (or an especially belligerent female) makes the challenging transition from late adolescence into early adulthood, he is faced with many decisions. One certain, specific combination of choices will result in his becoming a chickenhawk: choosing to “support” war, while also choosing not to serve in the military. His motto becomes: “Let’s you and him go fight; I’ll hold your coat.”</p>

<p>Depending on external circumstances, such an individual may become one of three varieties of chickenhawk:</p>
<p>• If there is no draft, and the nation is at peace, the individual becomes a Common Chickenhawk;</p>
<p>• If there is a draft, and the nation is at peace, the individual becomes a Chickenhawk First Class;</p>
<p>• If the there is a draft, and the nation is at war, the individual becomes a Chickenhawk First Class with Distinguished Fleeing Cross.</p>

<p>We currently have 132 Chickenhawks listed in our database. Here they are, listed chronologically by date of birth. <a href="http://www.nhgazette.com/chickenhawks/?sort_list=0">CLICK HERE</a> to see them listed alphabetically.</p>

<p><a href="http://www.nhgazette.com/nominate/?id=-1&action=new">Nominate a Chickenhawk</a></p>

<p>posted by the <a href="http://wintersoldier.org">Thomas Paine Project</a> (FYI: the organization is run by veterans)</p>

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AdaptiveThemes