Disclaimer: No comment is made by me on the reproductive rights issues involved.

[mcity]

This photo is from a reproductive rights protest in Virginia. It's been making the rounds of Tumblr stressing out that a)this was at a peaceful protest, and b)it was in Virginia, not, Syria, Iraq, Egypt, etc.

http://apvonlineblog.wordpress.com/2012/03/05/march-3rd-2012-of-protests-and-bitch-slaps-by-jack-johnson/

That’s why they brought in the Capitol Police tactical force, or the Men in Green. At a distance I mistook them for an armed military presence. Close up, I realized they were not, but they are no less scary. I was assured, later, that they were indeed just ‘police’… A somewhat rarefied variety of the Capitol Police, like our S.W.A.T. teams, apparently. They were decked out entirely in green camouflage, with green helmets that looked exactly like military helmets and they wore the same specialized padding the State Troopers wore and they carried –this is the scary part—assault weapons (like the kind they use in the military when they are ‘assaulting’ something deadly – an enemy military force equipped with Light Weight Anti-Tank Weapons, say, or bombs made of plastic explosives or nuclear weapons hijacked by maniacal terrorists for that matter—not, however, American men, women and children interested in petitioning their government for a redress of grievances).

Why is it that people who know the least about the guns are usually most afraid of them and the most likely to run their mouths off? Police standards for use of force are a lot stricter than people think. The protest was taking place on the steps of the State Capitol, and consisted of over 800 activists. Given that the UC Davis "peaceful protestors" felt they could, for no good reason, actively obstruct and threaten the police going about their duties, I think a cautious armed response is justified for 800+ upset people who are right on the Capitol steps. A man holding a gun is not the same as a man willing to use that gun.

Though I do giggle at the whole "this is what they use when they go up against terrorists with nukes!" thing. I love it when people make it clear their knowledge is informed almost entirely by Call of Duty. I especially like how the start of the article explicitly points out that the protestors did not have a permit to be in the steps, and then complains about those meanie police actually enforcing the law.

Captain Goodloe of the Capitol Police refused to say how many State Troopers in riot gear were on hand that day, but the number was right around 20, and even that number, apparently, wasn’t sufficient. To protect the Commonwealth from the dreadful depredations of 31 protestors sitting in silent protest, his men needed back up.

Actually, that's entirely correct. You can't arrest 31 protestors with 20 men, especially with a few hundred more nearby, any one of whom might not be so nice. Even in the post, there's a picture showing three cops trying to arrest a physically resisting protestor, while another protestor is visible trying to stop them dragging her away. Let's see; 20 cops, 3 cops a protestor, and they'd be able to arrest...maybe 7 out of 31.

The blogger also complains that the protestors were held, with their hands tied behind their backs, without food or water or access to counsel, for up to 9 hours. I had no idea the police were supposed to feed people too. As for counsel, how many of them asked? Don't you think the fact that police were deployed to handle the protest may have slowed down their processing? And apparently there was some conflict between the Capitol Cops and the City Police about who was actually responsible for the prisoners.

Here's a somewhat more objective report. Note that the number is now only 850 protestors. I also think that it is better to have and not need than to need and not have. Say, let's take a look at the 31 peaceful protestors on the steps.




Um, that's a good deal more than 31 people, and a lot more than just 20 cops. Someone's counting skills are off. Weird how the account doesn't mention that the surplus protestors were cleared off the plaza peacefully. And I certainly can't see any SWAT team on the steps as the protestors are arrested. I also like how the second video, at 8:00 or so, says the police made a "show of force" to "cow the crowd". The angry, yelling, screaming crowd who are trespassing and might easily decide to interfere with the arrests and removal of the other protesters, as protestors are known to do. And how are they cowed? Not very well, apparently, and by moving them back a few feet. (The horror!) The SWAT team is clearly a last-ditch backup, not the main attraction, and are literally just standing there, watching the crowd for any violence that might require their attention. Nothing happens.

The funny thing is that if some officer or bystander gets hurt during such incidents, they are hastily declared to be non-representative of the greater body. (cf. "No True Occupier") Even if they don't get hurt, and the peaceful protestors are merely shown not to be, the same thing happens.

There people have a right to protest. They do not have a right to break the law. I have rarely seen someone go "well, these guys were good intentioned, but they were breaking the law".

I hope you are able to see the distinction I am trying to point out. In no sense do I advocate evading or defying the law, as would the rabid segregationist. That would lead to anarchy. One who breaks an unjust law must do so openly, lovingly, and with a willingness to accept the penalty. I submit that an individual who breaks a law that conscience tells him is unjust. and who willingly accepts the penalty of imprisonment in order to arouse the conscience of the community over its injustice, is in reality expressing the highest respect for law.
-Letters from a Birmingham Jail, MLK Jr.

Just to be clear, I do not advocate the use of force by police against people who do not represent sufficient cause to do so. However, I do believe the threat the SWAT team posed to protestors has been wildly exaggerated by those sympathetic to the protestors. The regular and riot cops could do more damage to the protestors than the SWAT team, who clearly were there only to respond to serious threats, not to mow down the crowd. Those guys aren't cheap. The SWAT team, that is. Knife-weilding maniacs often pop up for free.