Civil Unrest & Protests

nivek

As Above So Below
'We CANNOT lie about our history': Furious Boris Johnson swipes at Sadiq Khan for boarding over Churchill's statue in Twitter outburst as he slams 'absurd and shameful' violent protestors heading for capital this weekend



Mr Johnson has slammed those who want to topple the Churchill statue (main picture today, and inset uncovered) and said: 'The statue of Winston Churchill in Parliament Square is a permanent reminder of his achievement in saving this country - and the whole of Europe - from a fascist and racist tyranny'. He added: 'It is absurd and shameful that this national monument should today be at risk of attack by violent protestors'. Mr Johnson has chosen to weigh in as the campaign to topple 100-plus 'racist' statues raced on and growing public anger that councils, schools, hospitals (Guy's in London top right) and museums are pulling down monuments without consultation. The PM said: 'We cannot now try to edit or censor our past. We cannot pretend to have a different history'.

While Mr Johnson didn't mention Sadiq Khan in his tweets, they were sent after a phalanx of Tory MPs slammed the Mayor of London for boarding monuments such as the Cenotaph (left today) rather than using police to protect them and arrest anyone who tries to attack them. Tory MP Andrew Bridgen told MailOnline: 'Churchill's famous words 'We will never surrender' are completely undermined by Mayor Khan's appeasement of the mob. It's a national humiliation. Khan must resign and so should Met Commissioner Cressida Dick'. Fellow Conservative MP Bob Blackman told MailOnline that the boarding up of statues is an 'absolute disgrace' and branded Mr Khan the 'do nothing mayor', adding 'I'm appalled he's lost control of our streets'.


.
 
Agreed!

One of the issues I have with them removing this content is that you are then wiping away history. Yes said content may no longer be deemed acceptable however to destroy the past removes it from the public conscious. How are you supposed to learn from yesterdays "mistakes" if yesterday no longer exists? Bring's George Orwell's 1984 to mind.

There are also massive double standards at play in what is acceptable as in the White Chicks example.
I notice I haven't seen anyone going on about black African lives matters like the ones in actual Africa either poverty, Religion and military spoils the everyday life of the normal person.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
29527750-8412967-image-a-15_1591960174268.jpg


29527630-8412967-image-m-12_1591960084823.jpg


29527628-8412967-image-a-13_1591960090415.jpg
 

Rick Hunter

Celestial
Of course, the endless question over Confederate Civil War statues continues on. I am starting to think that, if any statues come down, then all of them should come down. Let's finally recognize that the Civil War was a monstrous crime that we, North and South, committed against ourselves and which continues to hurt us today.
 

Sheltie

Fratty and out of touch.
Race riots and a global flu pandemic: The eerie parallels between 2020 and 1919

There was story in the news this week about how a second wave of Spanish Flu hit particularly hard in the US during the summer of 1919. It is believed that one of the reasons for the rapid spread and return was nationwide political protests, including some pretty ugly racial riots. It's really eerie to think about.

I'm just trying to observe this as an amateur history lover. I'm not trying to make predictions or pass judgement on anyone.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
Tennessee governor warns protesters he won't tolerate a Nashville autonomous zone while Seattle cop union says city is close to 'lawlessness' as demonstrators push for 'police-free' areas during nationwide protests



On Friday night, a group of protesters converged on the Legislative Plaza in Nashville, announcing plans to seize the area in front of the Tennessee statehouse as an 'autonomous zone.' 'Lawlessness, autonomous zones, and violence will not be tolerated,' Governor Lee said in a statement. 'Further, Tennessee law expressly prohibits camping on state property not expressly designated as a campground area, and that law will be enforced.' The 'Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone,' or CHAZ, in Seattle continued to thrive on Friday, after demonstrators seized control of a police precinct and the surrounding blocks.

.
 

Rick Hunter

Celestial
Race riots and a global flu pandemic: The eerie parallels between 2020 and 1919

There was story in the news this week about how a second wave of Spanish Flu hit particularly hard in the US during the summer of 1919. It is believed that one of the reasons for the rapid spread and return was nationwide political protests, including some pretty ugly racial riots. It's really eerie to think about.

I'm just trying to observe this as an amateur history lover. I'm not trying to make predictions or pass judgement on anyone.

100 years ago, Kentucky experienced its worst riots in history:

Lockett Trial / Hardman Murder | Lexington History Museum
 

nivek

As Above So Below
I'm in complete agreement with this Tennessee Governor, setting up these so-called "autonomous zones" must not be tolerated, this is out of control and has nothing to do with the George Floyd protests...

...

Tennessee Gov. Lee says Nashville autonomous zone won't ‘be tolerated’

Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee issued a warning to demonstrators looking to set up an autonomous zone in front of the state Capitol Friday, saying that “lawlessness, autonomous zones, and violence will not be tolerated.”

According to a local news outlet, a large group of demonstrators protesting the death of George Floyd in police custody and racial injustice in the U.S., reportedly intended to set up an autonomous zone in front of the Capitol in solidarity with the demonstrations in Seattle.

The Seattle occupation, which has taken over several blocks in the Capitol Hill neighborhood declaring itself an autonomous zone, is reportedly a demonstration of a society without law enforcement – the demonstration comes amid nationwide protests calling to “defund the police.”

Seattle’s East Precinct was cleared Monday, after protesters clashed with police officers following days of demonstrations.

“After events on Sunday night, it was clear that the ongoing nightly protests at the East Precinct needed to be significantly defused and deescalated,” Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan’s office said in a statement Friday. “The East Precinct was a flashpoint, and the cycle of conflict between demonstrators and officers were harmful to residents, demonstrators, businesses, officers, and our city.”

The demonstration has remained peaceful but has been met with sharp criticism by the president who earlier this week called the situation a “domestic terrorist” takeover.

The Tennessee governor made it clear Friday that this sort of demonstration will not be tolerated in Nashville.

"We encourage Tennesseans to exercise their First Amendment rights and have seen many examples of peaceful protests across our state in recent weeks,” Lee said in a statement Friday. “As demonstrations continue, we will continue to protect Tennesseans' right to peaceful assembly, while also reassuring citizens that lawlessness, autonomous zones, and violence will not be tolerated.

“Further, Tennessee law expressly prohibits camping on state property not expressly designated as a campground area, and that law will be enforced,” Lee added.

.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
Protests erupt and Atlanta police chief RESIGNS after white cops shot dead 27-year-old black man Rayshard Brooks - as new surveillance video 'shows him pointing a stolen taser at officers as he fled
  • Wendy's restaurant in Atlanta was set on fire on Saturday night in protest over the shooting
  • Firefighters were unable to respond on blocked streets as the restaurant was engulfed in flames
  • Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields resigned on Saturday less than 24 hours after the shooting
  • Rayshard Brooks, 27, was shot and killed near a Wendy's drive-thru in Atlanta late on Friday night
  • Two Atlanta police officers were called to scene at around 10:30pm on University Avenue on Friday
  • Cops received reports of a man who fell asleep in his car as it stood near the drive-thru window
  • Police say Brooks failed a field sobriety test and video shows him fighting with officers
  • Brooks is then seen grabbing a Taser from one of the officers and running away as two cops gave chase
  • New surveillance video shows Brooks turning and pointing an object at cops, which they say is a taser
  • Officers opened fire and Brooks was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital
29583386-8417317-image-a-59_1592104597800.jpg
 

nivek

As Above So Below
Entire South Florida SWAT team resigns after chief of police and local officials took a knee with protesters who called for investigation into dawn raid which killed black man



The ten-member SWAT team of Hallandale Beach police department resigned Friday after Police Chief Sonia Quinones (pictured top right) and Vice Mayor Sabrina Javellana took a knee with protesters (pictured main). The protesters had called for the reopening of the case of Howard Bowe, who was fatally shot by the SWAT unit in a dawn raid in 2014. The letter also cited safety concerns over a lack of equipment and claimed that the 'disdain' of local officials meant the safety of police dogs was taken more seriously than the unit's safety. The eight officers and two sergeants resigned from the team but not from the Hallandale Beach Police Department.

.
 

Rick Hunter

Celestial
I worked for a large police dept. for 6 years as a records clerk. I think most cops are good people. Still, my main takeaway from that job is that there is a widening chasm between cops and the general public, and it is bad.

One of the main causes is the military mindset and styling most agencies have embraced. People who are not cops are called "civilians", even though cops are civilians too unless they are actually members of the military. Their appearance more and more comes to resemble military forces rather than civil police. Armored vehicles, BDU style uniforms, and M4 carbines are standard issue. Police recruitment and training places a heavy emphasis on intense physical training, blind obedience to orders, and fighting skills, as well as discouraging independent thinking. I've seen photos and videos of the Kentucky State Police academy and you would think it was Marine basic training at Parris Island if not for the insignia.

The net effect is, our police have become a very effective fighting force. They can put the hammer down when needed. Unfortunately, that is getting away from what they should resemble. In Kentucky, the legal term for a cop is "peace officer". Unfortunately they resemble this term less and less every day.

All of these things have created powder kegs of resentment among the populace. You can only snuff out the fuse so many times before it finally explodes. "The society that separates its scholars from its warriors will have its thinking done by cowards and its fighting done by fools" -Thucydides
 

Captain Tinkle

Honorable
I worked for a large police dept. for 6 years as a records clerk. I think most cops are good people. Still, my main takeaway from that job is that there is a widening chasm between cops and the general public, and it is bad.

I agree I think the vast majority of Police are good people. I think you have to be to do that sort of job.

However somewhere along the line I think some get a power complex or forget themselves.
Just before the lockdown, I went out in town with my work. The driver who picked myself and my friend up was a young lad and what I would class as a bit of a show off in the latest BMW etc...

Now he was doing 70mph through a town centre (speed limit is around 20 - 30mph), undertaking (illegal in the UK) and as I say showing off. Low and behold a cop car spotted him. He sped off and eventually the Police car caught up to him put the blues and twos on and pulled him over.

No word of a lie, the female officer came up to the drivers window and said to him very aggressively "Do you like driving like a cu*t? Because I am going to treat you like a cu*t?" Along with calling him other various names. Now while I agree with the officer that he was driving like a cu*t, in my personal opinion that is no way to speak to a member of the public and shows a lack of professionalism on behalf of said Police officer.

The above is only one example though and in my dealings with the Police, they have only ever been fair and approachable, although I have never been on the wrong side of them.

I do find though when I go over to the USA, that the Police are a lot more intimidating and feel as though I would be disturbing them if I said "good morning" or try to get into conversation with them.
 

Captain Tinkle

Honorable
Seeing some of the footage from London is awful...Police/goverment need to act better feral mentality.

The BBC reporting is as bias as ever.

I keep seeing they are pushing home the point that the BLM protests were and are " mostly peaceful" yet the far right protests have been "violent".

Not defending the Far Right at all but both protests were as violent as one another.
 

Rick Hunter

Celestial
The totally unconstitutional "stop and frisk" bullshit practiced by the NYC police for years is a prime example of what is dreadfully wrong with police in the USA.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
The totally unconstitutional "stop and frisk" bullshit practiced by the NYC police for years is a prime example of what is dreadfully wrong with police in the USA.

That's still no reason to burn and destroy our cities, a good percentage of these anarchists and antifa groups are not protesting George Floyd but are reeking havoc because of opportunity to do so...

...
 
Top