OCCUPY WALL STREET

[greeneyedgrrl]

Originally Posted by BstlMyhart

Throughout history, anytime a police force is assembled to disperse a crowd, it WAS because a riot was taking place. People’s lives were at stake by members of society, property was being destroyed, and communities were under siege.
Yes, the “Sit In” protests of the Civil Rights Movement were intended to be nonviolent in nature. However, most of those protests took place in the south, where the vast majority of the police force was white, and did not agree with the movement and had the approval of a higher authority (Arkansas Governor Orval Faubus…Alabaman Governor George Wallace) and therefore were allowed to use brute force against those peaceful protestors.
We are taught levels of force.
1. Show of Force…a large number of responding units displaying their badge of office.
2. Verbal Commands…self explanatory…orders to disperse.
3. Chemical Agents…though unpopular they are effective in dispersing a crowd without causing long term physical harm.
Those are the first 3 steps and I don’t know of ANY officer who hopes an incident will escalate from there. Law enforcement agencies have not been taught a different way to deal with true peaceful protests. They are simply following orders…if they don’t they may well lose their livelihood…their families would then suffer the repercussions. I believe that no one involved with the Occupy Movement would want that to happen. New training must be implemented to assist these officers to do their job effectively in a new way.

thank you for speaking to this. while some of the officers may hold your view, i have talked to several officers in my state who have a different viewpoint... that seems to be that the ows are wasting everyone's time, money and energy and should go home and if they don't they deserve and should expect a violent smack down from the pd. i would love to believe that it is just a lack of training, but having known at least one of these officers (she is my cousin, unfortunately) i have to say that this is how she thought prior to becoming part of the police department. i believe that it goes much deeper than training, it is who the pd recruits, allows to wear a badge, it is the qualities and behaviors in the officers that are nurtured and encouraged. in cali (at least) it seems that officers that show a penchant for violence and power are promoted and rewarded. imho my cousin has NO business whatsoever wearing a badge and carrying a gun. her language is violent, angry and racist, she boasts about the power of her position, and quite frankly i am very glad that she lives some 400 miles away from me, but i know that there are many more out there like her. i know more officers like her. i also see from posts like yours that there are people in law enforcement who are not, and it gives me hope.

i see it as a complex problem:

that there has been some violence at occupy events (whether or not it was committed by occupiers is a whole other issue since the police still have to deal with it and it makes it more difficult for them to see the movement as nonviolent)

that there is space in current law enforcement systems for people like my cousin who are prone to violent behavior prior to training

that in the current system violence is used and expected (no/inadequate training on how to handle non-violent protests)

that the systems of inequality (that were present during the civil rights movement) are still intact

that the general public has been desensitized to violence

that politicians and the powers that be have a vested interest in keeping status quo and not reforming the system of law enforcement as it stands

coordinated (and illegal) federal involvement in local issues

and fear...fear on the part of the pd, on the part of the people and on the part of the corporations and politicians. i think fear is at the root of all of this. the fear of not having enough, the fear of losing what you have, the fear of getting hurt or killed.. it all comes down to fear and until people get out of the part of their brains that humans use when in fear, the ability to think rationally or critically, have understanding, compassion, empathy or any of the other wonderful things that humans are capable of is not possible. i don't know how it is that this system is going to be changed or by whom, but i know that a shift in thinking (and getting out of fear) will be key.

i really hope that you will continue to be part of this discussion as i think that your insights are valuable.