So I’m not sure just how much has reached the media or the internet yet, but I was at the protests at the statehouse in Columbus on Fathers Day and it was bad.
This was the first time I was able to make it to a protest, and I was not prepared for the mess that it was.
The crowd was much smaller than it has been for the last couple days, but we had an intersection at the statehouse blocked off. I was a little late to everything, but it had been peaceful all day, yet the cops showed up in mass force and lined up in the street directly in front of the statehouse with their SUVs and bicycles. We were at a peaceful standoff, people were speaking on megaphones, everything was going well. Then they tried to push an SUV through one of our lines (they did this again later and at a much higher speed). We successfully deescalated the situation and they pulled the car back. Then they brought the cops on bikes up to the front line. Things got ugly from there. But you want to know why things got ugly?
Because so called white “allies” or anti-protesters decided to get aggressive. They got up in the cops faces and threatened their lives. They threw water bottles, and one of the women who has been livestreaming the protests on facebook got hit in the back of the head and had to chase some people off.
You know what happens when white “allies” decide to use the opportunity to get violent? Black people get hurt. Protesters were maced, tear gassed, pepper sprayed, hit with bikes, physically beaten. (This all comes after the mayor released a statement cops would not be using these methods anymore). EMTs had to be called for multiple people. Some black men were chased down, maced, injured, and arrested. Cops broke lines to try to start fights with black men. Women were grabbed and shoved out of the way to get to black men.
They also ripped the prosthetics off of an amputee, pulled him to the ground, and maced him. People had to forcefully retrieve his legs back from cops because they refused to return them. Warning, the video below is graphic and absolutely heartbreaking:
https://amp.reddit.com/r/Columbus/comments/hdf4hu/cpd_just_hit_and_maced_a_double_amputee_bravo_you/?__twitter_impression=true
r/Columbus: Events, get togethers, and suggestions on what to see and do in Columbus, Ohio!
A peaceful protest was RUINED because some people decided to get violent because they were bored. They were hiding behind black people and left when things got bad. No one actually knows if they were anti-protesters or stupid allies, but two of them were chased off.
Many of the black leaders yesterday were angry and disappointed. They want people to understand
If you are a white person going to protest, DO. NOT. ACT. VIOLENTLY. DO NOT THREATEN THE COPS. DO NOT THROW SHIT. Because the cops will ALWAYS take it out on black people. This is how black people get hurt. This is how we get horrible media coverage. This is why people get arrested. REMAIN PEACEFUL.
Be VIGILANT. We have learned that young kids are sometimes the ones causing the violence because they don’t know any better or just wanted an excuse to come out and be violent towards people. Look out for anyone who seems to be getting particularly aggressive towards the cops, try to remove them if you can or hold them back.
Don’t run
Protect those who are injured. Get them a safe distance away. Use your shield, your backpack, yourself, to make sure they are not hit twice.
Know when to march and when to stand your ground. When they brought more cops with riot gear and shields, we knew it was time to march on and regroup elsewhere or return later.
Columbus took a hit on Fathers Day, and it was because of a few small people among many peaceful protesters. Do not let the media fool you into believing we are starting riots and trying to cause harm. We had peaceful unity until we didn’t. CPD is full of racist pigs and we will not stop until they are GONE.
