theintercept--2020-06-05--Walter Ogrod Sees Wrongful Conviction Overturned After 23 Years on Pennsylvania’s Death Row

on Friday morning , a Philadelphia judge overturned the wrongful conviction of Walter Ogrod , a move that will see him released after more than two decades on death row .
The vindication of Ogrod has been a long time coming .
Prosecutors agreed months ago that state misconduct had wrongly condemned him and that Ogrod should be released , yet the judge failed to act , even as the pandemic set in and Ogrod , now 55 , became seriously ill. “ Walter Ogrod ’ s case is impossibly tragic , ” James Rollins , one of Ogrod ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after the hearing .
“ This innocent man and his family lost almost 30 years that they should have spent together .
Instead , that irreplaceable time together is gone , lost to a system that keeps making the same mistakes.
” On July 12 , 1988 , a neighbor found the naked and beaten body of 4-year-old Barbara Jean Horn partially covered by a trash bag inside a cardboard box on a curb in Philadelphia , less than 1,000 feet from her home .
She ’ d been missing for several hours @ @ @ @ @ @ @ found , five separate eyewitnesses from the neighborhood told police about a man they ’ d seen outside with a cardboard box that afternoon .
The descriptions were fairly similar .
None of them named or described their 23-year-old neighbor , Ogrod , who lived across the street from Horn .
Despite promising leads , the case went cold until 1992 , when a pair of detectives , Marty Devlin and Paul Worrell , picked up the case and ultimately set their sights on Ogrod .
He would be tried twice and convicted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : a questionable confession Ogrod made to police after hours of interrogation , which he immediately recanted , and the testimony of a notorious jailhouse informant .
Ogrod has since maintained his innocence , and no physical evidence has ever tied him to the crime .
In 2018 , Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner ’ s conviction integrity unit agreed to review the case .
After a year of inquiry , the office concluded that Ogrod was convicted based on a staggering level of police and prosecutorial misconduct , including numerous instances of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that pointed to Ogrod ’ s innocence .
“ At trial , Ogrod found himself adrift in a perfect storm of unreliable scientific evidence , prosecutorial misconduct , Brady violations , and false testimony , ” Krasner ’ s CIU chief , Patricia Cummings , wrote to the court in a brief filed in February .
Based on its investigation , the DA ’ s office joined Ogrod ’ s defense team in asking for his release from prison .
“ Ogrod is likely innocent , and his continued incarceration constitutes an ongoing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this court to grant Ogrod relief and vacate his conviction and sentence.
” After inexplicable delays — during which Ogrod became seriously ill with symptoms of Covid-19 — on June 5 , Judge Shelley Robins-New finally agreed that Ogrod ’ s conviction should be overturned .
The hearing was conducted remotely amid the ongoing pandemic and demonstrations against police brutality on the streets of Philadelphia .
Walter , wearing an orange prison jumpsuit and a face mask , watched from prison .
His brother , Greg , and Horn ’ s mother , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ afar .
In April , Fahy signed a declaration expressing her belief in Ogrod ’ s innocence .
“ There is no question in my mind that Mr. Ogrod is innocent and that he should be released from prison immediately.
” Fahy watched the hearing in a room with Assistant District Attorney Carrie Wood , who presented the state ’ s case to Robins-New , and issued an extraordinary series of apologies to Ogrod , Fahy , and the residents of Philadelphia .
“ First , I must turn to Mr. Ogrod and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ began .
“ I am sorry it took 28 years for us to listen to what Barbara Jean was trying to tell us ” about how she was killed .
“ That you are innocent .
That the words on that statement came from detectives and not you .
And that we not only stole 28 years of your life , but that we threatened to execute you based on falsehoods.
” Wood began to cry .
“ Next , I must apologize to Sharon Fahy and her family .
This office has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ happened to your little girl so many years ago .
The truth is painful , and terrible , but it is what you deserved to hear from this office .
And we did not do that .
And I am so sorry.
” She choked up before continuing .
“ One of the most difficult things for me is not being able to tell you who did this to Barbara Jean .
I can ’ t imagine the pain of thinking a chapter of your life has been closed only for it to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is important that you know , and hold onto this in the times when the pain might be unbearable , that us taking the time to listen to what Barbara Jean had to say has saved Walter Ogrod ’ s life.
” Finally , she addressed the city .
“ The errors made in this case made the streets less safe and I fear that the true perpetrator in this case , having been left on the streets , may have brought harm to others , ” she said .
“ That is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ our community .
And for that , this office must apologize .
And we must do better.
” Robins-New ultimately agreed that the conviction should be set aside .
But when the prosecutors said that they would immediately move to drop the charges , Robins-New said that the DA would have to take that up in a different court — a court that is not currently in session because of closures related to the nation ’ s ongoing crises .
Cummings stepped in to say that in the interim , then , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Ogrod be reduced from capital murder to third-degree homicide “ such that he be eligible for bail , and we would request that he be released.
” After a brief recess , Robins-New agreed , though she set bail at $ 50,000 — “ it ’ s still a murder charge ; an appropriate bail should be set , but I ’ m certainly aware of all of the circumstances and I assume that the parties will know how to proceed to deal with the prison and those issues , ” she said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Ogrod ’ s lawyers say he will be released today ; he will go home to his brother Greg in Philadelphia .
“ Today , Mr. Ogrod has been given the opportunity to put his unfair trial and harrowing incarceration behind him and begin to create a new , better life , ” Rollins , Ogrod ’ s defense attorney , said .
“ It is a profound moment , filled with happiness and hope .
Not only for Mr. Ogrod , but also for other innocent , wrongfully convicted individuals .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ learn from Mr. Ogrod ’ s case and there is hope that Barbara Jean Horn ’ s real killer will be brought to justice .
”

In an emotional hearing on Friday morning, a Philadelphia judge overturned the wrongful conviction of Walter Ogrod, a move that will see him released after more than two decades on death row.
The vindication of Ogrod has been a long time coming. Prosecutors agreed months ago that state misconduct had wrongly condemned him and that Ogrod should be released, yet the judge failed to act, even as the pandemic set in and Ogrod, now 55, became seriously ill.
“Walter Ogrod’s case is impossibly tragic,” James Rollins, one of Ogrod’s attorneys, said in a statement after the hearing. “This innocent man and his family lost almost 30 years that they should have spent together. Instead, that irreplaceable time together is gone, lost to a system that keeps making the same mistakes.”
On July 12, 1988, a neighbor found the naked and beaten body of 4-year-old Barbara Jean Horn partially covered by a trash bag inside a cardboard box on a curb in Philadelphia, less than 1,000 feet from her home.
She’d been missing for several hours, and shortly after her body was found, five separate eyewitnesses from the neighborhood told police about a man they’d seen outside with a cardboard box that afternoon. The descriptions were fairly similar. None of them named or described their 23-year-old neighbor, Ogrod, who lived across the street from Horn.
Despite promising leads, the case went cold until 1992, when a pair of detectives, Marty Devlin and Paul Worrell, picked up the case and ultimately set their sights on Ogrod. He would be tried twice and convicted in 1996 on the thinnest of evidence: a questionable confession Ogrod made to police after hours of interrogation, which he immediately recanted, and the testimony of a notorious jailhouse informant. Ogrod has since maintained his innocence, and no physical evidence has ever tied him to the crime.
The office concluded that Ogrod was convicted based on a staggering level of police and prosecutorial misconduct.
In 2018, Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner’s conviction integrity unit agreed to review the case. After a year of inquiry, the office concluded that Ogrod was convicted based on a staggering level of police and prosecutorial misconduct, including numerous instances of the state failing to turn over evidence that pointed to Ogrod’s innocence. “At trial, Ogrod found himself adrift in a perfect storm of unreliable scientific evidence, prosecutorial misconduct, Brady violations, and false testimony,” Krasner’s CIU chief, Patricia Cummings, wrote to the court in a brief filed in February. Based on its investigation, the DA’s office joined Ogrod’s defense team in asking for his release from prison. “Ogrod is likely innocent, and his continued incarceration constitutes an ongoing miscarriage of justice. The commonwealth urges this court to grant Ogrod relief and vacate his conviction and sentence.”
After inexplicable delays — during which Ogrod became seriously ill with symptoms of Covid-19 — on June 5, Judge Shelley Robins-New finally agreed that Ogrod’s conviction should be overturned.
The hearing was conducted remotely amid the ongoing pandemic and demonstrations against police brutality on the streets of Philadelphia. Walter, wearing an orange prison jumpsuit and a face mask, watched from prison. His brother, Greg, and Horn’s mother, Sharon Fahy, were also watching from afar. In April, Fahy signed a declaration expressing her belief in Ogrod’s innocence. “There is no question in my mind that Mr. Ogrod is innocent and that he should be released from prison immediately.” Fahy watched the hearing in a room with Assistant District Attorney Carrie Wood, who presented the state’s case to Robins-New, and issued an extraordinary series of apologies to Ogrod, Fahy, and the residents of Philadelphia.
“First, I must turn to Mr. Ogrod and his family and friends,” Wood began. “I am sorry it took 28 years for us to listen to what Barbara Jean was trying to tell us” about how she was killed. “That you are innocent. That the words on that statement came from detectives and not you. And that we not only stole 28 years of your life, but that we threatened to execute you based on falsehoods.”
“This office has not told you the truth about what happened to your little girl so many years ago.”
Wood began to cry. “Next, I must apologize to Sharon Fahy and her family. This office has not told you the truth about what happened to your little girl so many years ago. The truth is painful, and terrible, but it is what you deserved to hear from this office. And we did not do that. And I am so sorry.” She choked up before continuing. “One of the most difficult things for me is not being able to tell you who did this to Barbara Jean. I can’t imagine the pain of thinking a chapter of your life has been closed only for it to reopen with unanswered questions.”
“It is important that you know, and hold onto this in the times when the pain might be unbearable, that us taking the time to listen to what Barbara Jean had to say has saved Walter Ogrod’s life.”
Finally, she addressed the city. “The errors made in this case made the streets less safe and I fear that the true perpetrator in this case, having been left on the streets, may have brought harm to others,” she said. “That is the impact of … wrongful convictions on our community. And for that, this office must apologize. And we must do better.”
Robins-New ultimately agreed that the conviction should be set aside. But when the prosecutors said that they would immediately move to drop the charges, Robins-New said that the DA would have to take that up in a different court — a court that is not currently in session because of closures related to the nation’s ongoing crises. Cummings stepped in to say that in the interim, then, the state would ask that the charges against Ogrod be reduced from capital murder to third-degree homicide “such that he be eligible for bail, and we would request that he be released.”
After a brief recess, Robins-New agreed, though she set bail at $50,000 — “it’s still a murder charge; an appropriate bail should be set, but I’m certainly aware of all of the circumstances and I assume that the parties will know how to proceed to deal with the prison and those issues,” she said. “That should conclude the hearing.” Ogrod’s lawyers say he will be released today; he will go home to his brother Greg in Philadelphia.
“Today, Mr. Ogrod has been given the opportunity to put his unfair trial and harrowing incarceration behind him and begin to create a new, better life,” Rollins, Ogrod’s defense attorney, said. “It is a profound moment, filled with happiness and hope. Not only for Mr. Ogrod, but also for other innocent, wrongfully convicted individuals. There is hope that the system will learn from Mr. Ogrod’s case and there is hope that Barbara Jean Horn’s real killer will be brought to justice.”


theintercept--2020-06-05--"We Don't Have Time to Wait": Minneapolis Anti-Police Brutality Organizer Kandace Montgomery on Defu

"We Don't Have Time to Wait": Minneapolis Anti-Police Brutality Organizer Kandace Montgomery on Defunding the Police

of George Floyd ’ s murder by Minneapolis police officers , a call to defund police departments has gained traction across the U.S. More people than ever are embracing the idea that the time for police reform has passed .
As an anti-police brutality organizer , Kandace Montgomery has observed the Minneapolis Police Department undergo years of reform efforts .
After 24-year-old Jamar Clark was killed by police in 2015 , she helped organize a Black Lives Matter chapter in the city .
By 2018 , it was clear to her and other organizers in the city that only a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and give it to other community-led safety initiatives would protect black and brown people .
The organization she directs , Black Visions Collective , campaigned alongside its counterpart Reclaim the Block to defund the Minneapolis police , yet the mayor still raised the police budget more than $ 8 million this year .
In the immediate aftermath of Floyd ’ s murder , the organizers brought their demands back to city council members — that members never increase the police budget again , that they cut the police ’ s budget by $ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , expand investment in community-led health and safety strategies , and compel the police to cease violence against community members .
The Intercept spoke to Montgomery about the movement to defund police in Minneapolis .
This interview has been edited for clarity .
Paint for me a world without police .
Where would all that money go instead ?
A world without police would look like safety that is controlled and is led by our community , that focuses on transformation and transformative justice .
A world without police means that everybody has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they need to live healthy lives .
It means we have the money that we need for education , health care , housing , workers ’ rights .
It is a total transformation away from a racist and violent system into one that truly fosters our safety and well-being .
When we are talking about police reform , what we ’ re not talking about is the fact that black communities actually need resources to keep ourselves safe .
We make the choice to resource punitive systems instead of stabilizing and nourishing ones @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you get involved in this movement ?
My experience as a young black queer person just called me to it .
Honestly , I think I didn ’ t really have any other option .
Especially the experience of my family , of most of the men and the women experiencing incarceration and police violence directly , called me to want to fight up against that .
And over the last few years , after the murder of Trayvon Martin and the acquittal of George Zimmerman , and then the murder of Mike @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , I have specifically committed my time and my energy and my future to fighting for black liberation for all black lives .
What did the anti-police brutality movement in the city look like at the time Jamar Clark was killed by police in Minneapolis in 2015 ?
What ’ s different now ?
In 2015 , I think that we were very righteously angry , and we were clear about the problem .
Now , we are clear about the solution .
I think that ’ s the distinction .
Now in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not just arresting the officers .
Justice goes so much further , because we are interested in not having to be out in the streets anymore , grieving and angry , protesting that another life has been lost .
We know that we can not continue to invest in strategies that call for police reform .
The only path forward is transitioning completely away from the Minneapolis Police Department and policing across the country and across the globe really .
What are the biggest wins and the biggest failures you ’ ve seen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this moment ?
When George Floyd was killed , the Minneapolis Police Department had plenty of reforms in place .
They ’ re ineffective and insufficient .
It is putting a police officer in a T-shirt instead of a uniform .
It ’ s still the same thing .
Reclaim the Block began in 2018 .
Organizing has always been the thing behind transformative change .
MLK didn ’ t march alone .
He actually was part of an entire organization that was in it for the long term .
Having an organization @ @ @ @ @ @ @ necessary to fight for our rights and move a long-term agenda , because this work isn ’ t free .
In 2018 , we engaged our community and articulated a story about what ’ s possible if we divest from the Minneapolis Police Department and invest in community-led safety .
That work resulted in $ 1.1 million moving away from the police department and into opening the Office of Violence Prevention , which does street-level violence intervention that prioritizes not involving police .
The money also was rerouted to supporting other organizations that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
But the year after that , we saw a really huge pushback .
What we didn ’ t fully anticipate was the mayor and the police department working together to create a smear campaign and create a false narrative that crime in our city was increasing .
We saw about six months of article after article about this .
The mayor ended up increasing the 2020 police budget by over $ 8 million .
So , what we know is that when you push really hard for transformative change , we will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we have to be really strategic and smart .
This moment — we have been building for it .
How has Black Visions Collective responded to George Floyd ’ s murder ?
How did your organizing contribute to the actions in the streets ?
People took to the streets organically .
That was not us .
Without any organization , without any nudging , people decided that it was necessary to protest , and it was necessary to ignite an uprising across the country and the globe .
As an organization , what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ defunding of the police .
Because we had been calling for that beforehand , we were able to quickly pivot and make it really clear to our city council members that our community was no longer going to be OK with settling with maybe an arrest that doesn ’ t actually result in a conviction — that we want a total transformation , and we had been waiting too long .
The national attention creates an opportunity .
George ’ s spirit as an ancestor has allowed us to have a much larger @ @ @ @ @ @ @ actually looks like in these situations .
Most importantly , we are grieving the loss of a black community member .
We ’ re doing that again .
Many of us helped found Black Lives Matter and Black Visions Collective for Jamar .
It ’ s incredibly unfair , especially for young black people , that we have to be out here in these streets , putting our lives at risk during the pandemic to fight for justice .
Some of our organizers have been out there nightly , just helping to hold @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the city , grilling food , doing things like that .
We ’ ve been offering community trainings around direct action and how to stay safe while protesting .
We planned a direct action ourselves in which we left art in memory of George Floyd at each of the city council members ’ homes , calling on them to defund the police .
Much of our work has been organizing with other black Minnesotans .
We have a call every single day with about 70 different black organizers who are trying to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ folks , how to get donations to our folks , how to train people to be medics , so that we can provide medical support on the ground at protests , who are thinking about art and how we can tap into artists to create expressions of what we are talking about that are accessible to our community members , as well as organizing healers to provide healing for organizers on the front line and community members who are involved .
How do you think about the property destruction that took place in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the ways in which my community has decided to grieve , even if it ’ s not how I personally choose to grieve .
I want to make sure that all of the small businesses of color are able to redevelop and rebuild and continue to provide necessary services to our community .
And I ’ m calling on our elected officials to ensure that developers do not come in and take away all of those businesses from black and brown people .
What do you think about the reactions of public officials @ @ @ @ @ @ @ responded to your demands , and what has gone unanswered ?
I ’ m deeply disappointed in Mayor Jacob Frey .
He has not reached out to our group , has not reached out to several groups , actually , to talk about what is the solution forward .
It is time for him to get out .
He is not the visionary leader that Minneapolis needs and deserves .
For our city council members , they have been much more responsive , and many of them have actually committed to us to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ transition over the next few years away from having policing in Minneapolis .
There ’ s still work to do with some city council members who just aren ’ t able to truly imagine what the future could look like .
Minneapolis Public Schools ending its contract with the police is a watershed moment .
I know many of the young people who have been calling for school resource officers out of their schools for the last five years or more .
Folks who are able to take bold steps are doing it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t have time to wait .
This is going to be a transition — and not a transition that ’ s going to take 20 , 30 years .
It needs to happen within five or less .
But we do have to be patient with ourselves that we don ’ t know all of the answers .
Right now , we are stepping up and figuring them out as we provide the support to our community .
The mutual aid groups that have been created over the past week are super @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people who would not be able to eat , would not have diapers for their babies .
They ’ re essential , and they ’ re allowing community members to sustain their needs .
They are building in real time models of community safety .
Thinking about a transition plan away from the Minneapolis Police Department is going to be critical .
What ’ s next is continuing to engage our city council , but I think even more so engaging our community to continue to bring this demand to their doorstep .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to die down .
Minneapolis is going to be watched all across the country .

In the wake of George Floyd’s murder by Minneapolis police officers, a call to defund police departments has gained traction across the U.S. More people than ever are embracing the idea that the time for police reform has passed.
As an anti-police brutality organizer, Kandace Montgomery has observed the Minneapolis Police Department undergo years of reform efforts. After 24-year-old Jamar Clark was killed by police in 2015, she helped organize a Black Lives Matter chapter in the city. By 2018, it was clear to her and other organizers in the city that only a plan to take money away from police and give it to other community-led safety initiatives would protect black and brown people. The organization she directs, Black Visions Collective, campaigned alongside its counterpart Reclaim the Block to defund the Minneapolis police, yet the mayor still raised the police budget more than $8 million this year.
In the immediate aftermath of Floyd’s murder, the organizers brought their demands back to city council members — that members never increase the police budget again, that they cut the police’s budget by $45 million to help manage Covid-19 shortfalls, expand investment in community-led health and safety strategies, and compel the police to cease violence against community members.
The Intercept spoke to Montgomery about the movement to defund police in Minneapolis. This interview has been edited for clarity.
Paint for me a world without police. Where would all that money go instead?
A world without police would look like safety that is controlled and is led by our community, that focuses on transformation and transformative justice. A world without police means that everybody has what they need to survive and what they need to live healthy lives. It means we have the money that we need for education, health care, housing, workers’ rights. It is a total transformation away from a racist and violent system into one that truly fosters our safety and well-being. When we are talking about police reform, what we’re not talking about is the fact that black communities actually need resources to keep ourselves safe. We make the choice to resource punitive systems instead of stabilizing and nourishing ones that make communities safer.
How did you get involved in this movement?
My experience as a young black queer person just called me to it. Honestly, I think I didn’t really have any other option. Especially the experience of my family, of most of the men and the women experiencing incarceration and police violence directly, called me to want to fight up against that. And over the last few years, after the murder of Trayvon Martin and the acquittal of George Zimmerman, and then the murder of Mike Brown and the nonindictment of Darren Wilson, I have specifically committed my time and my energy and my future to fighting for black liberation for all black lives.
“In 2015, I think that we were very righteously angry, and we were clear about the problem. Now, we are clear about the solution.”
What did the anti-police brutality movement in the city look like at the time Jamar Clark was killed by police in Minneapolis in 2015? What’s different now?
In 2015, I think that we were very righteously angry, and we were clear about the problem. Now, we are clear about the solution. I think that’s the distinction. Now in 2020, we know that justice is not just arresting the officers. Justice goes so much further, because we are interested in not having to be out in the streets anymore, grieving and angry, protesting that another life has been lost. We know that we cannot continue to invest in strategies that call for police reform. The only path forward is transitioning completely away from the Minneapolis Police Department and policing across the country and across the globe really.
What are the biggest wins and the biggest failures you’ve seen since 2015 that laid the groundwork for this moment?
When George Floyd was killed, the Minneapolis Police Department had plenty of reforms in place. They’re ineffective and insufficient. It is putting a police officer in a T-shirt instead of a uniform. It’s still the same thing.
Reclaim the Block began in 2018. Organizing has always been the thing behind transformative change. MLK didn’t march alone. He actually was part of an entire organization that was in it for the long term. Having an organization allows us to collectively raise the resources necessary to fight for our rights and move a long-term agenda, because this work isn’t free.
In 2018, we engaged our community and articulated a story about what’s possible if we divest from the Minneapolis Police Department and invest in community-led safety. That work resulted in $1.1 million moving away from the police department and into opening the Office of Violence Prevention, which does street-level violence intervention that prioritizes not involving police. The money also was rerouted to supporting other organizations that were doing community-level intervention and safety work.
But the year after that, we saw a really huge pushback. What we didn’t fully anticipate was the mayor and the police department working together to create a smear campaign and create a false narrative that crime in our city was increasing. We saw about six months of article after article about this.
The mayor ended up increasing the 2020 police budget by over $8 million. So, what we know is that when you push really hard for transformative change, we will get even harder pushback. And so we have to be really strategic and smart. This moment — we have been building for it.
How has Black Visions Collective responded to George Floyd’s murder? How did your organizing contribute to the actions in the streets?
People took to the streets organically. That was not us. Without any organization, without any nudging, people decided that it was necessary to protest, and it was necessary to ignite an uprising across the country and the globe. As an organization, what we did immediately was called for the defunding of the police. Because we had been calling for that beforehand, we were able to quickly pivot and make it really clear to our city council members that our community was no longer going to be OK with settling with maybe an arrest that doesn’t actually result in a conviction — that we want a total transformation, and we had been waiting too long. The national attention creates an opportunity. George’s spirit as an ancestor has allowed us to have a much larger conversation across the country about what justice actually looks like in these situations.
Most importantly, we are grieving the loss of a black community member. We’re doing that again. Many of us helped found Black Lives Matter and Black Visions Collective for Jamar. It’s incredibly unfair, especially for young black people, that we have to be out here in these streets, putting our lives at risk during the pandemic to fight for justice.
“It’s incredibly unfair, especially for young black people, that we have to be out here in these streets, putting our lives at risk during the pandemic to fight for justice.”
Some of our organizers have been out there nightly, just helping to hold down the space at the different occupations in the city, grilling food, doing things like that. We’ve been offering community trainings around direct action and how to stay safe while protesting. We planned a direct action ourselves in which we left art in memory of George Floyd at each of the city council members’ homes, calling on them to defund the police.
Much of our work has been organizing with other black Minnesotans. We have a call every single day with about 70 different black organizers who are trying to coordinate how to get supplies to our folks, how to get donations to our folks, how to train people to be medics, so that we can provide medical support on the ground at protests, who are thinking about art and how we can tap into artists to create expressions of what we are talking about that are accessible to our community members, as well as organizing healers to provide healing for organizers on the front line and community members who are involved.
How do you think about the property destruction that took place in the city?
I honor and respect the ways in which my community has decided to grieve, even if it’s not how I personally choose to grieve. I want to make sure that all of the small businesses of color are able to redevelop and rebuild and continue to provide necessary services to our community. And I’m calling on our elected officials to ensure that developers do not come in and take away all of those businesses from black and brown people.
What do you think about the reactions of public officials in the city? How have they responded to your demands, and what has gone unanswered?
I’m deeply disappointed in Mayor Jacob Frey. He has not reached out to our group, has not reached out to several groups, actually, to talk about what is the solution forward. It is time for him to get out. He is not the visionary leader that Minneapolis needs and deserves.
For our city council members, they have been much more responsive, and many of them have actually committed to us to really disband the Minneapolis Police Department and transition over the next few years away from having policing in Minneapolis. There’s still work to do with some city council members who just aren’t able to truly imagine what the future could look like.
Minneapolis Public Schools ending its contract with the police is a watershed moment. I know many of the young people who have been calling for school resource officers out of their schools for the last five years or more. Folks who are able to take bold steps are doing it quickly, because they know we don’t have time to wait.
What’s next?
This is going to be a transition — and not a transition that’s going to take 20, 30 years. It needs to happen within five or less. But we do have to be patient with ourselves that we don’t know all of the answers. Right now, we are stepping up and figuring them out as we provide the support to our community.
The mutual aid groups that have been created over the past week are super critical. They’re literally feeding people who would not be able to eat, would not have diapers for their babies. They’re essential, and they’re allowing community members to sustain their needs. They are building in real time models of community safety.
Thinking about a transition plan away from the Minneapolis Police Department is going to be critical. What’s next is continuing to engage our city council, but I think even more so engaging our community to continue to bring this demand to their doorstep. We can’t allow this energy to die down. Minneapolis is going to be watched all across the country.


theintercept--2020-06-05--Hundreds of Activists and Elected Officials Call on Mayors and Cops to Decrease Police Power

of unprecedented civil action across the country after the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police , more than 200 people representing civil rights organizations , community organizers , elected officials , and public defenders sent letters to mayors , police chiefs , and county and sheriffs ’ associations on Friday , asking them to take immediate action to decrease police presence and refocus on a good-faith effort to restore public safety .
The letters , sent to associations representing mayors , police chiefs , sheriffs , and county boards , outline policy proposals that mirror the demands protesters have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ killings of Floyd , Breonna Taylor , Dreasjon Reed , Tony McDade , Ahmaud Arbery ( killed by a former cop ) , and David McAtee .
“ The solutions we need right now both to protect our safety and to rescue our democracy are ones that meet the scale of the problem , ” read the letters , which were sent to the National Sheriffs ’ Association , the United States Conference of Mayors , National Association of Counties , and the Major Cities Chiefs Association .
To respond to recent police @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we must replace the questions about how to reform policing with questions about what a broader vision for safety and justice in America should look like and what role policing should play in it.
” Signatories on the letters , which were led by the Justice Collaborative , a policy group that advocates for changes to the criminal justice system , include San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin and New York state Sen. Julia Salazar , along with hundreds of academics , faith leaders , and other organizers .
The proposals focus on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the police state including defunding police and reprioritizing budgets , ending “ no knock ” raids , providing funding for non-law enforcement emergency responders , making police union negotiations public , and implementing community-based violence prevention solutions .
The demand to end “ no knock ” raids comes in the wake of the Louisville Metro Police Department ’ s killing of Taylor , a 26-year-old EMT .
She was shot on March 13 at least eight times in her home after police conducting a drug raid entered the wrong house on an illegal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Kenneth Walker , reportedly fired back at the intruders entering their home and was arrested immediately .
He was charged with attempted murder of a police officer .
The charges were later dropped , and Walker was released from home incarceration on May 26 .
The letter is in stark contrast to the praise being heaped on law enforcement by major media organizations , mayors of major metropolitan cities — like Bill de Blasio , whose daughter was arrested and doxxed by the New York Police Department — and President Donald Trump @ @ @ @ @ @ @ protests with brute force .
Organizers who signed the letter say their approach is the most productive and least harmful .
“ Praising the police is not , in my view , the answer at the moment , ” said Daniel Medwed , a law professor at Northeastern University .
“ In a way , the best way to sort of pay homage to [ Floyd ’ s ] memory , and to really effectuate the wishes of the protesters , and to really promote some meaningful reform , is to act now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people ’ s eyes are open to these issues.
” Rather than praising law enforcement , Medwed said , the answer is to get “ at the underlying causes of police brutality , especially with respect to African Americans .
And it ties in directly to systemic racism and institutionalized racism .
And maybe as we work toward minimizing the centuries of discrimination that have created that situation , while we ’ re doing that , and having those conversations , we also have to , I think , address the immediate issue @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of police shootings has highlighted a split between activists and scholars who have long advocated for prison and police abolition , and those who believe in piecemeal reforms , like use of force and bias trainings — or what abolitionist and prison scholar Ruth Wilson Gilmore calls “ reformist reforms.
” Non-reformist reforms seek abolition as an end goal , and include defunding and demilitarizing the police — a demand that has long been considered politically impossible but has entered mainstream discourse over the last week and is reflected in the letters sent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ asks them to help curb the power of police unions .
“ Making sure that unions aren ’ t as powerful so that you can keep bad apples on the force , and prevent robust oversight and disciplinary action , ” Medwed said .
Cities across the country are reeling , not just because of the most recent killings , but because of a long history of the same disturbing incidents of police brutality with little to no accountability , Medwed said , citing a handful of cases going back more than 20 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ custody of a Haitian immigrant in 1997 and the more recent killing of Eric Garner in New York City .
“ Every city has its own slate of issues , ” Medwed said .
“ But there is this common theme and common ground here that does relate to the police in the United States having too much power , being too heavily weaponized , and being too protected by their unions .
And that ’ s what ’ s really undergirding this letter : this idea of finding common ground and striking @ @ @ @ @ @ @

In the wake of unprecedented civil action across the country after the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police, more than 200 people representing civil rights organizations, community organizers, elected officials, and public defenders sent letters to mayors, police chiefs, and county and sheriffs’ associations on Friday, asking them to take immediate action to decrease police presence and refocus on a good-faith effort to restore public safety.
The letters, sent to associations representing mayors, police chiefs, sheriffs, and county boards, outline policy proposals that mirror the demands protesters have been making in response to the police killings of Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Dreasjon Reed, Tony McDade, Ahmaud Arbery (killed by a former cop), and David McAtee.
“The solutions we need right now both to protect our safety and to rescue our democracy are ones that meet the scale of the problem,” read the letters, which were sent to the National Sheriffs’ Association, the United States Conference of Mayors, National Association of Counties, and the Major Cities Chiefs Association. To respond to recent police killings, it goes on, “we must replace the questions about how to reform policing with questions about what a broader vision for safety and justice in America should look like and what role policing should play in it.”
Signatories on the letters, which were led by the Justice Collaborative, a policy group that advocates for changes to the criminal justice system, include San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin and New York state Sen. Julia Salazar, along with hundreds of academics, faith leaders, and other organizers.
The proposals focus on five areas of efforts to radically reform the police state including defunding police and reprioritizing budgets, ending “no knock” raids, providing funding for non-law enforcement emergency responders, making police union negotiations public, and implementing community-based violence prevention solutions.
The demand to end “no knock” raids comes in the wake of the Louisville Metro Police Department’s killing of Taylor, a 26-year-old EMT. She was shot on March 13 at least eight times in her home after police conducting a drug raid entered the wrong house on an illegal no-knock warrant. Taylor’s boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, reportedly fired back at the intruders entering their home and was arrested immediately. He was charged with attempted murder of a police officer. The charges were later dropped, and Walker was released from home incarceration on May 26.
The letter is in stark contrast to the praise being heaped on law enforcement by major media organizations, mayors of major metropolitan cities — like Bill de Blasio, whose daughter was arrested and doxxed by the New York Police Department — and President Donald Trump, even as police have responded to protests with brute force. Organizers who signed the letter say their approach is the most productive and least harmful.
“Praising the police is not, in my view, the answer at the moment,” said Daniel Medwed, a law professor at Northeastern University. “In a way, the best way to sort of pay homage to [Floyd’s] memory, and to really effectuate the wishes of the protesters, and to really promote some meaningful reform, is to act now … while people are listening, and people’s eyes are open to these issues.”
“As we work toward minimizing the centuries of discrimination that have created that situation … we also have to, I think, address the immediate issue of police brutality.”
Rather than praising law enforcement, Medwed said, the answer is to get “at the underlying causes of police brutality, especially with respect to African Americans. And it ties in directly to systemic racism and institutionalized racism. And maybe as we work toward minimizing the centuries of discrimination that have created that situation, while we’re doing that, and having those conversations, we also have to, I think, address the immediate issue of police brutality.”
The recent spate of police shootings has highlighted a split between activists and scholars who have long advocated for prison and police abolition, and those who believe in piecemeal reforms, like use of force and bias trainings — or what abolitionist and prison scholar Ruth Wilson Gilmore calls “reformist reforms.”
Non-reformist reforms seek abolition as an end goal, and include defunding and demilitarizing the police — a demand that has long been considered politically impossible but has entered mainstream discourse over the last week and is reflected in the letters sent Friday.
The letter to police chiefs asks them to help curb the power of police unions. “Making sure that unions aren’t as powerful so that you can keep bad apples on the force, and prevent robust oversight and disciplinary action,” Medwed said.
Cities across the country are reeling, not just because of the most recent killings, but because of a long history of the same disturbing incidents of police brutality with little to no accountability, Medwed said, citing a handful of cases going back more than 20 years, including the rape in police custody of a Haitian immigrant in 1997 and the more recent killing of Eric Garner in New York City.
“Every city has its own slate of issues,” Medwed said. “But there is this common theme and common ground here that does relate to the police in the United States having too much power, being too heavily weaponized, and being too protected by their unions. And that’s what’s really undergirding this letter: this idea of finding common ground and striking while the iron is hot.”


theintercept--2020-06-05--Trump Built His Own Green Zone. He Got the Wall He Deserves.

An array of what might be described as the accessories and devices of dictatorship have expanded with infectious ruthlessness in American cities .
The police swinging batons wildly , the paramilitary forces refusing to identify themselves , the hysterical president trying to incite war , the vigilantes in league with the police , military helicopters clattering overhead , the general marching in the streets in combat fatigues , the state TV network loosing its hysterical tales of sabotage and mayhem — it ’ s all there , loud and clear .
Trump ’ s Green Zone is not nearly as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and it is not threatened by suicide bombers or mortar shells ; it ’ s a miniature in all respects , as is our president .
It is a monument to Trump ’ s cowardice in the face of peaceful opposition , though perhaps we should call it the White Zone , given his ideology of white nationalism .
Trump ’ s administration — and police forces across the country — have been hapless in everything except their viciousness against protesters who demand little more than to live in a country in which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lives of innocents , especially African Americans .
The Green Zone was the diseased heart of the U.S. occupation of Iraq .
It was a jittery enclave in the center of Baghdad where American officials worked in once-opulent buildings that were encircled by a fearsome perimeter .
The miles and miles of cement barriers that serpentined around the Green Zone were brutalist tombstones mutely announcing the fear and failure of the U.S. invasion .
I got to know those blast walls while reporting in Iraq .
Yet there it is , a government @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and troops , besieged by forces that in a way are stronger than any insurrection might muster — the collapsing force of its own malignance , incompetence , and cowardice .
This Green Zone or White Zone or whatever we should call it is not a projection of strength , not something to cower before .
We might even want to celebrate it .
While there is a tremendous amount of uncertainty about what will happen next , there is no greater sign of the failure of a political or military enterprise than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ itself off from the general population in what it hopes and prays is an impenetrable fashion .
A screenwriter could not have crafted a better arc , the return of the Green Zone , and it ’ s not an entirely contrived plot twist .
Trump is an ill culmination of many deformities in American politics and culture , including decades of militarism overseas and deceptions at home that have impoverished the country literally and morally .
Empires tend to collapse as a result of such errors — it ’ s worth remembering @ @ @ @ @ @ @ great extent killed off by Afghanistan and Chernobyl , while America got Afghanistan , Iraq , and Covid-19 .
“ When the truth offends , we lie and lie until we can no longer remember it is even there , but it is still there , ” noted a heroic Soviet scientist in “ Chernobyl , ” the HBO miniseries about the 1986 nuclear meltdown .
“ Every lie we tell incurs a debt to the truth .
Sooner or later that debt is paid.
” So the debt of lies and racism @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ; Trump is probably hastening the reckoning , though we might have been destined to have our own Green Zone at some point , or some other startling representation of the bottom being reached .
It ’ s oddly fitting , after all , that the troops summoned to the Washington , D.C. area included the 82nd Airborne Division , which participated in the invasion of Iraq and fought there throughout the years .
( I even wrote about an 82nd Airborne company as it tried to secure one of Baghdad ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ So this is a reminder of the debt we are paying for sins committed by our leaders over the years and decades : Soldiers from a famous unit that once trotted around Baghdad ’ s Green Zone are called to Washington , D.C. , where they are just as out of place as they were in Iraq .
There is a final irony to the barricaded White House that ’ s almost too obvious to mention .
A president who came to office promising to build a beautiful wall at the southern border @ @ @ @ @ @ @ instead erected a pathetic one to protect himself from his own people .
Trump has gotten some of what he deserves .
His tiny Green Zone is not a prison , but it ’ s a verdict on what he ’ s done .

Photo: Tom Brenner/Reuters
An array of what might be described as the accessories and devices of dictatorship have expanded with infectious ruthlessness in American cities. The police swinging batons wildly, the paramilitary forces refusing to identify themselves, the hysterical president trying to incite war, the vigilantes in league with the police, military helicopters clattering overhead, the general marching in the streets in combat fatigues, the state TV network loosing its tales of sabotage and mayhem — it’s all there, loud and clear.
And Thursday, when 1.7 miles of cement barriers and wire fences were transported to the heart of Washington, D.C. and latched together to form an expanded perimeter around the White House, we even got our own Green Zone.
The Green Zone was the diseased heart of the U.S. occupation of Iraq. It was a jittery enclave in the center of Baghdad where American officials worked in once-opulent buildings that were encircled by a fearsome perimeter. The miles and miles of cement barriers that serpentined around the Green Zone were brutalist tombstones mutely announcing the fear and failure of the U.S. invasion. I got to know those blast walls while reporting in Iraq.
Trump’s Green Zone is not nearly as large as the one in Baghdad, and it is not threatened by suicide bombers or mortar shells; it’s a miniature in all respects, as is our president. It is a monument to Trump’s cowardice in the face of peaceful opposition, though perhaps we should call it the White Zone, given his ideology of white nationalism. Trump’s administration — and police forces across the country — have been hapless in everything except their viciousness against protesters who demand little more than to live in a country in which the judicial system does not destroy the lives of innocents, especially African Americans.
The fortification of the White House continues this morning. New fencing and concrete barriers being put up at the Penn/17th street side. This is normally wide open for visitors. ?@PoPville? #DCProtests pic.twitter.com/lVqlOEwDGB — Chris Sheridan (@ChrisSheridan34) June 4, 2020
Yet there it is, a government executive that has surrounded itself with walls and troops, besieged by forces that in a way are stronger than any insurrection might muster — the collapsing force of its own malignance, incompetence, and cowardice. This Green Zone or White Zone or whatever we should call it is not a projection of strength, not something to cower before. We might even want to celebrate it. While there is a tremendous amount of uncertainty about what will happen next, there is no greater sign of the failure of a political or military enterprise than the fact that it has to seal itself off from the general population in what it hopes and prays is an impenetrable fashion.
A screenwriter could not have crafted a better arc, the return of the Green Zone, and it’s not an entirely contrived plot twist. Trump is an ill culmination of many deformities in American politics and culture, including decades of militarism overseas and deceptions at home that have impoverished the country literally and morally. Empires tend to collapse as a result of such errors — it’s worth remembering that the Soviet Union was to a great extent killed off by Afghanistan and Chernobyl, while America got Afghanistan, Iraq, and Covid-19. “When the truth offends, we lie and lie until we can no longer remember it is even there, but it is still there,” noted a heroic Soviet scientist in “Chernobyl,” the HBO miniseries about the 1986 nuclear meltdown. “Every lie we tell incurs a debt to the truth. Sooner or later that debt is paid.”
So the debt of lies and racism and militarism must be paid in America; Trump is probably hastening the reckoning, though we might have been destined to have our own Green Zone at some point, or some other startling representation of the bottom being reached. It’s oddly fitting, after all, that the troops summoned to the Washington, D.C. area included the 82nd Airborne Division, which participated in the invasion of Iraq and fought there throughout the years. (I even wrote about an 82nd Airborne company as it tried to secure one of Baghdad’s oil refineries from post-invasion looting.) So this is a reminder of the debt we are paying for sins committed by our leaders over the years and decades: Soldiers from a famous unit that once trotted around Baghdad’s Green Zone are called to Washington, D.C., where they are just as out of place as they were in Iraq.
There is a final irony to the barricaded White House that’s almost too obvious to mention. A president who came to office promising to build a beautiful wall at the southern border to protect the nation from foreigners has instead erected a pathetic one to protect himself from his own people. Trump has gotten some of what he deserves. His tiny Green Zone is not a prison, but it’s a verdict on what he’s done.


theintercept--2020-06-05--Buffalo Police Said Protester With Head Wound "Tripped and Fell." Video Shows They Lied.

Buffalo , New York used excessive force to disperse a protest against police brutality on Thursday , shoving a 75-year-old protester who posed no threat to them so hard that he fell to the ground and sustained a bloody head wound .
Although the incident took place outside Buffalo ’ s City Hall , in daylight and in full view of witnesses , including at least five journalists , the Buffalo Police Department initially said in a statement that , during a “ skirmish involving protestors , one person was injured when he tripped & fell.
” However , that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be a lie .
Just over 20 minutes after the police statement was made public , the local NPR affiliate WBFO released distressing video of the incident , which clearly showed that the man only fell to the sidewalk in Niagara Square and hit his head because two officers he tried to talk to shoved him roughly .
Although the masked , elderly man hit his head hard on the pavement , and immediately began bleeding from his ear , one officer who had pushed him was stopped from aiding him by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ younger protester , who was sitting on the city hall steps holding a “ Black Lives Matter ” sign .
None of the other officers made any immediate effort to help the injured man .
One officer did , however , order the reporter who was filming the incident , Mike Desmond of WBFO , to clear the area .
The injured man was hospitalized in serious , but stable condition , according to local officials .
He was identified as the veteran activist Martin Gugino by his friend Mark Colville , one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Plowshares , a nuclear-abolition movement , currently awaiting sentencing for breaking into the Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base in St. Mary ’ s , Georgia , in 2018 , on the 50th anniversary of the assassination of the Rev .
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. “ This is my good friend , Martin Gugino , ” Colville wrote on Twitter .
“ A longtime activist and political thinker ; has struggled to close Guantanamo as a member of Witness Against Torture ; a man of deep faith who spends much of his free @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he ’ s battling a catastrophic illness.
” Last week , Gugino posted a YouTube statement addressed to the federal court in Brunswick , Georgia where Colville is awaiting sentencing in support , in which he had cited Martin Luther King ’ s belief that “ the arc of the moral universe is long , but it bends toward justice.
” Gugino added : “ What he doesn ’ t say there , is that it doesn ’ t bend itself ; we have to bend it .
We have to go out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ act morally , do good , and little by little it will bend the culture towards justice .
And some of the times , the culture doesn ’ t want to be bent , and so they ’ ll be conflict , and that ’ s just part of it.
” Earlier on Thursday , Gugino had tweeted a photograph of an event in Niagara Square at which state and local officials called for police reform .
He also wrote that “ COVID is a factor , ” for protesters against police brutality @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that he had a cough .
“ I can take extra measures to counteract ” the risk of infection , he added , but noted there is also a risk “ of getting pummeled.
” Video of the incident recorded from across the street by a photojournalist named Anthony Nelson showed just how disproportionate the forceful police action to clear the square was .
As the 8 p.m. curfew passed , the officers advanced in military formation despite facing just a handful of protesters About 90 minutes after the close-up video was posted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ condemnation , the mayor of Buffalo , Byron Brown , announced that the two officers had been suspended without pay , pending an investigation .
Brown , however , appeared to endorse the police perspective that force was required to clear the square .
The man was injured , Brown wrote , “ after a physical altercation between two separate groups of protesters participating in an illegal demonstration beyond the curfew.
” There was no evidence in the videos from the scene of any altercation before the police surged forward at the few @ @ @ @ @ @ @ An earlier demonstration , demanding justice for George Floyd , the black security guard murdered by a white police office in Minneapolis , had ended peacefully , after fist bumps between police officers and protesters .
Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz issued a more forceful statement than the city ’ s mayor .
“ Simply put , the officers must be held responsible for their actions , not just fired , ” he wrote on Twitter .
The incident , just one of dozens of examples of excessive force caught on camera in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ both because the target was an elderly , peaceful protester and because the initial police statement made it obvious that the incident would have been covered up but for the presence of a witness with a video camera .
The two suspensions were denounced by the president of the Buffalo Police Benevolent Association , John Evans , in an email obtained by Madison Carter of the local ABC News affiliate , WKBW .
“ I can tell you they tried to fuck over these guys like I have never seen in my 54 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It is despicable.
” Evans argued that since the officers “ did nothing wrong ” and were “ simply following orders , ” he had decided that the association would not pay for the legal defense of any officers from Buffalo ’ s Emergency Response Team who might be charged with wrongdoing “ OVER BULLSHIT… related to these protests going forward.
” Following that email , all 57 members of the police department ’ s Emergency Response Team reportedly resigned from the unit , although not from the police force .
Spectrum News @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the officers had quit their unit “ to support the two suspended officers , and in disgust of how the administration is handling the entire incident.
” “ These guys did nothing but do what they were ordered to do .
This is disgusting !
!
!
” Evans wrote in a public post on the Buffalo PBA website .
“ These protest ’ s/riots should not be taken lightly !
!
” he added in a text message with idiosyncratic punctuation .
“ Last nights rioters were from Bflo NY- Not out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have a rifle equivalent to the criminals AR ’ s and AK ’ s. ” The injured protester , Martin Gugino , issued a statement through his lawyer on Friday afternoon confirming that he remains in serious but stable condition but is “ alert and oriented .
”

Police officers in Buffalo, New York used excessive force to disperse a protest against police brutality on Thursday, shoving a 75-year-old protester who posed no threat to them so hard that he fell to the ground and sustained a bloody head wound.
Although the incident took place outside Buffalo’s City Hall, in daylight and in full view of witnesses, including at least five journalists, the Buffalo Police Department initially said in a statement that, during a “skirmish involving protestors, one person was injured when he tripped & fell.”
However, that account of what happened was quickly revealed to be a lie. Just over 20 minutes after the police statement was made public, the local NPR affiliate WBFO released distressing video of the incident, which clearly showed that the man only fell to the sidewalk in Niagara Square and hit his head because two officers he tried to talk to shoved him roughly.
Although the masked, elderly man hit his head hard on the pavement, and immediately began bleeding from his ear, one officer who had pushed him was stopped from aiding him by another officer who pushed him toward a younger protester, who was sitting on the city hall steps holding a “Black Lives Matter” sign. None of the other officers made any immediate effort to help the injured man. One officer did, however, order the reporter who was filming the incident, Mike Desmond of WBFO, to clear the area.
The injured man was hospitalized in serious, but stable condition, according to local officials. He was identified as the veteran activist Martin Gugino by his friend Mark Colville, one of seven Catholic anti-nuclear activists affiliated with Plowshares, a nuclear-abolition movement, currently awaiting sentencing for breaking into the Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base in St. Mary’s, Georgia, in 2018, on the 50th anniversary of the assassination of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
“This is my good friend, Martin Gugino,” Colville wrote on Twitter. “A longtime activist and political thinker; has struggled to close Guantanamo as a member of Witness Against Torture; a man of deep faith who spends much of his free time visiting prisoners in Attica. And he’s battling a catastrophic illness.”
Last week, Gugino posted a YouTube statement addressed to the federal court in Brunswick, Georgia where Colville is awaiting sentencing in support, in which he had cited Martin Luther King’s belief that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.” Gugino added: “What he doesn’t say there, is that it doesn’t bend itself; we have to bend it. We have to go out into the culture and act justly, act morally, do good, and little by little it will bend the culture towards justice. And some of the times, the culture doesn’t want to be bent, and so they’ll be conflict, and that’s just part of it.”
Earlier on Thursday, Gugino had tweeted a photograph of an event in Niagara Square at which state and local officials called for police reform. He also wrote that “COVID is a factor,” for protesters against police brutality and racial injustice to consider and noted that he had a cough. “I can take extra measures to counteract” the risk of infection, he added, but noted there is also a risk “of getting pummeled.”
On Wednesday night, Gugino suggested on Twitter that protesters are, or should be, exempt from curfews.
Video of the incident recorded from across the street by a photojournalist named Anthony Nelson showed just how disproportionate the forceful police action to clear the square was. As the 8 p.m. curfew passed, the officers advanced in military formation despite facing just a handful of protesters
About 90 minutes after the close-up video was posted online, and prompted national and international condemnation, the mayor of Buffalo, Byron Brown, announced that the two officers had been suspended without pay, pending an investigation.
Brown, however, appeared to endorse the police perspective that force was required to clear the square. The man was injured, Brown wrote, “after a physical altercation between two separate groups of protesters participating in an illegal demonstration beyond the curfew.” There was no evidence in the videos from the scene of any altercation before the police surged forward at the few protesters who remained in Niagara Square. An earlier demonstration, demanding justice for George Floyd, the black security guard murdered by a white police office in Minneapolis, had ended peacefully, after fist bumps between police officers and protesters.
Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz issued a more forceful statement than the city’s mayor. “Simply put, the officers must be held responsible for their actions, not just fired,” he wrote on Twitter.
The incident, just one of dozens of examples of excessive force caught on camera in the past two weeks, stirred outrage both because the target was an elderly, peaceful protester and because the initial police statement made it obvious that the incident would have been covered up but for the presence of a witness with a video camera.
The two suspensions were denounced by the president of the Buffalo Police Benevolent Association, John Evans, in an email obtained by Madison Carter of the local ABC News affiliate, WKBW. “I can tell you they tried to fuck over these guys like I have never seen in my 54 years,” Evans wrote. “It is despicable.”
Evans argued that since the officers “did nothing wrong” and were “simply following orders,” he had decided that the association would not pay for the legal defense of any officers from Buffalo’s Emergency Response Team who might be charged with wrongdoing “OVER BULLSHIT… related to these protests going forward.”
Following that email, all 57 members of the police department’s Emergency Response Team reportedly resigned from the unit, although not from the police force. Spectrum News in Buffalo reported that Evans confirmed that the officers had quit their unit “to support the two suspended officers, and in disgust of how the administration is handling the entire incident.”
“These guys did nothing but do what they were ordered to do. This is disgusting!!!” Evans wrote in a public post on the Buffalo PBA website.
“These protest’s/riots should not be taken lightly!!” he added in a text message with idiosyncratic punctuation. “Last nights rioters were from Bflo NY- Not out of towners… We still don’t have a rifle equivalent to the criminals AR’s and AK’s.” (After this article was published, the Buffalo PBA website hid those comments from non-members.)
The injured protester, Martin Gugino, issued a statement through his lawyer on Friday afternoon confirming that he remains in serious but stable condition but is “alert and oriented.”
On Saturday, the two officers who shoved him, Robert McCabe and Aaron Torgalski, were charged felony assault at the Erie County courthouse, just two blocks from the scene of the crime. Outside the court, a crowd of city police officers and firefighters applauded for the indicted officers when at least one of them emerged after pleading not guilty.
Last Updated: Saturday, June 6, 1:56 p.m. PDT
This article was updated on Saturday with video of the suspended officers being cheered by colleagues. It was previously updated on Friday to report remarks from the president of the Buffalo Police Benevolent Association and to note that the injured man was identified as the veteran activist Martin Gugino by his friend Mark Colville, one of seven Catholic anti-nuclear activists affiliated with Plowshares known as the Kings Bay 7.


theintercept--2020-06-06--Georgia Protests Differently: A Dispatch From the Front Lines of Atlanta Divided

pulled up to the corner of Marietta Street and Centennial Park Drive in the middle of the Atlanta protest Wednesday , to do burnouts across from CNN Center .
Clouds of smoke covered protesters , screening them instantly from the police riot line .
A whoop rose .
People crowded around the cars — Dodge Chargers , the semi-official Atlanta car of choice — while Migos blared from the trunk .
People turned their back to the cops and started dancing .
No one batted an eye .
The days of defiance here in the wake of the killings of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ half police misconduct protest rally and half carnival , even on the nights of broken glass along Peachtree Street .
Incongruity abounds .
Women shooting music videos in front of a line of shield-bearing soldiers one day , the National Guard breaking out into dance with protesters on the next .
Tayla Myree , 22 , had prepared herself Monday to confront tear gas and white supremacy , not burning rubber .
She was there to take on the city ’ s police force , particularly its partnership with the Israel Defense Forces @ @ @ @ @ @ @ teach-ins .
People need to be reading .
People need to be talking to each other , ” the recent Syracuse history graduate said .
In the moment , she yearned for organization and direction , to capture value from defiance even as Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms invoked Martin Luther King Jr. and sternly called the protests “ chaos.
” “ King was very radical , specifically for his time , ” Myree said .
“ Civil disobedience works .
He was breaking the law .
To have someone like Keisha Lance Bottoms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ history against the people of Atlanta pisses me off.
” Saturday night , protesters in a parking lot next to Ted Turner ’ s downtown penthouse held off a phalanx of riot cops for half an hour .
Then Andrew Young Boulevard exploded — into a pop-up dance hall , with revelers firing Roman candles down Williams Street as a car stopped to bump Ralo ’ s “ Akh Shit Pop Shit , ” the unofficial anthem of the day .
( Ralo faces charges of running a marijuana smuggling operation from an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ later , a shirtless teenager called for smashing , and vandals shattered a line of windows with a trail of gawkers in their wake .
Amid a crowd of hundreds of anonymous protesters , the only authority or direction in the nights that followed came in moments like this , with vandals seizing leadership one storefront at a time .
“ While the nation is on fire … people like myself know how crucial this time is , ” said Marcus Coleman , director of Save Our Selves , a social justice activist @ @ @ @ @ @ @ marches that Friday .
The worst damage to the city occurred a few hours after Coleman ’ s march concluded , as people began to do their own thing .
“ How do we channel this energy ?
” he asked .
“ What does success look like ?
” Coleman wants to see reparations .
Coleman wants to see “ every damned document ” amended .
But he ’ d like to start with some basics .
Coleman proposes that the city of Atlanta require police officers to live in the communities @ @ @ @ @ @ @ time .
He ’ d like police officers to be drug tested immediately after a shooting .
He also notes that California just changed their standard for justifying police shootings from a “ reasonable ” use of force to a “ necessary ” use of force .
The change lowers the barrier to firing and charging a police officer for misconduct .
He would like to see it here in Georgia .
The death of Floyd and subsequent protests amplified a political shift that had begun with the international outcry over the killing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bit of information about Arbery ’ s death in February and the delayed prosecution seems to turn public disgust up another notch ; prosecutors told the court Thursday that the man who appears to fire the fatal shot in the widely circulated video spat racial epithets after killing Arbery .
Outrage has been multiracial and politically broad , which is unusual in Atlanta .
“ One of the reasons that white people haven ’ t shown up is because they didn ’ t know where to show up and when to show up @ @ @ @ @ @ @ problem today , ” said Janel Green , a primary organizer of the Women ’ s March in Atlanta .
a mythology as the American mecca for black aspirations .
A relatively affordable city for black refugees from New York and Los Angeles , Atlanta rests at the center of the black music universe , with a black business elite , deep cultural cachet , and a black political power structure .
Buckhead is where that falls apart .
Buckhead is the epicenter of Atlanta ’ s stark inequality .
Buckhead is Lenox @ @ @ @ @ @ @ luxury malls left standing amid the death of retail , and the target of lots of looting .
“ Buckhead is trifling as shit , ” said Don De La Vega , standing in a couture business suit amid black T-shirts .
De La Vega said he lives in Buckhead and runs a marketing firm .
Among other things , Buckhead is finance and tech companies that don ’ t hire black people , in a city that ’ s 50 percent black .
“ All of this shit is reactive .
We @ @ @ @ @ @ @ La Vega said .
“ Bring back Black Wall Street .
… If you don ’ t get your ass out there and vote , and be proactive , become educated and aware , you ’ re not doing anything effective at all .
You ’ re just yelling shit for no reason , like they ’ ve been doing for the last 100 years.
” De La Vega , like many of the protesters , demands that the government stand equal in the law to the people they police .
It was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the most consistent .
“ The same way we are held accountable as citizens , I believe the government should be held accountable as a government .
Not just the police , because it ’ s not just the police .
The police wouldn ’ t behave like they were gods if we didn ’ t treat them like gods.
” This cry for justice speaks to the deep inequality black Atlanta endures , often without acknowledging it .
Atlanta is supposed to represent black achievement .
But Atlanta is an unequal city @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
It has the greatest income inequality as measured in a Bloomberg analysis , two years running .
The racial income gap reflects some of that ; white households in the city of Atlanta earn more than $ 80,000 a year on average , while black households earn about $ 30,000 a year .
That gap narrows in the suburbs , but not in Buckhead ’ s streets .
Fewer than 2 percent of black households in Atlanta make more than $ 100,000 a year .
Fewer than 4 percent make more than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ three are living , somehow , on $ 22,000 a year or less .
$ 340 a week take home , maybe .
Atlanta has had the lowest income mobility in America , too .
In 2014 , being born in the bottom quintile of income ( under about $ 16,000 a year , today ) meant the odds of making it into the top quintile in Atlanta ( above about $ 120,000 ) were 4 percent .
People move here in droves .
About 75,000 people move to metro Atlanta every year @ @ @ @ @ @ @ apartment has risen by more than $ 700 in nine years to $ 1,850 .
You need three times the rent to qualify .
That ’ s about $ 66,000 a year .
Most black people here don ’ t make that much .
Half the city is black , but 88 percent of people experiencing homelessness here are black .
None of this is particularly mysterious to black Atlantans .
Most of this is invisible to white Atlantans .
Atlanta ’ s black political class has been making noises about inequality for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tenuous steps to address inequality for very poor people .
Bail reform .
Pre-arrest diversion programs .
A $ 50 million homelessness program .
In the wake of wide protests for both Arbery and Floyd , long-frozen hate crime legislation is working its way through the state ’ s legislative process , and a team of six Democratic lawmakers have proposed that the state create a registry for bad cops .
Atlanta ’ s black political class has been making noises about inequality for a while .
It has taken some tenuous steps @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : Bail reform .
Pre-arrest diversion programs .
A $ 50 million homelessness program .
In the wake of wide protests for both Arbery and Floyd , long-frozen hate crime legislation is working its way through the legislative process , and a team of six Democratic lawmakers have proposed that the state create a registry for bad cops .
But Fulton County Jail is still filled to overflowing , mostly with black people .
One in six Atlanta households faced an eviction within the last 18 months , mostly of black people .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ day jobs , and the streets reopen , in quiet rooms in City Hall and the state Capitol , these inequalities will be discussed with new urgency .
“ There ’ s a way for Atlanta to be that shining beacon , that black mecca , if it can implement one of these policies in the middle of this crisis , ” Coleman said .
“ OK , we ’ ve torn this place up for the very first fucking time .
Some don ’ t like it , some don ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Well , we came to the table with leaders , with community , and we came up with what we felt like solutions .
”

Two muscle cars pulled up to the corner of Marietta Street and Centennial Park Drive in the middle of the Atlanta protest Wednesday, to do burnouts across from CNN Center. Clouds of smoke covered protesters, screening them instantly from the police riot line. A whoop rose. People crowded around the cars — Dodge Chargers, the semi-official Atlanta car of choice — while Migos blared from the trunk. People turned their back to the cops and started dancing. No one batted an eye.
Atlanta protests differently.
The days of defiance here in the wake of the killings of Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd have been half police misconduct protest rally and half carnival, even on the nights of broken glass along Peachtree Street. Incongruity abounds. Women shooting music videos in front of a line of shield-bearing soldiers one day, the National Guard breaking out into dance with protesters on the next.
Tayla Myree, 22, had prepared herself Monday to confront tear gas and white supremacy, not burning rubber. She was there to take on the city’s police force, particularly its partnership with the Israel Defense Forces. “People need to be doing teach-ins. People need to be reading. People need to be talking to each other,” the recent Syracuse history graduate said. In the moment, she yearned for organization and direction, to capture value from defiance even as Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms invoked Martin Luther King Jr. and sternly called the protests “chaos.”
“King was very radical, specifically for his time,” Myree said. “Civil disobedience works. He was breaking the law. To have someone like Keisha Lance Bottoms actually weaponize Martin Luther King’s history against the people of Atlanta pisses me off.”
Saturday night, protesters in a parking lot next to Ted Turner’s downtown penthouse held off a phalanx of riot cops for half an hour. Then Andrew Young Boulevard exploded — into a pop-up dance hall, with revelers firing Roman candles down Williams Street as a car stopped to bump Ralo’s “Akh Shit Pop Shit,” the unofficial anthem of the day. (Ralo faces charges of running a marijuana smuggling operation from an Atlanta apartment complex.)
A moment later, a shirtless teenager called for smashing, and vandals shattered a line of windows with a trail of gawkers in their wake. Amid a crowd of hundreds of anonymous protesters, the only authority or direction in the nights that followed came in moments like this, with vandals seizing leadership one storefront at a time.
“While the nation is on fire … people like myself know how crucial this time is,” said Marcus Coleman, director of Save Our Selves, a social justice activist organization in Atlanta. Coleman helped organize marches that Friday. The worst damage to the city occurred a few hours after Coleman’s march concluded, as people began to do their own thing. “How do we channel this energy?” he asked. “What does success look like?”
Coleman wants to see reparations. Coleman wants to see “every damned document” amended. But he’d like to start with some basics. Coleman proposes that the city of Atlanta require police officers to live in the communities they police, at least for a time. He’d like police officers to be drug tested immediately after a shooting. He also notes that California just changed their standard for justifying police shootings from a “reasonable” use of force to a “necessary” use of force. The change lowers the barrier to firing and charging a police officer for misconduct. He would like to see it here in Georgia.
The death of Floyd and subsequent protests amplified a political shift that had begun with the international outcry over the killing of Arbery in south Georgia. Every bit of information about Arbery’s death in February and the delayed prosecution seems to turn public disgust up another notch; prosecutors told the court Thursday that the man who appears to fire the fatal shot in the widely circulated video spat racial epithets after killing Arbery.
Outrage has been multiracial and politically broad, which is unusual in Atlanta. “One of the reasons that white people haven’t shown up is because they didn’t know where to show up and when to show up. That’s not the same problem today,” said Janel Green, a primary organizer of the Women’s March in Atlanta.
Atlanta has a mythology as the American mecca for black aspirations. A relatively affordable city for black refugees from New York and Los Angeles, Atlanta rests at the center of the black music universe, with a black business elite, deep cultural cachet, and a black political power structure.
Buckhead is where that falls apart. Buckhead is the epicenter of Atlanta’s stark inequality. Buckhead is Lenox Mall and Phipps Plaza, the last luxury malls left standing amid the death of retail, and the target of lots of looting.
“Buckhead is trifling as shit,” said Don De La Vega, standing in a couture business suit amid black T-shirts. De La Vega said he lives in Buckhead and runs a marketing firm. Among other things, Buckhead is finance and tech companies that don’t hire black people, in a city that’s 50 percent black.
“How do we channel this energy? What does success look like?”
“All of this shit is reactive. We need to become proactive,” De La Vega said. “Bring back Black Wall Street. … If you don’t get your ass out there and vote, and be proactive, become educated and aware, you’re not doing anything effective at all. You’re just yelling shit for no reason, like they’ve been doing for the last 100 years.”
De La Vega, like many of the protesters, demands that the government stand equal in the law to the people they police. It was often the first grievance aired, and the most consistent. “The same way we are held accountable as citizens, I believe the government should be held accountable as a government. Not just the police, because it’s not just the police. The police wouldn’t behave like they were gods if we didn’t treat them like gods.”
This cry for justice speaks to the deep inequality black Atlanta endures, often without acknowledging it. Atlanta is supposed to represent black achievement.
But Atlanta is an unequal city. It is the most unequal city. It has the greatest income inequality as measured in a Bloomberg analysis, two years running. The racial income gap reflects some of that; white households in the city of Atlanta earn more than $80,000 a year on average, while black households earn about $30,000 a year. That gap narrows in the suburbs, but not in Buckhead’s streets. Fewer than 2 percent of black households in Atlanta make more than $100,000 a year. Fewer than 4 percent make more than $75,000 a year. One in three are living, somehow, on $22,000 a year or less. $340 a week take home, maybe.
Atlanta has had the lowest income mobility in America, too. In 2014, being born in the bottom quintile of income (under about $16,000 a year, today) meant the odds of making it into the top quintile in Atlanta (above about $120,000) were 4 percent.
People move here in droves. About 75,000 people move to metro Atlanta every year. The average rent on a two-bedroom apartment has risen by more than $700 in nine years to $1,850. You need three times the rent to qualify. That’s about $66,000 a year. Most black people here don’t make that much. Half the city is black, but 88 percent of people experiencing homelessness here are black.
None of this is particularly mysterious to black Atlantans. Most of this is invisible to white Atlantans.
Atlanta’s black political class has been making noises about inequality for a while. It has taken some tenuous steps to address inequality for very poor people. Bail reform. Pre-arrest diversion programs. A $50 million homelessness program. In the wake of wide protests for both Arbery and Floyd, long-frozen hate crime legislation is working its way through the state’s legislative process, and a team of six Democratic lawmakers have proposed that the state create a registry for bad cops.
But Fulton County Jail is still filled to overflowing, mostly with black people. One in six Atlanta households faced an eviction within the last 18 months, mostly of black people.
When the National Guard return to their day jobs, and the streets reopen, in quiet rooms in City Hall and the state Capitol, these inequalities will be discussed with new urgency.
“There’s a way for Atlanta to be that shining beacon, that black mecca, if it can implement one of these policies in the middle of this crisis,” Coleman said. “OK, we’ve torn this place up for the very first fucking time. Some don’t like it, some don’t mind it, all should understand it. Well, we came to the table with leaders, with community, and we came up with what we felt like solutions.”