#the way the cops show up to be violent against peaceful protestors but do nothing to stop they hate speech from extremists with megaphones

[pumpkinsouppe]

Only in Austin will you see fucking cops on bikes and cops on horses Jesus fucking Christ I hate this state

[maghrabiyya]

A friend posted this and said it was OK to share the text but no attribution, so these words are not mine.

"READ EVERY SINGLE WORD:

—If you are livestreaming a protest, and you are recording yourself, or taking selfies, instead of documenting information: you are not an ally. You are a tourist.

—Cover your face. Cover your hair. Cover your tattoos. Wouldn’t want to have any surfaces exposed that could get coronavirus.

—Protect your identity. Obscure your face. There are bad actors on the internet that would love to identify you and track you down for participating in a peaceful protest. Want to feel paranoid? Read about the mysterious deaths of identified Ferguson protestors years later. If you are in the privileged majority, this might be your first time realizing that there are violent people out there who want to hunt you down and harm you for existing. Imagine how POC feel.

—Unless your phone is inside a faraday cage, or you have removed the battery, it can be tracked. Yes, even in airplane mode.

—Assume all information transmitted from your phone is being intercepted by the police at the protest. Including your livestream. Oakland once had one of the largest inventories of Stingray devices (communciations intercept towers) in the US. They used them extensively against Occupy.

—Friendly reminder, your license plate is being scanned and tracked most places you drive.

—Disable your fingerprint or facescan unlock. While it is theoretically true that a search warrant is required to search your phone, it is also theoretically illegal for the police to murder an unarmed and nonviolent citizen. Use a six digit or more passcode.

—Backups to the cloud. Things tend to get broken at protests.

—Do not publicly display your teargas neutralizing spray, or peperspray neutralizing spray. You might be targeted. Keep it discrete and ready for use.

—Document any people showing up in Hawaiian shirts. Document anyone suspected of being undercover cops. Document agent provocateurs. Document bad actors showing up just to destroy property.

—If you have an Iphone, learn how to use your emergency sos. You can set your Emergency SOS to notify your family you might be being arrested or kidnapped (if it is safe for you to activate this feature). You can also disable the call 911 feature in Emergency SOS. Activating this feature also locks your phone against anything but a passcode unlock. If your phone is also encrypted, it is very hard for someone to illegally break into your phone.

—Write your emergency contact on your body in sharpie, somewhere both out of view and where it will not sweat off. Or memorize it. You will not have access to your cellphone if you are arrested (whether wrongfully or not).

—Be careful, all kinds of bad actors can use a peaceful protest as an excuse for violence. Hot hands gloves, or Nomex flight gloves, can be used to pick up hot objects on the ground, if you need to throw a teargas grenade away from you.

—Highpowered lasers, not usually the pocket kind, can destroy the sensors on cameras. Be careful with your cameras out there.

—If your goggles have vents, they are vulnerable to teargas and pepperspray.

—Be careful, all kinds of bad actors can use a peaceful protest as an excuse for violence. A set of allen keys can sometimes unlock crowd control gates.

—Remember that Neonazis have driven cars into peaceful protests in the past. There is finally a use for all those lyft/lime/uber bikes and scooters. Bring them to the protest and use them to as roadblocks if necessary to prevent cars from driving into protestors or chasing them.

—Umbrellas can be useful in preventing bad actors from hitting you with some projectiles during an otherwise peaceful protest. They also help protect identity.

—If you are a white ally: listen. Don’t make the protests about you. There are already literal Nazis doing that.

—Be careful, all kinds of bad actors can use a peaceful protest as an excuse for violence. It has already been noted on multiple organizing boards for white supremacist groups that a protest they’ve whipped into a riot is the perfect place to murder someone with impunity, and even kidnap people. Read up on how to escape from zipties. Bring medical shears or small snips to cut them.

—If you are arrested, identify yourself. Have your ID. Do your best to show the officer that you are peaceful and not resisting arrest. Say nothing else at all without a lawyer present, unless it is to request your phone call. Assume anything said, including on phone call, is being documented and could be aggressively used against you. Innocent people can still go to jail.

—Be careful, all kinds of bad actors can use a peaceful protest as an excuse for violence. Assume you might get shot with a rubber bullet/sandbag. Wear protective gear so you can protest in peace. Being misidentified as a violent/illegal protestor by an officer could also mean being hit by a baton, which could break your bones. Protests can quickly turn chaotic, and often the official response to a peaceful protest can be indiscriminate in who gets injured. Don’t forget that photo of a 12 year old that was peppersprayed for being at a protest.

—Recognize that there are complex factors at play. Not everyone at the protest has the same agenda. Some are not peaceful. The Attorney General of the US noted yesterday that outside provacateurs are infiltrating peaceful protests to accelerate outside agendas unrelated to protesting in solidarity with Black Lives Matter/George Floyd/Police Brutality. The Mayor of Minneapolis noted many* violent protestors arrested were from out of state, and some had ties to white supremacist groups. Not all protestors are looters. Not all looters are protesting anything.

—If you are a white ally that acknowledges your privilege and wants to use that to support the protestors, go to the front of the protest. If you can tolerate having your identity known and you can be a peaceful human shield, do it. Just don’t steal the scene. Let the other POC speak. Leave your megaphone and microphone with someone else while you shield them.

—If you are a white ally in your comfortable home, stop deleting anyone that disagrees with you. Stop feeding the divisive algorithms that have helped shape this discourse into a hateful thing. Right now, you can be putting in the work talking to people and helping them understand that “All Lives Matter” is a way to avoid talking about Black Lives Matter. Don’t be combative. Listen. Ask Questions. Talk. Your POC friends don’t need to spend all their time educating—a huge part of our role as white allies is helping our other white circles understand and grow.

—Yes, all lives do matter. The problem is that some are treated like they matter less. And they are disproportionately affected by police violence in the United States. When you shout “All Lives Matter” in response to “Black Lives Matter,” all that is happening is you are silencing people trying to speak up about disproportionate treatment and unequal rights. If you are sharing that favtoid about how many white versus black lives are taken by police, without adjusting for population, you are ignorant of statistics and being willfully manipulative at worst. Do you really believe that all lives are treated and regarded equally?

—Silence is how this grew. Colorblindness is how this grew. Ignoring this is privilege. The status quo is broken. Racism is alive and well. Silence is violence.

—Your political affiliation does not matter in proving you aren’t racist. Living in a diverse and liberal area does not matter. Knowing a POC in your personal life proves nothing. Quoting one convenient MLK quote does not matter. Only being actively anti-racist matters.

—Human lives will always be worth more than property. Stop changing the subject. There will be an appropriate time to rebuild.

—Violence at a protest does not invalidate the point of the protest, even one intended to he peaceful. Focusing on violence is just a way to ignore the meaning of the protest. Stop changing the subject.

If you want to share this, copy and paste it without attribution. This is not about any one person. Not even George Floyd. It is a chain in which George Floyd is the one of the latest links. Like Alton Sterling. Like Sandra Bland. Like Michael Brown. Like Freddie Gray. The list is staggering. And every single one of those names on the list was a person who could still be with us today."

[daintydormouse]

Some notes for those protesting.

(Stolen from elsewhere on the internet. If you like, copy/paste and spread)

—If you are livestreaming a protest, and you are recording yourself, or taking selfies, instead of documenting information: you are not an ally. You are a tourist.

—Cover your face. Cover your hair. Cover your tattoos. Wouldn’t want to have any surfaces exposed that could get coronavirus.

—Protect your identity. Obscure your face. There are bad actors on the internet that would love to identify you and track you down for participating in a peaceful protest. Want to feel paranoid? Read about the mysterious deaths of identified Ferguson protestors years later. If you are in the privileged majority, this might be your first time realizing that there are violent people out there who want to hunt you down and harm you for existing. Imagine how POC feel.

—Unless your phone is inside a faraday cage, or you have removed the battery, it can be tracked. Yes, even in airplane mode.

—Assume all information transmitted from your phone is being intercepted by the police at the protest. Including your livestream. Oakland once had one of the largest inventories of Stingray devices (communciations intercept towers) in the US. They used them extensively against Occupy.

—Friendly reminder, your license plate is being scanned and tracked most places you drive.

—Disable your fingerprint or facescan unlock. While it is theoretically true that a search warrant is required to search your phone, it is also theoretically illegal for the police to murder an unarmed and nonviolent citizen. Use a six digit or more passcode.

—Backups to the cloud. Things tend to get broken at protests.

—Do not publicly display your teargas neutralizing spray, or peperspray neutralizing spray. You might be targeted. Keep it discrete and ready for use.

—Document any people showing up in Hawaiian shirts. Document anyone suspected of being undercover cops. Document agent provocateurs. Document bad actors showing up just to destroy property.

—If you have an Iphone, learn how to use your emergency sos. You can set your Emergency SOS to notify your family you might be being arrested or kidnapped (if it is safe for you to activate this feature). You can also disable the call 911 feature in Emergency SOS. Activating this feature also locks your phone against anything but a passcode unlock. If your phone is also encrypted, it is very hard for someone to illegally break into your phone.

—Write your emergency contact on your body in sharpie, somewhere both out of view and where it will not sweat off. Or memorize it. You will not have access to your cellphone if you are arrested (whether wrongfully or not).

—Be careful, all kinds of bad actors can use a peaceful protest as an excuse for violence. Hot hands gloves, or Nomex flight gloves, can be used to pick up hot objects on the ground, if you need to throw a teargas grenade away from you.

—Highpowered lasers, not usually the pocket kind, can destroy the sensors on cameras. Be careful with your cameras out there.

—If your goggles have vents, they are vulnerable to teargas and pepperspray.

—Be careful, all kinds of bad actors can use a peaceful protest as an excuse for violence. A set of allen keys can sometimes unlock crowd control gates.

—Remember that Neonazis have driven cars into peaceful protests in the past. There is finally a use for all those lyft/lime/uber bikes and scooters. Bring them to the protest and use them to as roadblocks if necessary to prevent cars from driving into protestors or chasing them.

—Umbrellas can be useful in preventing bad actors from hitting you with some projectiles during an otherwise peaceful protest. They also help protect identity.

—If you are a white ally: listen. Don’t make the protests about you. There are already literal Nazis doing that.

—Be careful, all kinds of bad actors can use a peaceful protest as an excuse for violence. It has already been noted on multiple organizing boards for white supremacist groups that a protest they’ve whipped into a riot is the perfect place to murder someone with impunity, and even kidnap people. Read up on how to escape from zipties. Bring medical shears or small snips to cut them. Replace your bootlaces with paracord, it can be used as a friction saw.

—If you are arrested, identify yourself. Have your ID. Do your best to show the officer that you are peaceful and not resisting arrest. Say nothing else at all without a lawyer present, unless it is to request your phone call. Assume anything said, including on phone call, is being documented and could be aggressively used against you. Innocent people can still go to jail.

—Be careful, all kinds of bad actors can use a peaceful protest as an excuse for violence. Assume you might get shot with a rubber bullet/sandbag. Wear protective gear so you can protest in peace. Being misidentified as a violent/illegal protestor by an officer could also mean being hit by a baton, which could break your bones. Protests can quickly turn chaotic, and often the official response to a peaceful protest can be indiscriminate in who gets injured. Don’t forget that photo of a 12 year old that was peppersprayed for being at a protest.

—Recognize that there are complex factors at play. Not everyone at the protest has the same agenda. Some are not peaceful. The Attorney General of the US noted yesterday that outside provacateurs are infiltrating peaceful protests to accelerate outside agendas unrelated to protesting in solidarity with Black Lives Matter/George Floyd/Police Brutality. The Mayor of Minneapolis noted many* violent protestors arrested were from out of state, and some had ties to white supremacist groups. Not all protestors are looters. Not all looters are protesting anything.

—If you are a white ally that acknowledges your privilege and wants to use that to support the protestors, go to the front of the protest. If you can tolerate having your identity known and you can be a peaceful human shield, do it. Just don’t steal the scene. Let the other POC speak. Leave your megaphone and microphone with someone else while you shield them.

—If you are a white ally in your comfortable home, stop deleting anyone that disagrees with you. Stop feeding the divisive algorithms that have helped shape this discourse into a hateful thing. Right now, you can be putting in the work talking to people and helping them understand that “All Lives Matter” is a way to avoid talking about Black Lives Matter. Don’t be combative. Listen. Ask Questions. Talk. Your POC friends don’t need to spend all their time educating—a huge part of our role as white allies is helping our other white circles understand and grow.

—Yes, all lives do matter. The problem is that some are treated like they matter less. And they are disproportionately affected by police violence in the United States. When you shout “All Lives Matter” in response to “Black Lives Matter,” all that is happening is you are silencing people trying to speak up about disproportionate treatment and unequal rights. If you are sharing that factoid about how many white versus black lives are taken by police, without adjusting for population, you are ignorant of statistics and being willfully manipulative at worst. Do you really believe that all lives are treated and regarded equally?

—Silence is how this grew. Colorblindness is how this grew. Ignoring this is privilege. The status quo is broken. Racism is alive and well. Silence is violence.

—Your political affiliation does not matter in proving you aren’t racist. Living in a diverse and liberal area does not matter. Knowing a POC in your personal life proves nothing. Quoting one convenient MLK quote does not matter. Only being actively anti-racist matters.

—Human lives will always be worth more than property. Stop changing the subject. There will be an appropriate time to rebuild.

—Violence at a protest does not invalidate the point of the protest, even one intended to he peaceful. Focusing on violence is just a way to ignore the meaning of the protest. Stop changing the subject.

If you want to share this, copy and paste it without attribution. This is not about any one person. Not even George Floyd. It is a chain in which George Floyd is one of the latest links. Like Alton Sterling. Like Sandra Bland. Like Michael Brown. Like Freddie Gray. The list is staggering. And every single one of those names on the list was a person who could still be with us today

[theplaxiscure]

BLACK LIVES MATTER

George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery (along with MANY other black citizens) were WRONGFULLY SLAUGHTERED by the people that were supposed to PROTECT them. This isn't even close to the first time an incident like this (a black civilian murdered by a white person in power) happened, and I highly doubt that it will be the last. The murderers responsible for the deaths of innocent POC should be arrested and charged with AT LEAST SECOND DEGREE MURDER, because that is exactly the crime they committed.

(First-degree murder: Any intentional murder that is willful and premeditated with malice aforethought. Felony murder, a charge that may be filed against a defendant who is involved in a dangerous crime where a death results from the crime, is typically first-degree.

Second-degree murder: Any intentional murder with malice aforethought, but is not premeditated or planned in advance.

See https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_(United_States_law) for these official definitions)

Let's take George Floyd's situation, for example. In video evidence, George Floyd was calmly in the back seat of a police car while at least 1 of 4 cops were beating him while he did nothing to resist them or deserve this treatment. 1 of those 4 cops stood and watched as this took place, not doing anything to help Floyd. Later, also in video evidence, a cop, Derek M. Chauvin, knelt on George Floyd's neck, suffocating him, causing him immense pain, and later killing him (all the while bystanders pleaded and demanded that Chauvin stop kneeling on Floyd's neck). While Chauvin knelt on Floyd's neck, Floyd was handcuffed and again, was peaceful and not resisting. In the first few minutes of this situation, Floyd pleaded that he couldn't breathe, to which Chauvin AND the cop standing next to them did not acknowledge. Chauvin was recently arrested and charged with THIRD DEGREE murder. Chauvin BRUTALLY MURDERED a PEACEFUL CIVILAN, who had only ALLEGEDLY written a false check (Floyd was known as a "Gentle Giant" among his community, standing at 6'6" and always exhibiting kindness. No one who knew him would ever believe that he would try to write a false check. It is highly unlikely that he committed any crime that couldn't be let off with a warning, much less a crime deserving of serious physical restraint). Chauvin and the other cops involved in this incident should be charged with AT LEAST SECOND DEGREE MURDER.

About the Black Lives Matter campaigns and movements, I fully support them. If I had the money to donate, I would. I'm very disappointed and unhappy that I don't have the means to donate. George Floyd's funeral funding would be the first thing I would donate to if I could. I grieve his death alongside his family. I wholeheartedly wish the best for them.

Now, concerning the riots that are shaking the country right now. I have mixed feelings on this subject. On one hand, I dislike the use of property damage as a means of protest, but on the other hand, I agree that the time for peace is OVER. For decades, people have been peacefully protesting against racism and mistreatment of POC, but the people in power (primarily PREJUDICED WHITE MEN) HAVE NOT LISTENED.

The only reason the protests have turned violent in the first place, is because the POLICE REACTED VIOLENTLY TO THE PEACEFUL PROTESTS. The cops in Minneapolis showed up to a peaceful protest in riot gear and started using WATER CANNONS, followed by TEAR GAS AND RUBBER BULLETS. They are using non-lethal weapons in a lethal manner, shooting these rubber bullets into people's heads. There is plenty of photo evidence of protestors with BLEEDING HEAD WOUNDS. It is also highly suspected that undercover cops are the ones starting the riots. There are multiple eyewitnesses that can confirm that there were undercover cops pretending to be violent protestors who were throwing rocks at the police. The cops also LIED about protestors being armed and throwing rocks. So if the cops are going to react this way to a PEACEFUL PROTEST, then they're asking for riots.

And while I think these riots are justified at this point, I beg anyone participating in any kind of protest in these times to PLEASE BE CAREFUL. HIDE YOUR IDENTITIES. The police WILL TRACK YOU. There have been SNIPERS spotted on rooftops in some areas (one area of which is very close to where I live). WEAR PROTECTIVE CLOTHING/EQUIPMENT. Tear gas works by actively attacking the moisture in and on your body, so avoid wearing things like lotion, makeup, contact lenses, etc to any protest you go to. Cover your airways and protect your eyes. Cover as much of your body as you can. Do research on how to be as safe as possible during these times. PLEASE BE CAREFUL. YOUR SAFETY IS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING RIGHT NOW.

JUSTICE FOR GEORGE FLOYD.

JUSTICE FOR AHMAUD ARBERY.

JUSTICE FOR BREONNA TAYLOR.

JUSTICE FOR WRONGFULLY MURDERED PEOPLE OF COLOUR.

BLACK LIVES MATTER

[sweetcatastrophex]

A Blog Post  For decades, people have pushed back against structural racism and oppression in this country in peaceful, nonviolent ways. And so many times, the police have reacted violently — gassing, beating, shooting people dead in the street. People have peacefully protested police brutality and practiced civil disobedience for years and years, recently by walking with the Black Lives Matter movement and taking a knee with Colin Kaepernick. Even then people had a problem with it — brand deals were pulled, products were burned and boycotted, and protesters were ostracized. So when you ask why people haven’t “tried protesting peacefully,” I can only imagine you’ve been living under a rock. The unrest in Minnesota, and now, elsewhere around the country, is a reaction not just to George Floyd’s murder, but to Ahmaud Arbery’s, Breonna Taylor’s, Eric Garner’s, Sandra Bland’s, and every other black person and POC who was senselessly killed by police who were not held accountable. Why do I see people condemning the reactive looting and chaos rather than the murders and systemic injustice that led up to it? You care more about a building than human lives? I have a hard time believing your pro-life and “All Lives Matter” pleas. If “violence isn’t the answer,” then why do the police use it so much? Why aren’t the local district attorneys holding police accountable and charging them for killing innocent civilians — the ones they swore to serve and protect? Some wouldn’t even be arrested if body cam footage wasn’t revealed to the public. Think about all the police-on-civilian crimes that took place without cameras recording. Here’s where I have to add a disclaimer saying I respect the “good cops” otherwise I’ll be attacked. Which I do, but I’m also wondering why they’ve been so quiet lately. It seems like it’s the only profession you’re not allowed to criticize, even when they’re murdering American citizens. It’s reduced to a few “bad apples.” Why are they treated with impunity? When you generalize about “the media” you don’t say it’s just a few “bad apples.” I never see this phrase applied to other professions. Nothing happens in a vacuum — context matters. The systemic racism in this country was designed by white people to suppress black people and is present in all facets of life — housing, education, health care, and the list goes on. And the double standards are dangerous: Groups of white people bombarding government buildings armed with semi-automatic weapons weren’t even arrested but an unarmed black man named George Floyd was murdered. The white people are “protestors” and the black people and allies are “rioters” and “looters.” If you don’t see this then you’re willfully ignorant. And if you’re not speaking up you’re part of the problem. Remember, “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.” Corporations that avoid taxes, outsource and exploit cheap labor overseas have been bailed out by the government and billionaires have gained tens of billions of dollars during the pandemic while working class people that hold up the country — 40+ million of which are out of jobs — were given crumbs, choosing between using their measly $1,200 for food or rent. And you’re calling people taking a few items from Target “looters?” Do you hear yourself? “Just because you hire lobbyists to slip it into a law doesn't mean it's not looting.” — Anand Giridharadas. I’m not usually one to condone violence or stealing but what do we expect when the real stealing is being done by people who hold powerful and political positions? And they get away with it. This is all connected. “You can’t commodify every single aspect of living and then not understand looting as a legitimate form of protest. Looting is the ultimate strike against a system that deems mass-produced objects to be far more precious than life itself. It is humanity demanding to be recognized.” — Hampton Institute. Seeing people condemn looters but giving murderers a pass does not sit right with me. I’m taking notes on who’s saying what these days and I won’t forget. “Gay people acquired rights through rioting, remember Stonewall? Women acquired rights through rioting, remember the suffragettes? Do you think slaves were just freed out of kindness, or did they revolt? Don’t act like it doesn’t work, or that it’s only something black people do.” — Faye Kinley. History shows us that sometimes revolting is the answer, because it conjures action and change. If not violence and revolt, I’d like to know what the proper response to an unjust system that is actively trying to kill you is supposed to be. Ask yourself: Am I going to be on the right side of history?

[wetwareproblem]

Cops have a right to self defense too. You can't expect them to let themselves be attacked just to avoid hurting the poor widdle suspect . Every one has the right to defend themselves. if some thug pointed a gun at me or pulled a knife on me i'm blowing his brains out. I don't care if he's mentally ill or his momma didn't show him enough love growing up. A threat is a threat and I have every right to end threats to my life. Anyone dumb enough 2 attack a cop deserves everything they get

Instead of bitching about how evul cops are for having to subdue violent suspects, how about you stop breaking the law asshole.

If you were getting mugged/raped/beaten you would beg for the cops to help you.

cop lives > thug lives

Ooooh, so edgy.

First things first: When you say “thug,” do you mean “black” or “disabled?” Just so I know exactly what kind of bigot I’m dealing with here.

Now, here’s the thing: You’re wrong on literally every point of fact you’ve cited. The things we’ve been talking about explicitly and clearly aren’t self-defense. They’re things like stopping black men three times as often as anyone else, or showing up to a situation that was already under control and being deescalated and shooting a suicidal man, or murdering a sleeping, sedated black activist on fabricated grounds, or unleashing riot cops on peaceful protestors who had done literally nothing wrong, or trying to intimidate peaceful organizers while letting literal nazis go unchecked, or straight-up disappearing a peaceful protestor with stage four cancer without verifying that he’s getting necessary medical care, or dragging disabled protestors out of their wheelchairs and leaving the chairs abandoned in the street as an intimidation tactic, or harassing a convict who served her sentence (under literally torturous conditions!) and is literally incapable of recidivism, or literally getting away with murder...

I could go on, but that’s three months of backlog right there. You’ll notice a few common themes:

In every case cited, the victim was a POC, disabled, both, or in one case trans and already a victim of state violence;

In no case cited were the police ever in any real danger; and

In no case did any of the victims do anything which could even remotely be conceved as “attacking a cop.”

So yeah. Your claims of “self-defense” don’t hold; these are abusers and murderers under cover of law. Your second factual inaccuracy is also covered here: They weren’t “subduing violent suspects” in any of these cases, they were harassing and murdering nonviolent people, some of whom weren’t even suspects.

As to “stop breaking the law:” First, I call hypocritical bullshit. Are you telling me you’ve never once gone one mile over the speed limit? (If you were ever pulled over for speeding, do note that answering “Do you know why I pulled you over?” with “no” is actually either a) a felony or b) admitting to driving without due care and attention.) Second, an incomplete list of things the police have personally harassed us for:

Wearing a (perfectly legal, blunted) spiked bracelet when I was beaten into hospital by half a dozen people. I had multiple witnesses who could confirm I did not even throw a single punch.

Carrying a perfectly legal, reasonably obvious toy gun immediately outside the store I’d purchased it in; I had threatened no one with it and the only people I’d even pointed it vaguely near were a couple of visibly laughing, happy, non-distressed friends. (Luckily, I didn’t have the audacity to be black while doing this, or I wouldn’t be here to write this.)

Having a pocket full of chocolate bar foils.

Daring to call them after being assaulted by schoolmates.

Being the victim of parental assault (I was literally pinned on the ground, in obvious respiratory distress, not resisting in any way, when they arrived. They still tried to convince my parents to press charges against me.)

Having on one occasion driven a car without knowing that its owner had not properly filed some paperwork (they continued to pull me over for weeks afterward “just to check,” despite the fact that they could have done so without involving me at all).

Things not on that list: actual fucking crimes. So no, “don’t break the law” is not exactly a good defense. The above list, plus the rather disturbing statistics on police shooting of disabled people and harassment of trans people, is exactly why I do not call the police. That’s right, your cute little hypothetical has already been tested and you were wrong.

And then we’re back to the part where you’re using “thug” as code for “person who isn’t actually violent, but does happen to be marginalized and uppity.” So yeah. Five factual errors in four asks; impressive!

Now get the fuck out of our inbox, anon.

[mentalanalyzer]

The violence, the purge, the natural human condition

I’ve been meaning to make a post about these past events for sometime. I don’t know why I always write these at 1 in the morning, bad habit. This is going to be a looong post. A journey, through who I am, and my core values. 

What is the innate human condition? Are we born good, and learn evil acts? Are we a blank slate that can be both good and evil? Are we inherently evil, and must go against our own nature to be good? To continue further, we must first define the term...evil. Evil in this case means to be violent, barbaric, led by rage/violence/hatred. This is difficult to answer, since we are influenced so much by our surroundings. And a baby does not have the capabilities to act with purpose. However, if one to were look at the primitive man, without society and their standards of morals/ethics. And thus, a perfect representation of the innate human condition. One could argue then we are inherently violent. We kill to eat and survive, kill other humans for mating rights, and constantly fight for power. This is how we have always been throughout time and history. Yet...I would argue this is not a good representation of the innate human condition. Because even the primitive man, is molded by his surroundings. We learn to kill and fight, to dominate through power. All to survive. This is what we have learned, this is what succeeds. This is what we must do to live. You kill the animals, to eat and to prevent them from eating you. You kill your fellow man, to prevent them from killing you. This is what we have grown up to learn....to be. That being said then, the argument could be that man has evolved through countless years to be this way. Since this is the way it takes to survive in the world. That we respond only to power and violence. 

Ah, but if we proceed into the modern time, the 21st century, we see a new side of man. When a child has no need to fend for themself to survive, when the food is given to them. Then they have no need to kill, no need for conflict. If they are brought up in a peaceful and loving environment, then the child no longer responds with violence and force. If it was the innate human condition to be violent, then regardless of the upbringing and environment, we should be violent. But this is not the case. Then perhaps the argument can be made that we are a blank slate.  But there is one other characteristic I’d like to bring to attention. The cooperation of the primitive man. His ability to love and have compassion. His desire to work with others, to live amongst others. Now you could argue this is for survival reasons, we are embedded to work together. But regardless, it shows that we are peaceful by default, when the need for violence is not present. Thus I would argue, that we are in fact born good, inherently, intrinsically, peaceful and loving. It is only the harshness and cruelty of the world that has made us into violent and forceful creatures.  Now what does all this have to do with the protests? Because everyone is looking at the whys, the hows, and what needs to be done. But everyone is removing the human element. The most important element. Why do we protest? Why must it be violent? And why do we respond to violence and force? These are issues everyone dances around, but no one answers.  Experience has taught us, while non-violent protests can work, it is only when you have violent protests that shit gets done, that people listen. If we use the BLM movement specifically in recent years, you can see this to be evident. It is through violent revolutions, in which powers shift and shit gets done. But why? Why is it this way? Well if you look at the above, you can see now, we respond to violence and force, because our world, and by extension its people, work by violence and force. When you are raised and see that only through these tactics do people listen to you, that change happens. Then inherently, this is the only thing you will listen to, the only thing you will respond to. We are a product of our environment, and the environment is one where violent/force wins/works. The fact this cop is getting prosecuted when countless others walked away, despite protests in both cases, simply provides more support to those violently protesting.  But....this learned habit, this feeling of hatred, violence, and force is not just to those in power, but it is embedded in the very essence of the people as well. To illustrate this, a simply question. Why is this specific incident, what broke the camels back? So many other police brutality incidents occur, why is this one getting so much outrage versus the others? It’s just 1 to many? Could it be, that this coincides perfectly with a multi-month long quarintine, where many are feeling financial difficulties and the psychological toll of isolation? Perhaps this wasn’t what broke the camels back on police brutality tolerance, but on people. People are just frustrated, tired, angry. Of the government, of the world, of the environment. Tired of others, tired of politics. And they go out, angry, kicking and screaming, violent. This is not who we are, but how we have learned to express ourselves, how we have learned to communicate. My own girlfriend, sees the police brutality, the corona redneck protestors wanting to get their haircuts, and is filled with anger and hate. But why? Because this is how we have been taught to respond. Anger responds with anger. Frustration with frustration. But this is a cycle, one that is going through countless generations and thousands of years.  But it does not need to be this way. As stated, the human condition is innately geared towards good, love, and peace. This is why these strategies work, and why hatred and violence don’t. Years and years of practice trying to force this to work, but it never does. Does no one ever wonder why that is? Why fear and hatred don’t work? Because humans are not designed for it, they are not wired for it. We are wired for peace and love. Countless eras of growing up in this harsh world and environment has hardened us, made us believe that we must respond like all the other animals in this world, with violence and force. But this does not need be the way.  We are seeing the prospects of true human evolution. The ability to transcend past our limitations, the true path to the future. One through love and peace. Where all humans work as one, and there are no heirachies, no levels, nothing. There exists no levels of power, and people do not respond to force, but rather with love. We have the capabilities now, to move beyond the primitive measures we have been forced to adopt to survive in this world.  And finally, we reach my opinion on these protests. To feel hate for any group, would be a mistake. Love for the cop, love for the protestors. For they are children, unable to understand and thus rewire their programming. We must instead, uniformly, unanymously, push forward with peace and love. No tear gas, no rubber bullets, no force and violence. No angry frustrated rhetoric. If you wish to protest, hold arms and protect the stores, do not fight back. You will get hurt, you may even die, but the alternative, is raising your children into a future of more pain and violence, and continuing this futile cycle. For if you refuse to change, how can you expect them to?

[go-redgirl]

Peaceful Floyd Protesters Form Human Barricade to Protect White House Police

As protesters across the United States express their anger over the death of George Floyd, in many cases devolving into rioting and looting, one group of protesters in Washington DC locked hands and stood before White House police forming a human barricade to protect the officers.

In video footage from protests in Washington DC, protesters locked hands and formed a human barricade before White House police officers, protecting them from angry protesters who in turn criticized them for standing with the police.

Two women can be seen in the video, one wearing a red t-shirt that states “Make Racism Wrong Again,” the other woman’s shirt reads “BLACK – WHITE – HUMAN,” appearing to promote a message of unity. As the women, along with other protestors, lock hands and stand with their backs to the police, other protesters angered by their actions begin to question their motivation.

“This is good,” says one woman referring to the protests, “but y’all got other ways to do it too, y’all can write to Congress…” another woman cuts her off shouting “it don’t work, we all did that, it don’t work, I signed people up for that, it don’t work.”

In the video, one man shouts at the woman in the red t-shirt “we here to make a point to show that this shit is not ok!” The woman replies “it’s not going to bring George Floyd back,” before later adding “this is not the answer,” referring to the violent protests.

READ MORE STORIES ABOUT:

Clips Crime Politics George Floyd Police Riots Washington DC White House

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INDIVIDUALS/COMMENTS/POSTS:

Fight Against the Tyrants BLOG 17 hours ago

Im impressed. They joined hands and faced down violent racists. They deserve high praise for their gutsy actions.

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J.Moore citizenfreepress.com

Fight Against the Tyrants BLOG•17 hours ago• edited

And that, people, is how you gain the respect of the people you are addressing. I said it before - conservatives do not mind joining a righteous protest against government overreach and abuse of power. But these things have been monopolized by politicians and race baiters eager for power, wealth and attention for decades. We ain't playing that game.

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Crusty J.Moore citizenfreepress.com 

•17 hours ago • edited

Yup. And that's why the civil rights protests MLK led in Alabama were successful and inspired people: The marchers walked down streets where Jim Crow supporters with rifles looked-on, but although they were in danger, they carried no weapons or sticks, and refused to harm any property or people.

When you are willing to put your own safety and life on the line to stand for something, it draws a lot more respect that when you go bust, burn, brutalize, and then take home some looted liquor and video games.

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Santiago Matamoros Crusty • 17 hours ago • edited

it draws a lot more respect

The rioters, looters, and other criminals are not protesting.

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realityanvil Santiago Matamoros • 17 hours ago • edited

Half of them are bored white Antifa rich kids from the 'burbs, anarchists to the core. They don't give two hoots for some guy named George Floyd. They think he had a sister named "Pink".

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Phonecard Mike realityanvil • 16 hours ago

Very true! I am impressed by the peaceful blockade, very refreshing.

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realityanvil Phonecard Mike • 16 hours ago

Of the two protesting factions, it's easy to see which one is interested in justice for George Floyd and bettering the cause of minorities, and which is only interested in destruction and anarchy. They grew up as privileged kids but they're at war with reason and civility. To them it's just another video game, just on a larger stage and with better graphics.

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Mike Brafford realityanvil • 15 hours ago

Any human being can see what happened to George was wrong. Cuff him put him in the car and take him down to the station. Nothing else was required.

People are right to be angry - not white or black - people of all sorts. This is like the FBI attacking a 33 year veteran general. Wrong is wrong and the abuse of power must stop.

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Brat_bart Mike Brafford • 14 hours ago

Smells like a setup. A cop kneeling on the neck of a guy he worked with for years and didn’t try to prevent people from filming him doing it? Knowing it would go viral?

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GMBurns Brat_bart • 14 hours ago

It got weirder when I read on a Minneapolis News station page that Chauvin and Floyd both worked security at a some dance club (at the same time).The owner though says she doesn't know if they knew each other because they had a lot of security people.

I hope this is well investigated. There may be more to it than is on video.

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pepebob3 GM Burns•6 hours ago

Some whispering going on that both Floyd And Chauvin were in on the counterfeit scam. Some even saying that the other 3 officers, who did Nothing to help Mr. Floyd, are also involved which is the real reason he was killed. Not sure I believe that, but at this point, who knows. One thing I am sure of is the fact that these riots are too well put together to be happenstance.

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GMBurns pepebob3 • 5 hours agoI just checked around. Forbes has an interesting article:

Chauvin was there for 1r 17 years, but Floyd only worked there about twelve times during ONE year (2019) while Chauvin was. Chauvin, outside, while Floyd was inside, and apparently it is a big building Oooops WAS a big building...it burned down Thursday night - I just saw that.https://www.forbes.com/site...Here is the burned out club:

https://ruptly.tv/es/videos...

This is getting deep. I would say it is possible they didn't really know each other...BUT there were people who knew both of them well enough, like the owner of the restaurant, a Ms. Maya Santamaria. The fire started in the restaurant.

I really hope that Minneapolis police aren't as messy as the FBI, to be polite. However, don't be too sure about riots being pre-planned. That would mean letting too many people know something. They can put riots together fast when the news is hot.No conclusions for me, but lots and lots of loose ends.

No conclusions for me, but lots and lots of loose ends.

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pepebob3 GMBurns • 3 hours agoI suspect we will never learn the truth. 

So many times horrible things happen, such as the Vegas shootings, Epstein murder, Hillary-Everything she has done, etc. get quickly taken off the front pages. 

They are still hiding the JFK assassination details 50+ years later! If the powers that be want it covered up it will be. Initial starting of the riots were probably home grown, but Sourass and Obama, and his ilk, have been known to support financially, give out pre-made signs, and buses people in when it suits their agenda. 

A racial civil war is something that the never Trumpers desperately want. To the globalists chaos is the best way to affect the change they want. Sadly our country seems to have an over abundance of people willing to help them. Add incompetent and corrupt mayors, governors, and Congress and it's a combination for disaster. 

The only good thing that will come out of all this will be the many new citizens who realize their need to buy a gun and learn how to use it. Without the right to defend ourselves and loved ones we will become like Venezuela who banned private gun ownership in 2012-now look at it. The only ones with guns are the criminals and the government, frequently one and the same.

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GMBurns pepebob3 • 6 hours ago

Wow, I hadn't thought of that angle. I see that a Minneapolis dance club says both Chauvin and Floyd worked security at there. One other source said they were both there during two years.And I saw no sign from either that they knew each other. If I were writing a Game of Thrones script, it would have it that Mr. Floyd thought his scene had a different ending.This is crazy of course, but I hope they definitely check everything thoroughly. If any part of any of these angles has anything to them, it could mean that...oh yeah, maybe Mr Chauvin has a surprise coming too.That would be easier to explain than Chauvin just looking straight at the camera, knowing it's a camera, as he kills the guy, which was very, very strange.

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Jessie Brader Brat_bart • 7 hours ago

I was thinking of that a lot actually...I think there's two factors there:

1. I don't think it was necessarily a race issue and I'm going to continue thinking that until hard evidence to the contrary. In my experience true actual racism/hate/bigotry is not something you miss or feel uncertain of it's occurence. No I think chauvin was simply a cold, hard person who could gave been just as easily been kneeling on a stoop let alone another human being. He had no emotion in that video save maybe annoyance. His face makes it clear he has no respect or reverence for human life, regardless of sex, Creed, race etc.

2. With those 18 disciplinary on his jacket...it would stand to reason he had a sense of being untouchable, at least to a degree. He may have been disciplined or suspended in the past but never outright fired until now obviously. So I'd think pure arrogance could explain his lack of concern over the video. 

Especially considering his original report which was such a blatant misrepresentation it leaves me with the conclusion that this guy felt he'd gotten away with stuff before, he will again, worst case scenario he might get suspension etc. Plus anyone with that made incidence throughout their career, it's fairly likely there were many more instances of misconduct we DONT know about. Reading his initial report...well let's just say without the video he very well may hace gotten away with it. They didn't even seem to question his or his fellow officers accounts as suspect until the video that civilian put out there.

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OPINION:  That’s great news to hear!  Everyone Police Offer is by far,  not bad at all.  Thousands of people in this country can count their blessings that we do have great Policy Officers in this country.  If not, many would have lost their lives to  ‘thugs’ in the streets that have the same skin color and doing bodily harm to some in their own neighborhoods.

People need to stop and think about different situations before you jump on board of all the ‘bad actors’ that’s causing more problems in this country.

You better think first before you react!

A word of wisdom and advise!

[karadin]

Police and White Supremacists work together to attack protesters in Portland after two men murdered for defending Muslim women.

A white supremacist killed two people on a Portland train because they stood up to him for harassing two young black women, one of whom was Muslim. That same terrorist had been photographed attending a rally by a group called Patriot Prayer which is actually just one single wannabe professional wrestler who screams loud enough that people on the right really admire him.

 This guy, Joey Gibson, then went against the wishes of the slain martyr’s family, the mayor and any decent person in the world and decided to hold another hate filled rally in the same city where the murders just occurred.

 And let’s be really clear, this isn’t his city. He doesn’t live here and same with the vast majority of his attendees. They are just real-life trolls.

 And just in case anyone made the mistake of thinking this was actually all about free speech, Joey invited Kyle ‘Based Stickman’ Chapman, a convicted violent felon who rose to fame by beating up anti-fascists with a stick, Baked Alaska who advocates for exterminating the Jews and other white supremacists who were all looking for a fight.

 The mayor wanted the permit to be yanked by the feds, the ACLU of Oregon defended the terrorists right to terrorize, the permit didn’t get yanked and the event went on yesterday.

 However, counter protests were organized to show that Portland does not welcome this form of hate. In fact, Portland’s longstanding form of acceptable white supremacy is simply electing people who will uphold it. If you diverge from that form of fascism us liberals will protest the hell out of you! But we can get into that another time.

The Rally

I arrived at the rally right at the scheduled time and by then the fascists were already outnumbered 10–1. That is beautiful but also not the point of this article. 

For feel good sentiments about Portland standing up to hate reach out to the mayors office. For the truth, continue reading.

 Anyways, those numbers held for the entire day. While Joey Gibson’s group stayed inside a small federally owned park, the people of Portland surrounded the park in a peaceful manner to counter the hate. 

The police lined up with their backs to the white supremacists, facing the people of Portland. I could write more about that but honestly by this point you shouldn’t be surprised by it. I walked around to all corners of the counter protest waving and hugging all the familiar faces I see at most of the rallies. However, I also saw a lot of new faces. A lot of people seemed to be awakened by the murders and wanted to go show up for the victims

. The largest concentration of good guys was in Chapman Square which is adjacent to the park in which the police were guarding the hate rally. I’d say there were about 1,500 people in that park and maybe 3-4,000 total counter protestors. 

After talking with the good guys for some time I decided I would try and get in the alt-right rally to see what they were actually talking about. I can’t stress enough how scared I was as I entered. I filmed them all the while being weary that I was giving them too much of a platform.

 I was confronted probably around 5 times (I’m black). I don’t think there was a single second where I wasn’t being pointed at. Multiple times I was told I didn’t belong and should leave. Finally, I walked up to Joey Gibson who I had met at a Black Lives Matter rally in October (where he was surprisingly diplomatic) and asked him if I could stay without being killed. He told me I could stay if I didn’t start anything to which I replied that I just wanted to document their rally.

The rally had “security” which was made up of “proud boys” militia members, oath keepers and III%’s. For those who don’t know, that is basically a nice way of saying that white supremacists were the ones securing their rally. You shouldn’t be surprised at that either though.

 Whenever an altercation of any sort would happen they would assist the police officers in whatever they were doing, clear the scene of any bystanders by physically assaulting them and then tell people to let them do their jobs. In short, they were working with the police. 

But it wasn’t like simply snitching to the police when they saw something. I mean literally working with the police. As in tackling people, handcuffing people, and clearing entire areas. 

The cops acted as if the alt-right was Portland’s Justice League of vigilantes. They even had the silly costumes.

Before the speakers began they had some guy with a manufactured southern accent sing a couple of country songs, then he attempted to sing the national anthem but he forgot the words (I can’t make this stuff up).

 After that Joey Gibson came yelling about how this was a peaceful event and it was all about love before he invited some people up to do an ancient war dance (irony not lost here). 

After the war dance, Joey yelled for a good ten minutes which is when I first realized I was literally at a WWE match. This is professional wrestling in real life. The guy literally sounds like Randy Savage, the whole rally is saturated with ultra-machismo characteristics, they have silly warrior costumes, they have dramatic hero tales, they have weird nicknames, they do war dances, they have flashy introductions, and most importantly…. It’s all fake.

 Ya, you guessed it. The free speech rally people didn’t really care about free speech, they weren’t actually peaceful, they weren’t actually building a movement of love. After Baked Alaska came up and started talking about White Pride and how happy he was to be 100% white I decided I needed to leave for my own safety.

As soon as I stepped outside of that rally I exhaled. I couldn’t believe what I had just saw in the heart of Portland. I was shocked by the high fives I had seen between police and white supremacists. I know that the alt-right and police have tremendous respect for one another but I thought they would maybe attempt to conceal it for at least this event.

 At one point, I even saw them playing a game of football with the cops. As a ‘proud boy’ threw the football at one of the officers I thought about what would happen if I threw a ball at police and how many people would get hurt in the resulting violence.

Still trying to get the taste of hate speech out of my mouth I walked back into Chapman Square where I thought I was finally safe from white supremacy. I should have known better. Turns out I left right before the hate rally was about to conclude. The snowflakes that they are, they didn’t want to be yelled at on their way back to wherever they came from (i.e. not Portland). So, police decided to start pushing people into the middle of Chapman Square. I heard them all yell, “move to the middle of the park”.

 Then the police line that had been facing the good guys all day slowly started marching forward with their batons out. I was face to face with an officer, he was black too. I thought maybe I could get some humanity out of him. I looked at him and said I couldn’t move any faster because there were people behind me. He told me to turn around and keep walking. So, I turned around and instantly felt the baton in my back. But there was no way to go forward because the park was full. A few seconds of being jabbed in the back continued before I heard the first flash bang. Then all hell broke loose.

The Violence

Tear gas filled the middle of the park where police had ordered us to go. Yes, to make it clear for you: police deployed chemical weapons into the area they were forcing us into. I couldn’t open my eyes. As I heard cries of “I can’t breathe” I couldn’t help but think of the murder of Eric Garner. This was an entire crowd of peaceful protestors that had literally done nothing wrong. Their only crime was standing up to white supremacy in a peaceful way. I started running trying to get away from tear gas but I couldn’t see anything.

I accidentally ran into pepper spray that had just been deployed at someone who was laying on the ground. I turned the other direction and continued running, then I heard “Greg at your feet!” I didn’t have time to react before a flash bang went off on my foot. I couldn’t hear anything other than a ringing noise and chants of “USA” from the nationalist who were cheering on the police.

 I couldn’t see but then someone put me on my knees. I wasn’t sure if it was a cop, a white supremacist, a protestor or a medic until they started pouring something into my eyes and I realized that some bystander was trying to fix me up so that I could get out of there.

However, they couldn’t finish the job. As they were pouring a solution into my eyes I heard, “Rubber Bullets!” and people started running. People next to me where falling as they ran from the pain of these rounds. Finally, I got to the road and police had formed a line. At this point I started hearing, “the park is closed” from the police loud speaker. Which was ironic because that is where they had told us to go, the middle of the park. 

Medics and bystanders started tending to all of the people who were hurt and a barricade was formed to stop police from furthering the damage. Every once in a while, a few people would get shot by rubber bullets, the cops were laughing as if they were at target practice. They continued to shoot people with these rounds, often times at point blank range, for the rest of the day. They shot at people who just simply trying to get away. They even shot people who were detained.

I saw a van full of riot police leave the scene which I thought was odd given the crowd was all there. Then we kept getting told to move North away from the park. That’s when it hit me that they were planning on marching us into more cops. That van I saw leave was headed to cut us off. Eventually the entire group moved north but it only got a few blocks before that van of riot cops cut us off and swarmed in on everyone.

 I escaped into a parking garage but a lot of my friends were in that group that was detained including my girlfriend Kat Stevens. Everyone, including her, was detained for close to an hour as police took pictures, ID’s and recorded everyone’s name. During that hour I saw one person try and run away before they were peppered with rubber bullets. Police didn’t care to run and catch him, they just wanted to punish him. In Ted Wheeler’s Portland, the police are the judge, jury and executioner. They then let most people go. I would say over 200 people were detained but it could have been more. Among them were legal observers and journalists. Police say they made 14 arrests.

I was entirely peaceful. I was only there to show my opposition to fascists and to document the event. I recorded the entire thing. However, for some reason my eyes are still stinging, my ears are still ringing and my back still hurts from police batons. Of course, the official line from the police is that someone threw something (definitely a lie) and that is why they had to hurt over a thousand innocent people. Let’s suppose for a second that someone did throw something. Did we all have our hands on that object? Of Course not. Yet thousands of people have to get beat up because one person is falsely accused of a crime?

None of our other rights work like this. What if Ted Wheeler and the police decided that since someone committed a murder with a gun last night that they are going to pepper spray, tear gas, flash bang and beat everyone who peacefully exercises their Second Amendment right because ONE person messed up. People would be up in arms. But for some reason we think that is acceptable behavior when dealing with The First Amendment? 

The First Amendment is first for a reason. A lot more people have voices than guns. Oh, and to the white supremacists who claim to be for free speech. Where were you when I was getting beat up by the police for simply being at a political rally? If you really cared about free speech you would be defending our rights too. You don’t… but we already knew that. When will the rest of America wake up? When are we going to realize it isn’t what you say but what you do. The alt-right claim to be for love, peace and free speech but don’t stand for any of that. Why is it that Portland has accepted that they are lying but hasn’t yet made the same realization of Ted Wheelers fake statements. If Ted Wheeler cared about the people of Portland, our rights, our safety and the strength of our community, he would be acting right now. Remember how he ran on reform? Where is it?

The Aftermath

So, what now? What can we do? First, we need answers. We need to examine the legality and constitutionality of white supremacists teaming up with police to hurt people. We need to thoroughly examine the Portland Police policies in terms of protests and crowd control and completely reform them. We need to know who gave the orders for the unconstitutional detention of peaceful protesters and that person needs to be fired. We need to know what PPB is doing with the list they obtained of people who they detained and what case or file it is going to be used for. We need to know why these weapons were deployed on a peaceful crowd. We need to know what forms of co-operation happened between PPB and The Trump Administration including the Department of Homeland Security. Why were police facing the counter protesters all day? We also need a new police chief. In no way is Mike Marshman acceptable after these actions.

Follow Gregory Robert McKelvey

[ladystylestores]

George Floyd farewell – Houston prepares for funeral : updates | George Floyd protests News

Bail has been set for $1.25m for the former Minneapolis police officer who pinned Floyd to the ground with his knee for nearly nine minutes as Floyd pleaded for air.

United States congressional Democrats unveiled a sweeping package of legislation to combat police violence and racial injustice after two weeks of protests across the nation sparked by Floyd’s death.

Floyd’s funeral will be held on Tuesday, followed by burial, where he will be laid to rest next to his mother, Larcenia Floyd.

Monday, June 8:

22:44 GMT – US Attorney General William Barr: ‘Dangerous to demonise police’

US Attorney General William Barr has criticised calls to defund or dismantle police forces following the death of George Floyd.

As demonstrations against police brutality continue, and activists call for the defunding or dismantling of police forces, the top US legal official in the US criticised calls to use police budgets for community projects.

“I think defunding the police, holding the entire police structure responsible for the actions of certain officers is wrong and I think it is dangerous to demonise police,” Barr told the Fox News Channel.

“If you pull back the police from these communities there will be, there will be more harm done in these communities,” Barr said.

Watch: @BretBaier: If you had to do Monday over again, would you do something different? AG Barr: Based on what I know now, no.. Things were so bad, the secret service recommended the President go down to the bunker. We can’t have that in our country. pic.twitter.com/jPxqhYyO7a

— TV News HQ (@TVNewsHQ) June 8, 2020

22:08 GMT – Police in Minneapolis ‘strategically deflated’ tires of protestors, journalists during recent unrest

State officials in Minnesota confirmed on Monday that police officers patrolling Minneapolis during the recent unrest slashed the tires of unoccupied vehicles in at least two locations in order to, as they put it, “stop behaviours such as vehicles driving dangerously and at high speeds in and around protesters and law enforcement”.

Videos and still photographs obtained by Mother Jones magazine showed officers in tactical clothing stabbing the tires of multiple vehicles in a Kmart car park during the unrest. The Minneapolis Star Tribune identified the officers as being from Anoka County Sheriff’s office.

A spokesman for the Department of Public Safety, Bruce Gordon, confirmed that tires were cut in “a few locations”.

Cops slashed car tires at protests in Minneapolis.

The officers punctured the tires to “stop behaviors such as vehicles driving dangerously and at high speeds in and around protesters and law enforcement,” a Minnesota DPS spokesperson said. https://t.co/qO0fe8wNhK pic.twitter.com/v9CmZymWr7

— Mother Jones (@MotherJones) June 8, 2020

“State Patrol troopers strategically deflated tires,” Gordon told the paper. “While not a typical tactic, vehicles were being used as dangerous weapons and inhibited our ability to clear areas and keep areas safe where violent protests were occurring.”

Among the vehicle owners whose tires were damaged was Star Tribune reporter Chris Serres, who was covering the protests the night of May 30 and returned to his car about 1am. His was among a few dozen with flattened tires, he said.

21:45 GMT – Black legislators in Pennsylvania disrupt state House of Representatives voting in call for police reform

Black Democrats in the Pennsylvania state House of Representatives commandeered the podium for about 90 minutes at the start of the voting session on Monday, disrupting the day’s business in an effort to force action on police reform bills.

The dramatic takeover went on pause when the Republican House speaker said he would consider putting proposals up for votes and that he supports a special session to consider the legislation.

The protesters, including veteran Black legislators from Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, hung a “BLACK LIVES MATTER” banner from the speaker’s dais and vowed they would not leave without movement on the stalled proposals.

The Speaker has agreed to support a special session to address law enforcement reforms. This is how civil disobedience makes a difference. pic.twitter.com/2zuE5OybkO

— Jordan A. Harris (@RepHarris) June 8, 2020

21:11 GMT – Joe Biden meets with Floyd family in Houston

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden showed compassion that “meant the world” to George Floyd’s family on Monday, according to a lawyer for the family.

Biden met with Floyd’s relatives in Houston for more than an hour, said lawyer Benjamin Crump, who posted a picture of himself on Twitter after the meeting with Biden, Floyd’s uncle Roger, civil rights activist Reverend Al Sharpton and Representative Cedric Richmond.

Pictured after meeting with #GeorgeFloyd‘s family: VP @JoeBiden, @TheRevAl, @AttorneyCrump, Rep. @CedricRichmond, and Roger Floyd (George Floyd’s uncle) pic.twitter.com/KJvsrTEORt

— Benjamin Crump, Esq. (@AttorneyCrump) June 8, 2020

“He listened, heard their pain, and shared in their woe,” Crump said of the private meeting. “That compassion meant the world to this grieving family.”

Trump has also spoken with Floyd’s family in a call that Floyd’s brother Philonise said in interviews was brief and did not provide him with an opportunity to say much.

18:50 GMT – Trump mulling proposals in response to Floyd’s death -White House

US President Donald Trump is “appalled” by calls for police to be defunded and is looking at a number of proposals in response.

“The president is appalled by the defund the police movement,” White House spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany told a media briefing. She said Trump is “taking a look at various” proposals in response to George Floyd’s death, but she offered no specifics as to what measures he was considering.

Demonstrators’ anger over the May 25 death of George Floyd, 46, is giving way to a growing movement to make his case a turning point in race relations and policing, with some protesters calling for police budgets to be slashed.

But the proposal has received mixed reviews from some Democrats, with Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey running a gauntlet of jeering protesters over the weekend after telling them he opposed their demands for defunding the city’s police department.

Trump has drawn fire for calling on state governors to crack down on the thousands protesting Floyd’s death around the country and threatening to send in the US military even as he described himself as an ally to peaceful protesters.

McEnany said on Monday that Trump believes there are some “instances” of racism among police, but added that the president sees the police as by-and-large good people.

On Monday, Democrats in Congress unveiled legislation that would make lynching a hate crime and allow victims of misconduct and their families to sue police for damages in civil court, ending a legal doctrine known as “qualified immunity”.

18:30 GMT – Judge sets bail for former Minneapolis police officer 

Bail for Derek Chauvin the white former Minneapolis police officer charged with murdering George Floyd has been raised by $250,000 to $1.25m, the Minnesota-based Star Tribune reported.

Derek Chauvin, 44, said almost nothing during an 11-minute hearing in which his bail was raised from $500,000 to $1 million. https://t.co/XfrIQyQAiM

— WXTX Fox54 (@WXTX54) June 8, 2020

Chauvin is charged with second-degree murder in Floyd’s May 25 death in Minneapolis by kneeling on his neck for nearly nine minutes. Minnesota Assistant Attorney General Matthew Frank argued that the “severity of the charges”, as well as the strength of public opinion, made it more likely that Chauvin would flee if set free, the Star Tribune reported.

17:30 GMT – Mourners in Houston pay their respects to Floyd

Mourners are paying their respects to George Floyd, whose body is on view at a memorial in a church in his hometown of Houston – a six-hour viewing will be held.

Many paused briefly to view Floyd’s body. Some made the sign of the cross as they observed. Several hundred people stood in line to enter the church before the start of the visitation, and all wore masks. Some people held umbrellas for shade as the sun beat down, and temperatures rose about 32 degrees Celsius (90 Fahrenheit).

Those passing through the church were required to leave six feet between others in observe of social distancing guidelines to stop the spread of the coronavirus.

Mourners view the casket during a public visitation for George Floyd in Houston, Texas [Godofredo A Vasquez/Pool via Reuters]

16:50 GMT – Denver fully bans chokeholds, requires report for aimed guns

Denver’s police department announced it is changing policies regarding its use of force and body cameras.

In a statement released on Sunday, the department said it had banned the use of chokeholds with no exceptions effective immediately. Previously, the practice was barred except in lethal encounters, The Denver Post reported.

The department also said that officers who intentionally point their gun at someone would be required to notify a supervisor and file a report to help collect data on such incidents. Members of its SWAT team will also have to activate their body cameras when they are performing tactical operations, the department said.

16:25 GMT – Crossfit founder apologises for tweet after Reebok split

CrossFit founder Greg Glassman has apologised for a tweet that equated Floyd’s killing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In response to a tweet by research firm Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation that classified racism and discrimination as a public health issue, Glassman, who is also the chief executive of CrossFit, had posted, “It’s FLOYD-19”.

It’s FLOYD-19.

— Greg Glassman (@CrossFitCEO) June 6, 2020

The fallout was fast. Adidas AG-owned Reebok ended its 10-year-old partnership with CrossFit and updated its US homepage in support of the “Black Lives Matter” campaign.

.@CrossFitCEO: “I, CrossFit HQ, and the CrossFit community will not stand for racism. I made a mistake by the words I chose yesterday.

My heart is deeply saddened by the pain it has caused. It was a mistake, not racist but a mistake.

— CrossFit (@CrossFit) June 8, 2020

In a statement on Twitter, Glassman said: “I, CrossFit HQ, and the CrossFit community will not stand for racism. I made a mistake by the words I chose yesterday. My heart is deeply saddened by the pain it has caused. It was a mistake, not racist but a mistake.”

16:05 GMT – Officer charged in Floyd’s death has 1st court appearance

Derek Chauvin, the Minneapolis police officer charged with second-degree murder in George Floyd’s death is scheduled to make his first court appearance. He is also charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.

Former Minnesota police officer Derek Chauvin posing for a booking photograph at Hennepin County Jail in Minneapolis, Minnesota, US [Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office/Handout via Reuters] 

Chauvin is being held at a state prison in Oakdale. The other three officers – J Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao – are charged with aiding and abetting. They remain in the Hennepin County jail on $750,000 bond.

16:00 GMT – Floyd’s coffin arrives at Houston church ahead of public viewing

The body of George Floyd arrived at a church in Houston for a final public memorial.

His body arrived in a gold-coloured coffin that was escorted to The Fountain of Praise church by Houston police. A six-hour viewing that is open to the public was scheduled to begin in the afternoon.

The coffin of George Floyd is set inside the church for a memorial service in Raeford, NC [Ed Clemente/Pool via AP] 

Before the coffin arrived, workers outside the church assembled a large floral arrangement with white roses on one side in the shape of a heart and with the initials “BLM” for Black Lives Matter created from blue roses and placed on top of the heart. The other side of the floral arrangement was made up of red roses and appeared to be in the shape of a raised fist.

15:00 GMT – Democrats unveil ‘Justice in Policing’ act to make wide-ranging changes to US police policy

The legislation addresses excessive use of force, qualified immunity and racial profiling, answering calls from protesters across the country after the death of George Floyd and other Black Americans while in police custody.

“It will demilitarise the police by limiting the transfer of military weaponry to state and local police departments,” said Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the US House of Representatives. 

It also proposes banning “no-knock” warrants, that allow police officers to enter a residence without warning. The legislation would require support by US Republicans who control the upper house of the legislature. 

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer kneel with Congressional Democrats during a silence to honour George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and others [Jonathan Ernst/Reuters]

14:20 GMT – US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi leads silence for George Floyd

Members of the US Congress went down on one knee in Emancipation Hall in the US Capitol building, in silence for eight minutes 46 seconds – the length of time that George Floyd spent pinned down by three police officers on a Minneapolis street corner. He was pronounced dead shortly afterwards. 

Floyd’s death has set off worldwide protests that call for an end to police brutality and what many protestors call systemic racism in US police forces. 

Demonstrators have been calling for the defunding or dismantling of police forces and a shifting of their budgets to community, education or other programmes.

13:00 GMT – Congressional Democrats to unveil sweeping US police reform proposal 

US congressional Democrats plan to unveil a sweeping package of legislation to combat police violence and racial injustice.

The proposal is expected to ban police chokeholds and racial profiling, require nationwide use of body cameras, subject police to civilian review boards and abolish the legal doctrine known as “qualified immunity”, which protects police from civil litigation, according to congressional sources.

A sign painted by protesters reading ‘Defund the Police’, painted next to a Black Lives Matter sign, near the White House in Washington, DC, the US [Joshua Roberts/Reuters] 

It is unclear whether the proposal will receive support from Republicans, who control the US Senate. Their support, as well as that of Republican President Donald Trump, would be needed for the measure to become law.

12:45 GMT – Trump opposes police defunding 

Protesters are pushing to “defund the police” after the death of George Floyd and other Black Americans killed by law enforcement.

Their chant has become a rallying cry – and a stick for President Donald Trump to use on Democrats as he portrays them as soft on crime.

Trump has said he opposes the idea, and is set to meet with members of law enforcement at the White House on Monday afternoon.

LAW & ORDER, NOT DEFUND AND ABOLISH THE POLICE. The Radical Left Democrats have gone Crazy!

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) June 8, 2020

Supporters say it is not about eliminating police departments or stripping agencies of all of their money. They say it is time for the country to address systemic problems in policing in the US and spend more on what communities across the country need, like housing and education.

Al Jazeera’s podcast The Take spoke to protesters. Listen here. 

12:30 GMT – Houston to hold six-hour public viewing of Floyd’s casket

Mourners will be able to view George Floyd’s casket Monday in his hometown of Houston, the final stop in a series of memorials in his honour.

A six-hour viewing will be held at The Fountain of Praise church in southwest Houston. The viewing is open to the public, though visitors will be required to wear face masks and gloves to comply with coronavirus-related guidelines.

Demonstrators holding a Black Lives Matter banner during a protest against racial inequality in the aftermath of the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, at Grand Army Plaza in the Brooklyn borough of New York City, New York, the US [Eduardo Munoz/Reuters]

Floyd’s funeral will be Tuesday, followed by burial at the Houston Memorial Gardens cemetery in suburban Pearland, where he will be laid to rest next to his mother, Larcenia Floyd.

See Sunday’s coverage here.

12:25 GMT – New York City mayor announces police reforms including shifting of funding from to youth programmes

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced on Sunday a series of police reforms that he said were part of a “transformative movement”.

He said funding would be shifted from the New York Police Department (NYPD) to youth and social services, moving the enforcement for street vending out of the police department to a civilian agency, and adding community ambassadors to the NYPD to serve as liaisons between officers and New Yorkers.

“People did not protest for the sake of protest. They protest to achieve change, and now we must deliver that change,” de Blasio said.

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Passing things forward

READ EVERY SINGLE WORD:

—If you are livestreaming a protest, and you are recording yourself, or taking selfies, instead of documenting information: you are not an ally. You are a tourist.

—Cover your face. Cover your hair. Cover your tattoos. Wouldn’t want to have any surfaces exposed that could get coronavirus.

—Protect your identity. Obscure your face. There are bad actors on the internet that would love to identify you and track you down for participating in a peaceful protest. Want to feel paranoid? Read about the mysterious deaths of identified Ferguson protestors years later. If you are in the privileged majority, this might be your first time realizing that there are violent people out there who want to hunt you down and harm you for existing. Imagine how POC feel.

—Unless your phone is inside a faraday cage, or you have removed the battery, it can be tracked. Yes, even in airplane mode.

—Assume all information transmitted from your phone is being intercepted by the police at the protest. Including your livestream. Oakland once had one of the largest inventories of Stingray devices (communciations intercept towers) in the US. They used them extensively against Occupy.

—Friendly reminder, your license plate is being scanned and tracked most places you drive.

—Disable your fingerprint or facescan unlock. While it is theoretically true that a search warrant is required to search your phone, it is also theoretically illegal for the police to murder an unarmed and nonviolent citizen. Use a six digit or more passcode.

—Backups to the cloud. Things tend to get broken at protests.

—Do not publicly display your teargas neutralizing spray, or peperspray neutralizing spray. You might be targeted. Keep it discrete and ready for use.

—Document any people showing up in Hawaiian shirts. Document anyone suspected of being undercover cops. Document agent provocateurs. Document bad actors showing up just to destroy property.

—If you have an Iphone, learn how to use your emergency sos. You can set your Emergency SOS to notify your family you might be being arrested or kidnapped (if it is safe for you to activate this feature). You can also disable the call 911 feature in Emergency SOS. Activating this feature also locks your phone against anything but a passcode unlock. If your phone is also encrypted, it is very hard for someone to illegally break into your phone.

—Write your emergency contact on your body in sharpie, somewhere both out of view and where it will not sweat off. Or memorize it. You will not have access to your cellphone if you are arrested (whether wrongfully or not).

—Be careful, all kinds of bad actors can use a peaceful protest as an excuse for violence. Hot hands gloves, or Nomex flight gloves, can be used to pick up hot objects on the ground, if you need to throw a teargas grenade away from you.

—Highpowered lasers, not usually the pocket kind, can destroy the sensors on cameras. Be careful with your cameras out there.

—If your goggles have vents, they are vulnerable to teargas and pepperspray.

—Be careful, all kinds of bad actors can use a peaceful protest as an excuse for violence. A set of allen keys can sometimes unlock crowd control gates.

—Remember that Neonazis have driven cars into peaceful protests in the past. There is finally a use for all those lyft/lime/uber bikes and scooters. Bring them to the protest and use them to as roadblocks if necessary to prevent cars from driving into protestors or chasing them.

—Umbrellas can be useful in preventing bad actors from hitting you with some projectiles during an otherwise peaceful protest. They also help protect identity.

—If you are a white ally: listen. Don’t make the protests about you. There are already literal Nazis doing that.

—Be careful, all kinds of bad actors can use a peaceful protest as an excuse for violence. It has already been noted on multiple organizing boards for white supremacist groups that a protest they’ve whipped into a riot is the perfect place to murder someone with impunity, and even kidnap people. Read up on how to escape from zipties. Bring medical shears or small snips to cut them.

—If you are arrested, identify yourself. Have your ID. Do your best to show the officer that you are peaceful and not resisting arrest. Say nothing else at all without a lawyer present, unless it is to request your phone call. Assume anything said, including on phone call, is being documented and could be aggressively used against you. Innocent people can still go to jail.

—Be careful, all kinds of bad actors can use a peaceful protest as an excuse for violence. Assume you might get shot with a rubber bullet/sandbag. Wear protective gear so you can protest in peace. Being misidentified as a violent/illegal protestor by an officer could also mean being hit by a baton, which could break your bones. Protests can quickly turn chaotic, and often the official response to a peaceful protest can be indiscriminate in who gets injured. Don’t forget that photo of a 12 year old that was peppersprayed for being at a protest.

—Recognize that there are complex factors at play. Not everyone at the protest has the same agenda. Some are not peaceful. The Attorney General of the US noted yesterday that outside provacateurs are infiltrating peaceful protests to accelerate outside agendas unrelated to protesting in solidarity with Black Lives Matter/George Floyd/Police Brutality. The Mayor of Minneapolis noted many* violent protestors arrested were from out of state, and some had ties to white supremacist groups. Not all protestors are looters. Not all looters are protesting anything.

—If you are a white ally that acknowledges your privilege and wants to use that to support the protestors, go to the front of the protest. If you can tolerate having your identity known and you can be a peaceful human shield, do it. Just don’t steal the scene. Let the other POC speak. Leave your megaphone and microphone with someone else while you shield them.

—If you are a white ally in your comfortable home, stop deleting anyone that disagrees with you. Stop feeding the divisive algorithms that have helped shape this discourse into a hateful thing. Right now, you can be putting in the work talking to people and helping them understand that “All Lives Matter” is a way to avoid talking about Black Lives Matter. Don’t be combative. Listen. Ask Questions. Talk. Your POC friends don’t need to spend all their time educating—a huge part of our role as white allies is helping our other white circles understand and grow.

—Yes, all lives do matter. The problem is that some are treated like they matter less. And they are disproportionately affected by police violence in the United States. When you shout “All Lives Matter” in response to “Black Lives Matter,” all that is happening is you are silencing people trying to speak up about disproportionate treatment and unequal rights. If you are sharing that favtoid about how many white versus black lives are taken by police, without adjusting for population, you are ignorant of statistics and being willfully manipulative at worst. Do you really believe that all lives are treated and regarded equally?

—Silence is how this grew. Colorblindness is how this grew. Ignoring this is privilege. The status quo is broken. Racism is alive and well. Silence is violence.

—Your political affiliation does not matter in proving you aren’t racist. Living in a diverse and liberal area does not matter. Knowing a POC in your personal life proves nothing. Quoting one convenient MLK quote does not matter. Only being actively anti-racist matters.

—Human lives will always be worth more than property. Stop changing the subject. There will be an appropriate time to rebuild.

—Violence at a protest does not invalidate the point of the protest, even one intended to he peaceful. Focusing on violence is just a way to ignore the meaning of the protest. Stop changing the subject.

If you want to share this, copy and paste it without attribution. This is not about any one person. Not even George Floyd. It is a chain in which George Floyd is the one of the latest links. Like Alton Sterling. Like Sandra Bland. Like Michael Brown. Like Freddie Gray. The list is staggering. And every single one of those names on the list was a person who could still be with us today.

[coin-news-blog]

Iran, Hong Kong, India: Failed Protests Point to Need for Crypto-Anarchy ‘Second Realms’

New Post has been published on https://coinmakers.tech/news/iran-hong-kong-india-failed-protests-point-to-need-for-crypto-anarchy-second-realms

Iran, Hong Kong, India: Failed Protests Point to Need for Crypto-Anarchy ‘Second Realms’

Iran, Hong Kong, India: Failed Protests Point to Need for Crypto-Anarchy ‘Second Realms’

What is the second realm? It’s both an abstract and concrete “place” parallel to here, where temporary autonomous zones (TAZ) provide a chance to escape the burning surveillance spotlight of the state and brutal law enforcement culture, and allow for at least temporary exercises of human rights and freedom. A TAZ may allow for free and private trade of crypto and other goods, use of substances, and freedom of speech unafforded by the state. As governments worldwide crackdown violently on protestors more and more, these decentralized, concrete nodes of freedom become increasingly essential to the true proliferation of liberty in our lifetimes.

The Second Realm

Sometimes the best way to defeat one’s enemy is to remain quiet and just do what you want. The protestor shouting in the street and lobbing rocks at riot cops may not be morally amiss, but ultimately a club to the face, pepper spray, jail time or a bullet awaits him. Begging tyrannical governments to please give some more leeway to exercise natural rights ultimately amounts to further empowering the control freaks at the top. After all, how would you feel as a ruler to see hundreds of thousands standing below in the streets, begging and yelping for mere permission to have their rights back? The power dynamic is clear.

Though the exact body count is disputed, a look at what’s happening in Iran with the recent lethal crackdown on gasoline price protestors shows who is ultimately in control. Similarly, protests and demonstrations continue in Hong Kong. Though some semblance of good seems to have been won there, struggle through police brutality and reported protestor violence against Beijing supporters has led to little but another form of slavery-lite. To the ignorant, flag-waving praise of the brutal American regime, complete with continued submission to mob rule, democratic governance. In another example, residents of India in recent months have not been able to access their own bank accounts, though they’ve demonstrated and petitioned persistently.

Protest is typically a first realm strategy. The second realm takes a much more direct approach. We don’t ask, we take what is rightfully ours. The second realm is both abstract and concrete, and its definition varies from place to place. Though nothing is a one-size-fits-all solution in scale or quality for the above listed woes currently plaguing the earth, the second realm focuses on individuals, and what they can do right now to take a little power back for themselves.

Temporary Autonomous Zones

TAZs can be both physical, brick and mortar locations or more virtual and cyber spaces. A TAZ might be a private club, abandoned shipping container, or one’s own inconspicuous house where anarchists meet on weekends. It could be a darknet website, an OTC trading platform, a campground for a weekend, or a moving train car. Though a more conspicuous example, it can also be an event, such as the recent Don’t Comply activists’ illegal feeding and sheltering of the homeless in Dallas, Texas.

Anywhere that is generally out of the purview and attention of the state, or which becomes more of a hassle to investigate and invade than to just let it be, can be a useful TAZ. In the case of the Texas activists, police interference with the legally armed lawbreakers would likely be much more costly both physically and reputationally than simply letting them function in peace. In fact, what the second realm affords is a chance to exercise freedom in the same way that the state does. Backdoor meetings, quiet alliances, and private favors and trades. It cannot be said that top makers and enforcers of the state’s laws are truly beholden to those same rules. They function largely in anarchy. Why not allow good people the same freedom?

We just released a new episode of the Cypherpunk Bitstream podcast where we talk about “The Second Realm”: Is more liberty possible? Parallel systems, conflict management, TAZs, and The Sovereign Individual. https://t.co/UUSkEOvvsC

Hosts: @TheRealSmuggler & @thefrankbraun pic.twitter.com/hPC33NmUwi

— Frank Braun (@thefrankbraun) December 11, 2019

Unobtrusive Non-Compliance

Cryptoanarchists Frank Braun and Smuggler have recently released the second episode of their new Cypherpunk Bitstream podcast and go in-depth on the subject of the second realm. A point they repeatedly emphasize is the utility of blending in and remaining outwardly polite — as well as being a ‘non-good’ target for law enforcement. This goes hand-in-hand with maintaining good relationships with those surrounding oneself. Smuggler details:

Give them a story that is not too wrong … Keep a certain mystery, don’t tell everything, but give the plausible and unsuspicious part of what you do … Just be a good neighbor … build relationships, because they’re your allies.

He goes on to detail an episode where law enforcement was snooping around his community, and good relationships with those in the area helped to disincentivize further state interest (presumably in non-violent activities the state deems illegal). Braun and Smuggler note the value of impersonal non-compliance. Give a fake name. Don’t get hot-headed and shout about your right not to give it. Give a real name but refuse a search. Make yourself a “non-threatening” pain in the ass that isn’t worth the state’s time and resources. This can be part of the essence of functioning effectively in the second realm.

Free Trade and Free Association

Second realm strategies don’t have to be illegal. Free and private trade of crypto can be afforded to individuals everywhere via non-KYC, encrypted internet trading platforms and private chats. Whether or not the individuals then choose to report their dealings to a violent agency like the IRS is up to them and only them.

Decentralized exchanges also afford crypto enthusiasts the ability to trade more freely, without jumping through the cumbersome, unethical hoops imposed by a violent, non-individual-self-ownership-respecting state. The second realm affords traders the ability to buy and sell in person, privately. If person A wants to sell a plant like cannabis, and B has the crypto to pay, they might meet in any TAZ and make their transaction with the lowest possible risk of state interference. Also with the lowest risk of attributability. Meeting in a crowded TAZ, in an urban environment for example, makes it harder for law enforcement to pinpoint any “guilty” party associated with the plant matter should they invade.

A Network of TAZ ‘Nodes’

Critics of the second realm strategy might say it’s a fantasy. A kind of libertarian live action role play which ultimately has little effect on the tyranny of the state. But look where centuries of riots and protests have put humanity. The global economic and social situation at present is dire, with blatant abuse of human rights becoming more and more commonplace. One small shipping container facilitating disobedience and freedom for a few people may not seem like much, but multiply this “node” by a thousand, and then a hundred thousand, and that concrete feeling of freedom inspired by direct experience — and the network effect of disempowering the state and its culture via non-participation — becomes clear.

In the same way a decentralized network like Bitcoin has gained value and ubiquity to the point of being virtually unstoppable — and this in parallel, and not in direct opposition to, existing monetary systems — so can “encrypted people” around the world exercise freedom and liberty now, with a little knowledge and awareness, by creating their own second realms.

There is always risk to such disobedience. There is also great personal and societal risk in continuing to comply with anti-human laws and regulations. Each individual must decide what is right for them, of course. That said, a whole decentralized world of tiny nodes would be much freer than the monolithic, centralized violence we experience at present. And like cryptocurrencies, people could pick and choose freely which social nodes and networks they’d like to participate in, instead of being forced into non-consensual relationships, as is the current dysfunctional model under statism.

Source: news.bitcoin