More at www.theuptake.org. Outside the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, UpTake Journalists Corrine McDermid and Oliver Dykstra find themselves caught between police and protesters when there are suddenly explosions. Video edited by Michael McIntee.
Rikiru, that is the most intellegent response on this page, good job. i agree.
So disgusting how the government can violently repress it’s own people and the only ones who care are small independent student run media. This country is fucked up. FUCK THE STATE AND FUCK CAPITALISM.
Oh bullshit. Get your fucking facts straight. At the RNC, there was one breakaway march, (not this crowd) that broke off from the main protest route and broke a few windows, trashed a cop car, and overturned some newstands and garbage dumpsters. A minor riot that could have very easily been contained, but the cops were too busy with the peaceful protesters and didn’t even arrive in force to stop it until it had been going on for two hours. But the police didn’t stop after that riot was contained
Instead they attacked every protester from that point on, completely violating the civil rights of people that had committed no crime. These kids here hadn’t done a damn thing. And these same worthless, fascist pigs later surrounded a group of people in a park that weren’t even protesting, held them there against their will, and arrested all of them, charging many of them with felonies. State sponsored repression that has nothing to do with some minor vandalism by a small crowd of protesters.
Shut up! Brain washed sheeple do not see the facism because they see to much TV.
What were they protesting?
Welcome to the police state!
oh these where the ones not doing anything got it… then why where people in this group throwing rocks a the police
That’s a claim you make that is not supported by this video. Show me where and when they were throwing rocks at the police.
even the guy video taping said where did the guy with the rock in his hand go
Oh, you mean at 8:20? So in other words, he saw one guy with a rock eight minutes into the “battle,” after they and the rest of the crowd had already been hit with flash bangs and tear gas. These are human beings sir, not sheep. If you attack them, they have a right to defend themselves.
Thank you for helping confirm my suspicion that the so-called riot that did occur was probably an angry reaction to excessive police violence.
It really dosn’t matter, they were being peaceful
thank you, that is the whole point i’ve been tryin to make, but its ok they want our country to be socalist so they can say how they feel, don’t you see the ironry
You shoulda got your facts straight. Agent provocateurs are rarely if ever defended against BY cops, they often ARE cops. Why do you think the police were so busy w/peaceful protesters when there was actual violence being done? Then we have the nitwits depicted in this video offering. They even focused on the group that advanced on an armed police line. Do you really want to defend their actions and be associated with such an anti-social and disruptive group?
How dare you suggest there is no peaceful alternative to overwhelming police presence. Certainly there *should not* have been a need for so many well armed and ill-trained peace officers. Advancing on them while cowering behind makeshift shields and throwing rocks and bottles wasn’t too bright nor would such actions reasonably be expected to bring peaceful resolution. What these immature kids did was no better nor worse than what the hired goons, black masked anarchists, did.
In the 13 mo’s since this thread first made it’s appearance I see nothing but the same tired lies being told. There was overreaction by Police to some events surrounding both the DNC and the RNC. But this wasn’t among them. The mere sight of so many police in riot gear does give one pause and bring back those horrific memories of students shot dead at Kent State. This however was an example of hyperimaginative children promoting a sense of US vs THEM mentality. No good could come from it.
I know what agent provocateurs are. Where did you get the idea that I ever said they were defended against by cops?
My question to you is why was there even an armed police line there pointing grenade launchers at them in the first place? The entire Excel Center is surrounded by a big cage and countless armed guards so I don’t think this group of kids really posed all that much threat to them. I know that if I’m out there marching peacefully, and some jackass points a grenade launcher at me…
I’m going to be pretty pissed off about it. This is supposed to be a free country, and now I can’t even walk down the street without being threatened with tear gas and flash bang grenades by some thug in stormtrooper gear?
Well, fuck that. I’d march on that police line too, consequences be damned. What these kids did was show bravery in the face of fascism, defiance in the face of tyranny. Do I want to be associated with people like that? Hell fucking yeah!
Not only know what provocateurs are but defend them. You didn’t say AP are defended by Police, I did.
How should I know why so many cops on the street? I suggest making that query of the St Paul city managers, after all they are the ones directly tasked with providing such Police support.
The question I’m posing is what would you do when a bunch of hooligans start challenging Police lines in opposition to clearly spoken directives not to? You discount the others present provoking Police responce
Why do you call them hooligans? What have they done to earn that title from you? You are essentially making the claim that these kids are criminals, and yet there is not one single crime committed by them anywhere on the video. Oh yeah, one of them was seen with a rock after eight minutes of being gassed and shelled by police. What horror. All I saw on this video was a cop pointing a grenade launcher at a bunch of unarmed kids peacefully protesting on the sidewalk…
And those kids gave some taunts to the cops in return, one of them giving them a sig heil, and then they crossed the street. By doing so, they were saying to the cops, I’m not intimidated by you. This is my right and you’re not going to take it away. Well, I guess the big bad po po can’t stand it when people actually think and act for themselves. That’s all the police proved here by having the reaction they did. They essentially proved the kid that gave them a sig heil correct.
And to clarify, I never said there was no peaceful alternative to overwhelming police presence. I actually think it would be beneficial to all leftist protesters to place more of an emphasis and training on organized non-violent civil disobedience instead of these so-called breakaway marches, so we agree on that. However, that does not mean that I think these kids did anything wrong. I saw nothing but peaceful protest coming from them and violent action from the police.
I think we just clarified some misunderstandings.
I’m not talking about the “innocent bystanders” that you focus on while you either forget or discount the tiny groups like the ones who walked forward behind a thin mattress in obvious provocation that is covered by the first few minutes of the vid that began our discussion.
Taking a broader view of the events chronicled here and the discussion surrounding it I think we probably agree on most points and are both baffled by the actions of a few.
That is a freaking grenade hahahah… what a dumb bitch
We need to stand up and fight back!