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Extreme police tactics are not a new
phenomenon in the US. But in the age of
social media, police violence, such as the
shooting of unarmed people and the use of
pepper spray and taser guns, are being
documented for the world to see.
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"We obtained video showing that in
the immediate aftermath of Diaz's
shooting, he was there lying on the
ground twitching. The police
department did nothing for three
minutes, instead they were more
interested in trying to shoo away
onlookers ... blocking people from
documenting what was going on ....
Unfortunately shootings are going to
happen but when you're so cavalier
about them, people are going to get
upset."
- Gustavo Arellano, the editor of
the OC Weekly |
Occupy protesters throughout the country
felt the full force of police tactics - many
were subject to violent arrest.
Perhaps the most controversial example was
at the University of California, Davis (UC
Davis) where peaceful protesters were pepper
sprayed last November.
It is more than 20 years since a recording
of police violence sparked riots in Los
Angeles. The beating of Rodney King was
caught on video and the footage shocked the
world.
But two decades later how much has changed?
On Saturday, police in the Californian city
of Anaheim shot and killed Manuel Diaz, an
unarmed man who they said was running from
them, hitting him in the leg and the back of
the head.
Police said he and another young man shot
dead the following day were both gang
members. But local residents say the Latino
men were victims of racial profiling and an
overly aggressive police force.
The community reacted furiously and on
Tuesday night, when protesters attempted to
attend a city council meeting, they were
barred from entering city hall by police who
said the meeting room was full.
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"Racial profiling is real. People
are treated differently in a
criminal justice system. So when you
look at a group of people and you
criminalise them by saying this is a
neighbourhood with a lot of crime,
it's a high crime area, this is an
area with a lot of drug dealers,
these people are gang members, it
dehumanises them and it makes them
fair targets in a lot of ways."
- Jumana Musa, a human rights lawyer |
The protesters reacted by throwing rocks and
bottles at the police and setting fire to
bins. Hundreds of police in riot gear
responded by firing non-lethal rounds at the
crowd. At least six people were injured and
police made two dozen arrests.
The clashes between protesters and police
have now gone on for several days and
nights. In one incident, police fired rubber
bullets at near point blank range and police
dogs attacked protesters. Mobile phone
footage of the incident went viral,
attracting nationwide attention.
Anaheim's mayor says federal officials have
agreed to investigate the shootings. But the
city, where there have been six fatal police
shootings this year, is now being compared
to a powder keg.
So is policing in the US becoming
increasingly militarised?
To discuss this,
Inside Story Americas,
with presenter Shihab Rattansi, is joined by
guests: Jumana Musa, a human rights lawyer
who is deputy director of the Rights Working
Group; Gustavo Arellano, the editor of the
OC Weekly,
a newspaper that has been covering the
shootings; and Raymond Lewis, a retired
Philadelphia police captain who was arrested
by New York police while taking part in the
Occupy Wall Street protests last year.
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"I've lived in this community my
whole life and it's sad when you
have to be scared for your kids
to go outside."
Louisa Sanchez, a protester
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