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On October 26, Oakland, CA police attacked nonviolent protesters with tear gas, flash grenades, beanbag shotguns, and rubber bullets. Officers also threatened use of unspecified "chemical agents."
Palestine came to Oakland's 14th and Broadway. Veterans Against War member Scott Olsen sustained a serious skull fracture when struck on the head by a tear gas canister. He remains hospitalized awaiting surgery.
Ahead of the incident, Oakland Mayor Jean Quan defended city police, saying:
"I commend Chief Jordan for a generally peaceful resolution to a situation that deteriorated and concerned our community."
Later she defended police violence, claiming they acted defensively. She lied. So did police officials saying protesters threw rocks, bottles and paint.
Across America, police violence and brutality are commonplace. Daily incidents occur. On January 1, 2009, Oakland police murdered Oscar Grant. Videotape evidence proved it. Five bystanders taped it.
Cops rarely are held accountable, even for cold-blooded murder. Endemic police violence brutalizes Americans. Eye-witness and videotape evidence shows nonviolent people tasered with 50,000 electrical volts. Deaths and injuries result.
Other incidents involve false arrests, painful cuffing, beatings, shootings, tear gas, stun grenades, rubber bullets, menacing attack dogs, and other forms of violence against society's most vulnerable. They include people of color, students, workers, and others wanting social justice.
On February 4, 1999, New York cops shot African immigrant Amadou Diallo 41 times. Nineteen bullets struck and killed him while he stood unarmed peacefully in the vestibule of his apartment building.
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