Students in Santa Monica protesting against a tripling of tuition fees are attacked and pepper sprayed by police as they attempt to force entry into a public meeting of the board of trustees. Two students are hospitalised and a further thirty require treatment.
Dozens of students were pepper sprayed by the campus police at Santa Monica College as they protested outside a meeting of the board of trustees.
Two students were hospitalised, and at least 30 others injured during scuffles with campus police as over 100 people tried to forcibly gain entry to the meeting room.
Students are protesting against plans to create a two-tier tuition fee scheme that will mean that popular courses will charge triple the fees of less popular courses.
Police refused to let the students in to the meeting as they said it was at ‘capacity’, and refused to switch to a bigger room. The students were subsequently pepper sprayed without warning
One of the protestors said that:
“Things started to escalate and the police were trying to keep people out while we just wanted to get in. It was packed in tight around the door and the police claimed students were breaking into the room so out came their pepper spray and batons. After that the fire alarm was pulled to evacuate the building because the pepper spray was so strong.”
The College President, Chui Tsang has given a statement saying that:
“The college would pay for the medical expenses of the injured students, but that the campus police had shown restraint, and use of force was necessary to preserve public and personal safety.”
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Comments
They also sprayed a
They also sprayed a four-year-old child: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/04/04/1080788/-A-Police-Officer-Was-Forced-To-Release-Pepper-Spray-At-4-Year-Old-
I know it wouldn't really
I know it wouldn't really solve anything, but just once I would like to see an American Black Bloc give some pigs like these a good thrashing like those crazy German and Greek motherfuckers do.
If you mean militant self
If you mean militant self defense or the willingness to fight back against police violence by black bloc, well, I wouldn't say that it wouldn't solve anything. It would probably give the police something to think about and Americans would have something to fight for. I am not sure why comparing Americans to German and Greek "motherfuckers" in this manner is all that relevant. I do not really understand the romanticizing of militant action without putting the political militancy in its context, both historical and current.
There seems to be a gap between the activities going on in Europe and the activities in the US. We don't have hundreds or thousands of militants willing and already active within the larger/wider working class struggles to build up momentum that would necessitate militancy similar to Germany and Greece. Rather than wishing that one day America will be like Greece and Germany, maybe concentrate on US movements and actions and make them the best they can be. I am sure that Greek anarchists and militants are really interested in what is going on in the US but I am also sure that they don't search for Greek anarchists youtube riot porn, they are busy making it happen instead.
We should look to ways that the American movement can complement Greece and Germany. They have budget problems and are taking it to the streets. Why are they going to the streets with their problems? Are these just anarchists, "black bloc" demonstrations or do anarchists and militants partake in the larger popular protest waves? Do they not back down or hide their politics or willingness to defend themselves at these mass demonstrations?
Instead, we should be asking ourselves, in this instance, where are the militants in Santa Monica or Southern Cali? Why didn't they partake in the attempted disruption of the board meeting?
Miltants should partake in actions aganst those who are making education even harder for people to get in times when needing an education to get a job is so dire?
It seems that American militants are to busy worrying about what Greece and Germany are going to do next.
Marx-Trek, I think you took
Marx-Trek, I think you took my comment a bit too seriously.
Not really. I follow domestic events much more closely than what's happening in Europe. Besides, I'm in Wisconsin right now, its not like I could have been at that board meeting :roll:
In this context, it's relevant because people in those countries seem to beat the shit out of cops more often. Black Blocs here seem to just do lame vandalism and then flee, they rarely actually confront the pigs.
Actually, I do. I do my best to make the movements I can participate in better and more militant. I don't know how I was supposed to affect this movement tho, given the fact that I live probably more than a thousand miles away.
Also, why do you think there were no militants at that protest? I think it was mostly militants (if we have a vaguely similar definition of the word that is). The fact that there wasn't any violence from the protesters doesn't make them not militant.
Your comment about Greek anarchists not looking at riot porn on youtube but instead making it happen is quite ridiculous. The lack of massive riots in the US has nothing to do with too many radicals getting too into riot porn. You seem to be implying that I can just "go out and make it happen" rather than thinking about it. That's just not true.
The only thing that comment was meant to convey was the sheer pleasure I would take in watching those pigs get the shit kicked out of them. No serious political points or proposed strategies were implied.
While I appreciate that was a
While I appreciate that was a flippant comment, I think that one answer may be that, in addition to the more militant working-class culture more generally, that in Greece and Germany you would be much less likely to be grabbed and do serious jail time in horrendous conditions, which you would probably be likely to do in the US if you did that…
I would not agree with your
I would not agree with your claim that the US police are more likely to grab up riotous protesters and make them do serious jail time in comparison to the German or Greek police and justice system. Though I would agree that prison in Germany is going to be way more hospitable than doing time here in the US. People have done time for partaking in riots in Europe and people have done time for the same here in the US. Though to be clear, here in the US people usually get charged with assault on an officer or felony riot during smaller altercations that involve the police and not in massive waves of riots throughout the streets of say Manhattan or Oakland.
Again, I think it has a lot to do with numbers, its easier to kick off riots and practice militant self defense in the streets against police when its hundreds and sometimes thousands of militants willing to and having the experience, not to mention the legacy of riots and street fights with police.
I do agree with Tastybrain, in order to be a militant you do not always have to act out your militancy at every interaction with the state, of course not.
Not to be to harsh, but comments such as these are usually reserved for anarchistsnews.org where fact, fun, and fiction blend together.
On another note, I think its
On another note, I think its awesome to see students and workers taking action against tuition hikes and not just taking it.
Marx-Trek wrote: I would not
Marx-Trek
I don't know about more likely, but the legal consequences here seem to be far more drastic. For example, during the Republican National Convention of 2008, people were sentenced to 15 years for merely making (not using) molotovs and others who were doing infastructural work such as where people would stay and how people could block traffic had terrorism enhancements to their conspiracy to riot charges.
Although to be honest, I don't know the full picture of legal consequences in Greece and some of the charges and sentences in the UK after the riots would not happen here in the U.S. (years for a Facebook status update).
BUT WHY WOULD THEY DO SUCH A
BUT WHY WOULD THEY DO SUCH A THING THEY SHOULD PROTECT PEOPLE NOT PEPPER SPRAY THEM I AM SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO LIKE MAD AT THEM RIGHT NOW :x :( :confused:
I AGREE WITH YOU
I AGREE WITH YOU 8-)