#paez teran

[probablyasocialecologist]

The death of Paez Terán – the first time an environmental protester has been killed by police in US history – created headlines around the US and the world and further galvanised a protest movement against the huge project amid accusations of heavy-handed police action and some local Georgia politicians eager to depict activists as “terrorists”.

The incident reports reveal that officers were first to discharge a weapon – they fired a pepperball gun into Paez Terán’s tent, which was followed by gunshots they believed were coming from inside the tent, leading officers to fire a barrage of shots blindly into the tent, killing Paez Terán inside. It also reveals that, while they rendered medical assistance to an injured officer, they did not immediately do the same for Paez Terán.

[...]

There are nine mentions of the phrase “domestic terrorist” or “domestic terrorists” used by officers in the 20-page police incident report, which Paez Terán’s family said showed the attitude they took towards anyone they encountered in the forest during an operation that resulted in the death of the activist, who went by “Tortuguita” and used they/them pronouns.

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp declared a State of Emergency Thursday and activated 1,000 National Guard troops in response to ongoing violent protests in downtown Atlanta following a shooting last week near a controversial future law enforcement training site in which a Georgia state trooper was wounded and a man was killed.

The State of Emergency is in effect until Feb. 9, according to the document, unless renewed by the Governor.

The Atlanta protests center around the building of the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, nicknamed "Cop City." Protestors have been at the site for months, but on Jan. 18, a protestor identified as Manuel Esteban Paez Teran was shot and killed by law enforcement after authorities said he shot and wounded a Georgia state trooper during a planned multi-agency operation to remove protestors from the area. The trooper was hospitalized and survived.

On Jan. 21, six people were arrested after protests at "Cop City" led to property damage and a police vehicle being set ablaze. Some of the arrested protestors were found with "explosives," Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens said. No one was injured.

Kemp specifically referenced the burnt car in his declaration of the state of emergency.

"Masked activists threw rocks, launched fireworks and burned a police vehicle in front of the Atlanta Police Foundation office building," the declaration read, in part. "Georgians respect peaceful protests, but do not tolerate acts of violence against persons or property."

The State of Emergency declaration authorizes the Georgia National Guard to be used in response to continued protests. Activated troops will have "the same powers of arrest and apprehension as do law enforcement officers."

The Atlanta Police Department also told CBS News in a statement that it is monitoring events in Memphis, and protests related to the death of Tyre Nichols, who died on Jan. 10, three days after a violent traffic stop. The five officers involved in the arrest were charged with second-degree murder Thursday. Video footage of the arrest is expected to be released Friday afternoon, officials said.

"We are closely monitoring the events in Memphis and are prepared to support peaceful protests in our city," Atlanta Police said. "We understand and share in the outrage surrounding the death of Tyre Nichols. Police officers are expected to conduct themselves in a compassionate, competent, and constitutional manner and these officers failed Tyre, their communities and their profession. We ask that demonstrations be safe and peaceful."

[thatsleepymermaid]

Come join us on Saturday to celebrate Tortoguita's life with the Weelaunee Coalition!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by STOP COP CITY (@stopcopcity)

3-6 pm at Gresham Park.

If you don't know Manuel 'Tortuguita' Paez Teran was a indigenous environmental activist that was murdered by the police last year defending Weelaunee forest. The aftermath has caused deforestation on a large scale in order to make a dystopian facility for training police that's due to be completed this December. We will be celebrating their life and activism at this event. Everyone's invited!

[crimethinc]

Atlanta Police and Georgia State Patrol Are Guilty of Murder

https://crimethinc.com/Atlanta2023

Yesterday, three months after the police murdered Manuel Paez Teran—known in Weelaunee forest as Tortuguita—the Dekalb County Medical Examiner finally released the results of the autopsy conducted on January 19. At last, it is plain for all to see how little evidence there is that Tortuguita shot at the officers, despite the allegations of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

Drawing on the autopsy and other evidence, we debunk the police narrative about the events of January 18 and explore what the police stand to gain from lying.

#StopCopCity

[rdela]

The Georgia deputy attorney general, John Fowler, has put forward a legal motion to enter the diary of Manuel Paez Terán, known as Tortuguita, as evidence in the Rico – or racketeering – case against 61 environmental activists, sidestepping standard legal procedure while employing smear tactics and falsehoods.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/nov/27/cop-city-tortuguita-georgia-manuel-paez-teran

https://mastodon.social/@rdela/111486314452637804

[queeranarchism]

[Image: A very detailed black and white inked drawing of Tortuguita (also called  Tort), a smiling person wearing a scarf over their hair and a scarf around their neck. Behind them are the sun, waves, plants, mushrooms and at the bottom is a small tortoise. Below the portrait are the words “TORT 1996-2023″ surrounded by images of medical supplies and vegetables in front of a cooking pot. At the very bottom is text that reads "The abolitionist mission isn’t done until every prison is empty,when there are no more cops, when the land has been given back, that’s when it’s over. I don’t expect to live to see that day, necessarily. I mean, hope so. But I smoke.”]

by N.O. bonzo

Free PDF poster here: https://ufile.io/3yvnhrwc

The artist shared this along with a gofundme for the family of Tort: https://www.gofundme.com/f/for-family-of-manuel-tortuguita-paez-teran

[antinativefaves]

Georgia State Patrol #YourFaveIsAntiNative

[beardedmrbean]

They present themselves as rebels against the system, fighting to preserve a piece of local woodland.

Yet many of the terrorist suspects arrested and charged over occupying government property and the violent attack in downtown Atlanta on Saturday are children of pampered privilege from out of state.

Hundreds of far-left activists, including Antifa, had gathered on Saturday evening at the Five Points neighborhood in downtown Atlanta to protest the death of their comrade who died in a shootout with police earlier in the week at an occupation south of the city.

On Jan. 18, Manuel Esteban Paez Teran, of Tallahasse, Fla., shot and severely injured a Georgia State Patrol trooper at the so-called “autonomous zone” before being killed by returning fire from police. The year-and-a-half long occupation is at the heart of the “Stop Cop City” movement to shut down the construction of the future Atlanta Public Safety Training Center, a proposed training site for law enforcement and first responders. They hate it because it’s a police center, but also claim that they are protecting a forest.

At Saturday’s gathering, masked militants dressed head to toe in black marched in the streets, shouting: “If you build it, we will burn it.”

They then smashed up businesses, cars and the Atlanta Police Foundation building. An Atlanta police cruiser was set on fire with an explosive. Livestream videos recorded at the scene showed the violent extremists working in an organized manner, such as using a large vigil banner to hide the rioters who torched the vehicle and grabbing large rocks from a shared bag to use as projectiles.

Some of those arrested represent the sort of professional leftist agitator who have popped up across the country after George Floyd’s death:

Francis Carroll is the son of a yacht-sailing, multi-millionaire family.

Carroll was already out on bail for a domestic terrorism arrest at the Atlanta autonomous zone last month. He is the son of a yacht-sailing, multi-millionaire family and hails from the wealthy Maine city of Kennebunkport, also home to former president George W. Bush.

Carroll, who lived in his parent’s mansion before going to Atlanta, was among six people arrested and charged with domestic terrorism, aggravated assault and other crimes on Dec. 13 following a string of property attacks around the area, a carjacking and assaults on officers. They were all bailed out by activists who crowdfunded their legal defense using Twitter.

Madeleine “Henri” Feola is orginally from the wealthy Portland, Ore., suburb of Happy Valley.

Feola is a trans nonbinary activist and 2022 alumna of Oberlin College, where they studied archaeological studies with a focus on decolonization. They’re from the wealthy Portland, Ore., suburb of Happy Valley before relocating to Spokane, Wash. Feola authored a February 2022 blog post on the American Scientist titled, “It’s Time to Stop Gatekeeping Medical Transition.”

Emily Kathryn Murphy says her own family “doesn’t fully understand what being vegan means.”

Murphy is a middle-class vegan activist who previously served as the at-large chair for the Chicago chapter of Al Gore’s “Climate Reality Project” organization before becoming further radicalized into eco-ideology. “I have been vegan five and a half years now, and, no matter how much explaining I do, my own family still doesn’t fully understand what being vegan means,” Murphy complained once in a blog post for the group.

Ivan James Ferguson is an award-winning classically trained clarinet player.

Ferguson is a 23-year-old award-winning classically trained clarinettist from Henderson, Nev. who studied at the prestigious San Francisco Conservatory of Music. Before becoming radicalized, Ferguson regularly performed in classical concerts in California and Nevada.

They’ve each been charged with: felony domestic terrorism, felony interference with government property, felony first-degree arson, felony second-degree criminal damage, riot, unlawful assembly, willful obstruction of a law enforcement officer and pedestrian in roadway.

At an emergency press conference following the riot, Atlanta mayor Andre Dickens revealed a shocking discovery: “Some of them were found with explosives on them. You heard that correctly, explosives.”

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation and other law enforcement agencies have tried multiple times to end the violent occupation of the woods. Yet militants have regrouped and continued to occupy the area, heeding the call shared on anarchist sites for comrades to “defend the Atlanta forest.” At the first police raid in May 2022, police were met with Molotov cocktails. The GBI also said it found gas masks and edged weapons at the raid.

During the protest, an Atlanta police cruiser was set on fire with an explosive.FOX 5

Among the previous arrests were more privileged protesters:

* Teresa Yue Shen, a Brooklyn woman arrested on Jan. 18 who graduated from Barnard College before working at Reuters and CNN, according to her LinkedIn. She is charged with domestic terrorism.

* Abigail Elizabeth Skapyak, of Minneapolis. Skapyak is a former Justice Department intern who graduated from American University. She was arrested on May 17.

* Marianna Hoitt-Lange, a violinist who graduated from New York University. She was arrested on May 17.

* Madeleine “Matthias” Gunther Kodat, of Philadelphia, is the daughter of the former provost and dean of faculty at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wis. who was arrested on May 17.

Protesters torch police car, damage businesses in Atlanta after activist killed

In November, rioters tried to set a man on fire who drove into the area.

“It seemed to me like they were going to burn the truck with me in it,” Richard Porter told 11Alive News at the time. He was forced to flee for his life as his truck was torched. In early December, two under-construction homes next to the occupation were burned to the ground. The same month, another raid resulted in six being arrested and charged with domestic terrorism.

Serena Hertal, of Sun Valley, Idaho, was one of the militants charged with domestic terrorism, aggravated assault and criminal trespass. She graduated from Pitzer College, a private liberal arts university in Claremont, Calif. where yearly costs are over $82,000.In addition to the weekend violence in Atlanta over the shooting death of the gunman, far-left sympathizers from around the country have held solidarity direct actions and urged retributive violence. “Scenes from the Atlanta Forest,” a collective that represents the autonomous zone, called for “reciprocal violence” against police in a heavily shared post on Twitter.

In solidarity with the Atlanta occupation, the trans child of Democratic House Minority Whip Katherine Clark was arrested for alleged vandalism and assault of an officer. Jared “Riley” Dowell, 23, was charged with assault by means of a dangerous weapon, destruction of injury of personal property and damage of property by graffiti.

In Lansing, militants attacked a bank, writing, “Stop cop city.” Six were arrested. A Portland UPS center was also purportedly set on fire, with a claim of responsibility posted online saying it was retribution over their comrade’s death.

“We call for more actions directly toward the companies that are donating to and funding the Cop City project in Atlanta. Forest defenders have a right to stay in the forest, and groups will continue to retaliate until the Cop City Project is canceled,” reads the anonymous statement.

[longwindedbore]

“The police went to the forest that morning planning for violence,” said lawyer Jeff Filipovits. “It was a planned operation, yet

no one had a body camera when they shot Manuel.”

[daughterofdessalines]

Why do police need a $90 million police training site ?? Why is a fucking “mock city” necessary for training?? Why does it need to built on a former plantation that also happens to be land stolen from the Muscogee tribe?? Why destroy 381 acres of wildlife and forestry??

First Manuel Esteban Paez Teran was murdered by police … NOW police detained 35 people & 23 of them have been charged with domestic terrorism. We can’t logically call the arrest of protesters in Iran imperialism when we clearly mimic their practices in the U.S. This “project” is wreaking havoc before construction even begins… it’s a plague! Stop Cop City!!

[notjustanyannie]

The “Stop Cop City” activist who was shot dead by Georgia police earlier this year was likely sitting cross-legged on the ground, with their hands raised, when gunfire from multiple officers struck them at close-range, according to an independent autopsy. 

Lawyers for the family of 26-year-old Manuel Esteban Paez Teran, known as Tortuguita, released the results of that autopsy in a press conference Monday. The report also showed they were shot at least 14 times, including in the face. 

[healthstyle101]

No charges for Georgia state troopers in fatal shooting at ‘Cop City’ protest site

Georgia State Troopers' Use of Deadly Force Deemed "Objectively Reasonable" Georgia state troopers who shot and killed an activist at the site of a planned police and firefighter training center near Atlanta will not face charges, according to Mountain Judicial Circuit District Attorney George Christian. The prosecutor declared the use of deadly force as "objectively reasonable" in a news release on Friday. Opponents of the project, humorously dubbed "Cop City" by detractors, had occupied an 85-acre forest tract earmarked for the expansive facility. It was in this location that Manuel Paez Teran met his tragic end. DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston had initially handled the case but recused herself, leading to George Christian's involvement as the reviewing authority. He made the final call not to pursue charges. During an "enforcement operation" conducted by state troopers at the site, they encountered Paez Teran, also known as Tortuguita. When the activist refused to exit a tent, the troopers employed a pepperball launcher. In response, Paez Teran fired four shots from a handgun through the tent, gravely injuring one of the troopers, as per the release. In self-defense, six troopers returned fire, resulting in the unfortunate death of Paez Teran. Read the full article

[thefree-online]

PRESS RELEASE: Sign on Letter Demands Justice for Forest Defender Killed by Police near Atlanta

Contact: steve@globaljusticeecology.org     +1 (314) 210-1322   Sign on Letter Demands Justice for Forest Defender Killed by Police near Atlanta 2 May 2023–A sign on letter released on Earth Day (April 22) 2023 and closed on May Day (May 1) 2023 put out by Global Justice Ecology Project demands justice for Manuel Paez Teran, known as Tortuguita, who was killed by police in a hail…PRESS RELEASE:…

[gilliatt83]

Did Georgia Cops Assassinate Atlanta Activist Protesting Cop City?

50 bullets tore through the body of environmental Activist Manuel “Tortuguita” Esteban Paez Teran in Atlanta at the hands of police. Police maintain the seated activist - hands in the air - was to blame. Now the very same police are charging 50 other protesters with terrorism. Shouldn’t the cops who shot Tortuguita face charges for shooting the twenty-seven year old activist?