[Noisebridge-discuss] Skateboarding solidarity and police abuse

[Brian Molnar]

Given that this video starts well into the arrest, and certainly after the
incident that caused it, I can't really opine as to whether the arrest and
force was justified. But I do want to make some societal observations
however...

It's comforting to see how San Francisco cops (and generally Norcal cops)
are more tolerant than Ohio cops. Dealing with Ohio cops is painful, because
most of them like to exert their power over people, especially when someone
tries to stand up for their rights or otherwise talks back to an officer.

I also like how cops here understand the concept of responsible hedonism a
little better than the cops in Ohio. When it comes to things like
recreational drug use and drinking, Ohio has a very large stick up its ass.
The police there are enforcing very morally conservative laws, and more
often than not, the cops themselves aren't very bright and aren't able to
see that there is a big difference between someone who uses drugs and
someone who is a 'bad guy'.

In Ohio I've been stopped and harrassed by cops when coming out of a bar
noticeably drunk. Even when I tell them I'm walking home or taking a cab,
they still give me shit for being drunk in public and tell me I could be
arrested (mind you, I wasn't even making a ruckus. At most, I was telling
loud jokes and staggering). Contrast this to my typical weekends in Palo
Alto or Mountain View where the cops see me staggering out of a bar and hail
me a cab.

- Brian

On Wed, Sep 30, 2009 at 7:15 PM, Jacob Appelbaum <jacob at appelbaum.net>wrote:

> Hi *,
>
> I'm not sure how many Noisebridgers read metblogs but I found this post
> today:
> http://sf.metblogs.com/2009/09/30/cop-ill-break-your-arm-like-a-twig/
>
> I'm not much of a Skateboarder these days, I'm mostly a fan of riding my
> bicycle. But I am absolutely a fan of reasonable and equitable force.
> The SFPD officer is seen threatening a person with physical violence
> after asking them their opinion. It appears that he also confirms later
> violence against the person for "resisting" their arrest.
>
> If anyone knows people in internal affairs for the SFPD or journalists
> that care about social justice - please consider passing this along!
>
> Video camera ubiquity is a nice democratic force for changing power
> structures and reprimanding abuse. This kind of stuff should not be
> tolerated in a civil society.
>
> Best,
> Jake
>
>
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>
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