An interesting perspective from Naomi Wolf.
The violent police assaults across the US are no coincidence. Occupy has touched the third rail of our political class’s venality.
In New York, a state supreme court justice and a New York City council member were beaten up; in Berkeley, California, one of our greatest national poets, Robert Hass, was beaten with batons. The picture darkened still further when Wonkette and Washingtonsblog.com reported that the Mayor of Oakland acknowledged that the Department of Homeland Security had participated in an 18-city mayor conference call advising mayors on “how to suppress” Occupy protests.
No press allowed.
The New York Times reported that “New York cops have arrested, punched, whacked, shoved to the ground and tossed a barrier at reporters and photographers” covering protests. Reporters were asked by NYPD to raise their hands to prove they had credentials: when many dutifully did so, they were taken, upon threat of arrest, away from the story they were covering, and penned far from the site in which the news was unfolding. Other reporters wearing press passes were arrested and roughed up by cops, after being – falsely – informed by police that “It is illegal to take pictures on the sidewalk.”
Ya think somebody touched a nerve somewhere?
No doubt.
The police violence is not incidental. It’s a feature.
Although Wolf’s column may not have been her best work by a longshot (from what I’ve been reading around the internet tubes), our history of policing in this country is such that those statements about police brutality you quote seem likely accurate.
Since 9/11 we have armed our police to the teeth across this nation. I believe that Philly.com referred to them as security forces on steroids( probably literally). Sucks to get gassed and beaten with you own tax dollars.
It was obviously coordinated remember the people working for DHS are not progressives in any sense.
Very far right environment lot of ex-military. It was started as a make work department for the Bush, neocon supporters.