The Democratic Party and the presidential campaign of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have remained silent on the recent murders of protesters, while condemning violent protesters and demanding that they be arrested and prosecuted.
In the face of increasing government, fascist attacks
Protests against police violence continue across the US
By Jacob Crosse
7 September 2020
This weekend marked 100 days of protests in the US against police violence since the Memorial Day murder of George Floyd at the hands of the Minneapolis police department. Large demonstrations were held in rural towns as well as major cities in the face of new instances of police brutality and murder and an increasingly virulent and violent law-and-order campaign led by the Trump administration, with the complicity of the Democratic Party.
The overwhelmingly peaceful, multiracial and multiethnic protests are being met with tear gas, stun grenades, baton charges and mass arrests by riot police for the most part mobilized by Democratic governors and mayors, while Trump and the Republicans denounce the protesters as anarchists, socialists and terrorists and incite fascistic vigilantes to attack them.
This explosive situation is only the prelude to a mass movement of the working class, driven forward by the death and poverty being meted out by the ruling elite and all of its political representatives in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The ruling corporate-financial oligarchy, even as it enriches itself over the bones of pandemic victims, feels itself besieged. It is terrified at the prospect of a mass movement against capitalism, increasingly exposed before the world as a bankrupt and criminal system.
Police use chemical irritants and crowd control munitions during a demonstration in Portland, Oregon, on Sept. 5, 2020. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)The breadth and duration of the protests express the courage and determination of millions to fight for a more egalitarian society, free of racism, repression and social inequality. But this must be elevated into a conscious struggle for socialism that brings together all sections of the working class, from educators to autoworkers, both in the US and around the world.
A recent report from the US Crisis Monitor, associated with Princeton University, noted the global nature of the protests. It stated: “In the weeks since Floyd’s killing, at least 8,700 demonstrations in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement were reported across 74 countries, including the US. Demonstrators focused their outrage on American symbols—including embassies, consulates and Trump properties—but they also rallied around local cases of police brutality and racial inequality.”
Since the protests in the US began in May, at least 19 protesters have been killed, including three within the last two weeks.
Last Thursday, a police task force headed by US marshals shot and killed Michael Reinoehl hours after an arrest warrant had been issued for him in connection with the killing of a far-right Patriot Prayer member during a protest in Portland on August 29. Right-wing vigilante and ardent Trump supporter Kyle Rittenhouse killed two protesters and injured another in Kenosha, Wisconsin less than two weeks ago.
The corporate media has increasingly cast the protests as violent and aggressive and portrayed the police as responding to unprovoked attacks by demonstrators. This is belied by the facts. The Princeton report points out that between May 24 and August 22 there were more than 10,600 “demonstration events,” of which over 10,100, “or nearly 95 percent” were peaceful protests, while less than 570 involved “demonstrators engaging in violence.”
The authors of the report noted that in demonstrations that did become violent, aggression was often instigated by right-wing militias and racist gangs such as the Three Percenters, the Ku Klux Klan, the Proud Boys, the Boogaloo bois and the New Mexico Civil Guard.
Demonstrations over the weekend included:
Rochester, New York
Saturday marked the fourth straight day of protests against police murder in upstate New York, following the release of bodycam video showing police torturing and murdering 41-year-old Daniel Prude on March 23 of this year. Over 1,500 protesters marched to the Rochester Police Department headquarters chanting, “No justice, no peace.” In the evening, the police, backed by armored vehicles, fired pepper balls and tear gas into the crowd. The police say they arrested eight people Thursday, 11 Friday and nine more on Saturday night.
Portland, Oregon
Ignoring pleas from Democratic Governor Kate Brown to end the protests, hundreds of demonstrators once again took to the streets, resulting in over 50 arrests Saturday night. Prior to protests on Thursday, Governor Brown issued a statement declaring that “the violence must stop… All who perpetrate violent crimes must be held equally accountable.”
Louisville, Kentucky
Police were nowhere to be found for several hours Saturday as protesters were confronted by over 400 heavily armed “patriots” led by Dylan Stevens, a self-described “staunch supporter of Trump, police, our troops, 2nd amendment, America and the Flag!” Stevens, who in a recent YouTube video defended the Rittenhouse slayings as “100 percent self-defense,” organized a counter-protest at Jefferson Square Park, where protesters demanding justice for Breonna Taylor have peacefully gathered since May 28 to demand the officers involved in her killing be arrested.
After several heated confrontations, including at least two instances where pistols were unholstered by associates of Stevens, the counter-protesters left the park, only to be replaced by over 24 riot police.
The Democratic Party and the presidential campaign of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have remained silent on the recent murders of protesters, while condemning violent protesters and demanding that they be arrested and prosecuted.
In a CNN interview on Sunday, vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris did not mention the names of Joseph Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber, both murdered by Rittenhouse, nor did she comment on the police slaying of Michael Reinoehl last Thursday. When questioned by interviewer Dana Bash if she believed Kenosha cop Rusten Shesky should be charged for shooting Jacob Blake in the back seven times, Harris, a former prosecutor, backtracked on earlier statements, saying she thought “charges very much should be considered... but everyone is entitled to due process, everyone, including police officers.”
WATCH: ‘Protesters’ Set Man on Fire with Bomb Thrown at Portland Police
A firebomb thrown by rioters at police in Portland, Oregon, on Saturday night set a “protester” on fire, according to the Portland Police Bureau.
Video taken at the scene and retweeted by the police showed fire erupting in the middle of a street, as a man caught in the flames attempted to run out of the way. He emerged with his legs ablaze, as rioters attempted to help him.
Portland Antifa throws Molotov cocktail towards cops but it ends up hitting an agitator instead. Portland is in the middle of another peaceful protest. pic.twitter.com/OdZEp5PDeV
— (((Jason Rantz))) on KTTH Radio (@jasonrantz) September 6, 2020
A man just got lit on fire. Chaotic night in Portland already #PortlandRiots #Portland pic.twitter.com/iWOP0is6MQ
— Brendan Gutenschwager (@BGOnTheScene) September 6, 2020
Fire bombs were thrown at officers, injuring at least one community member. Police are trying to restore peace and order for the safety of this neighborhood. https://t.co/V3UOCR6Bc4
— Portland Police (@PortlandPolice) September 6, 2020
Reporter Andy Ngô of the Post Millenial tweeted that Antifa and Black Lives Matter staged the riot to mark more than 100 days of violent protest in Portland since the death of George Floyd in police custody in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Rioters used Molotov cocktails in confrontations with police:
Extremely heavy smoke in SE Portland tonight as #antifa riot using Molotov cocktails. One person was already set on fire. BLM-antifa are celebrating more than 100 days of violence in the city. #PortlandRiots pic.twitter.com/hqA5lF9gao
— Andy Ngô (@MrAndyNgo) September 6, 2020
Police are making repeated announcements. This remains a riot. Members of the group have thrown Molotov cocktails injuring at least one community member. Failure to disperse may result in arrest citation crowd control agents including tear gas and/or impact weapons.
— Portland Police (@PortlandPolice) September 6, 2020
Earlier Saturday, the Oregonian remarked on the 100-day anniversary of violent demonstrations: “In Portland, the whitest major city in the U.S., demonstrations against systemic racism and police brutality have stretched for 100 straight days, sparking unprecedented cuts to the city police bureau, night after night of violence by law enforcement officers and protesters, presidential condemnation and national attention.”
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler has refused support from President Donald Trump, blaming him for the violence.
Democrats, including presidential nominee Joe Biden, have referred to the rioters as “peaceful protesters,” blaming President Donald Trump for the violence, saying that the presence of federal law enforcement officials had been a provocation.
The violence has continued since federal officials withdrew several weeks ago.
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). His new book, RED NOVEMBER, tells the story of the 2020 Democratic presidential primary from a conservative perspective. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
Photo: file (Sep. 5)
udge Orders Detroit Police Not to Use Batons, Tear Gas Against Protesters for Two Weeks
A federal judge in Detroit has ordered the city’s police not to use batons, tear gas, shields, chokeholds, rubber bullets, sound cannons, or any other type of non-lethal force against protesters for the next two weeks.
The late Friday ruling granted a temporary restraining order to the activist group Detroit Will Breathe, which sued the city on Monday, claiming that excessive police force infringed upon their protesters’ First Amendment rights, the Detroit Free Press reported.
U.S. District Court Judge Laurie Michelson’s order stops police from using any type of force during protests without “probable cause.”
“For a short period, we know that the police will not be able to use the brutal tactics they have in the past against peaceful protesters without violating a court order,” said Jack Schulz, who filed the order on behalf of the group.
But Detroit Police Chief James Craig said the police have not used force against peaceful protesters.
“We’re going to continue to do our jobs the way we’ve done it,” he said. “We respect peaceful protesters. We understand the judge’s order and we’ll make sure the protesters understand if there’s any aggression or violation of law, they will get ample notice like we’ve done in the past.”
The lawsuit claimed that some of the officers’ use of force had left some protesters hospitalized.
The department is investigating about two dozen complaints against police officers, including one about a police officer who allegedly hit three photojournalists with rubber bullets and was charged with felony assault, the Detroit News reported.
Officers are also banned from tying zip ties to the point of causing injury or arresting lots of protesters without probable cause.
The Detroit Board of Police Commissioners on Wednesday passed guidelines that prohibit officers from using chokeholds and requires the board to intervene if another officer uses excessive force.
Craig, however, claimed that the police had not used chokeholds against protesters.
“If someone is resisting arrest, or trying to attack our officers, we will use the force that’s both reasonable and necessary to overcome the resistance,” he told the Detroit News. “We don’t want the protesters injured, and we don’t want officers injured, either.”
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