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Rebellion2020

Black Misleaders Seek To End Protest

The aftermath of George Floyd’s murder at the hands of Minneapolis, Minnesota police has created a national political crisis. The revulsion caused by this latest killing caught on camera spawned protests in Minneapolis and all over the country. Black people are the angriest, knowing they are at risk of the same treatment and because most police killings rarely result in convictions. But the mass actions present a problem for the rulers. Anger boiled beneath the surface after years of the race to the bottom austerity regime, the worsening economic collapse in the wake of the COVID-19 quarantine, and another Democratic presidential primary rigged by that party’s donor class to defeat the prospect of even minimalist reforms.

Push Back: US Police State Faces Revolt

Dr. Gerald Horne on the George Floyd protests, the black freedom struggle, and Trump’s expansion of the US police state at home and around the world. Historian and author Gerald Horne discusses the US uprisings against police brutality and systemic racism sparked by George Floyd’s killing; the devastating impact of the US government’s decades-old war on the black freedom struggle; the ongoing “Russia-baiting” of the protests; and how, amidst the suffering and repression at home, the U.S. government, in bipartisan fashion, continues to attempt to impose its will on countries abroad, from China to Venezuela. Guest: Dr. Gerald Horne, Moores Professor of History and African American Studies at the University of Houston. Author of more than three dozen books, including the forthcoming The Dawning of the Apocalypse.

Black Journalists At Philadelphia Inquirer Call In Sick

To the leadership of the Philadelphia Inquirer: As journalists of color, we do more than report on the community — we are the community. We do our best to give the community a platform to be heard. We strive to represent the voice of the people. And we are tired. We’re tired of hasty apologies and silent corrections when someone screws up. We’re tired of workshops and worksheets and diversity panels. We’re tired of working for months and years to gain the trust of our communities — communities that have long had good reason to not trust our profession — only to see that trust eroded in an instant by careless, unempathetic decisions. It’s no coincidence that communities hurt by systemic racism only see journalists in their neighborhoods when people are shot or buildings burn down.

Spy Planes, Nuclear Sniffers Fly Over US Capital As National Guard Occupies City

After five days of mass protests in Washington, DC, against police brutality and the in-custody death of black Minnesota man George Floyd last week, US President Donald Trump has made an almost unprecedented show of force by deploying thousands of troops in the nation’s capital, even as more peaceful protests have come in the wake of rioting and looting. A National Guard Swearingen RC-26B spy plane was spotted over the city Tuesday night, as was a special Bell 412 helicopter fitted out by the National Nuclear Security Agency (NNSA) for “sniffing” out the telltale radioactivity put out by nuclear weapons, suggesting defense officials feared the use of a “dirty bomb.” Unconfirmed reports of drone activity across the city appeared on social media, and on Wednesday, observers also spotted V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft, used by the US Marine Corps for transporting troops.

Lessons From Palestine: People Of Color Need A Sustained Resistance Movement

Will Smith was quoted saying that racism isn’t getting worse, it’s getting filmed, and indeed, it is being filmed a lot lately. No sooner did we begin to recover from one victim of racist violence, the next victim is slain. Just as we began to wrap our heads around the murder of Breonna Taylor, we saw the lynching-murder of Ahmaud Arbery, and then came the murder of George Floyd. It’s interesting that the murders of Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd took place in broad daylight, in plain view, and were caught on camera, meaning that the perpetrators felt they could act with impunity. It is also clear that it was the public outcry and the use of social media platforms in the wake of these murders that drove the authorities to act. Without being filmed and without demands for justice, the perpetrators would probably not have been held accountable.

LA City Council President Introduces Motion To Cut LAPD Funding

The president of Los Angeles's city council introduced a motion Wednesday that would direct officials to identify millions of dollars' worth of funding cuts to the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) following criticism of the department's treatment of protesters. Councilwoman Nury Martinez (D) said in a statement released on Twitter that the move was about resetting the city's priorities in the wake of the death of George Floyd, a black man who died in Minneapolis police custody last week. Video of Floyd's arrest and death sparked protests around the country, including in Los Angeles. "Today we intrdcd a motion to cut funding to the LAPD, as we reset our priorities in the wake of the murder of #GeorgeFloyd & the #BlackLivesMatter call that we all support to end racism. This is just one small step.

Oakland: Councilmembers Seek Immediate Halt To Police Use Of Tear Gas

California - Three Oakland city councilmembers on Wednesday requested the immediate halt of tear gas being used for crowd control during the George Floyd protests in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Using information from a UCSF infectious disease expert who spoke to KTVU, Councilmembers Nikki Fortunato Bas, Rebecca Kaplan and Sheng Thao, sent a letter to the mayor, police chief and city administrator citing their concerns. They said they fear that using the tear gas, which police deployed on protesters on Friday, as well as before the 8 p.m. curfew on Monday, will increase the spread of the virus and place "countless people at risk." UCSF Dr. Peter Chin-Hong aid that tear gas makes people cough a lot and that people at protests are shouting and possibly projecting the virus droplets at farther lengths.

Protesting Racism Versus Risking COVID-19

Mass protests that have erupted over police brutality toward black people in America are raising concerns about the risk of spreading the coronavirus. But some health experts, even as they urge caution, said they support the demonstrations — because racism also poses a dire health threat. Tens of thousands of people, masked and unmasked, have thronged the streets of Minneapolis, Atlanta, Louisville, Ky., and other cities in the week since George Floyd died after a white Minneapolis police officer kneeled on his neck. They are the largest public gatherings in the U.S. since the pandemic forced widespread shutdowns, and many local officials warned of a possible spike in new cases in one or two weeks.

An Uprising Was Inevitable

There’s no greater frustration than working every day to build and inspire others to build a more just, compassionate world, only to be so brutally reminded of how far away that world is, as we are bombarded by videos of an atrocity such as the police killing of Minneapolis resident George Floyd. Witnessing someone being killed is terrorizing. I am experiencing episodes of terror after seeing the life leave Floyd’s handcuffed body under the knee of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, while two officers held down Floyd, and another stood idly by. That image will stay with me for a long time, just as Eric Garner’s has, just as Philando Castile’s has, and Terence Crutcher’s, and 12-year-old Tamir Rice’s.

Pentagon Ready To Send Troops To Minneapolis If State Asks

The Pentagon said Saturday it was ready to provide military help to authorities scrambling to contain unrest in Minneapolis, where George Floyd’s death has sparked widespread protests, but Gov. Tim Walz has not requested federal troops. Jonathan Rath Hoffman, the chief Pentagon spokesman, said several military units have been placed on higher alert “as a prudent planning measure” in case Walz asks for help. The Associated Press first reported on the potential deployments and, citing sources with direct knowledge of the orders, named four locations from which soldiers would be drawn. Hoffman did not identify the units, but other officials said they are mainly military police. Hoffman said these are units normally on 48-hour recall to support state authorities in the event of crises like natural disasters. They are now on four-hour alert, Hoffman said.

Residents Sheltered Dozens Of Protesters From Police

Nearly two hours after the 7 p.m. curfew went into effect on Sunday night, dozens of people were corralled by police in a one-way block — Swann Street NW, between 14th and 15th — as they made their way north from downtown. As officers closed in on the group, they began setting off what appeared to be pepper spray and flash bangs, sending the crowd running. “I heard ‘bang bang’ and a lot of thumping and pepper spray everywhere, my eyes started burning, people screaming, and a human tsunami coming down the street, of piles on top of people,” says Rahul Dubey. Several residents opened their doors, including Dubey. “I flung open this door,” he said. “I was like, ‘Come in, get in the house. Get in the house.’ The police were running after these 20- and 30-year-olds and grabbing them. They’re tripping, coughing. And I was pulling them into the house.”

Deploying Federal Troops In A War At Home Would Make A Bad Situation Worse

As the George Floyd Uprising intensified in Minneapolis on Friday and Saturday, President Trump asked Acting Defense Secretary Mark Esper for options to deploy federal troops to the city. He signaled to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, “We have our military ready, willing and able if they ever want to call our military, and we can have troops on the ground every quickly.” Military Police soldiers from Fort Bragg (North Carolina), Fort Drum (New York), Fort Carson (Colorado), and Fort Riley (Kansas) were ordered to be ready to deploy for crowd and traffic control duties, if the state National Guards could not quell the unrest. On Monday, Trump put Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman General Mark Milley “in charge,” lambasted state governors, and said he would soon order active-duty federal troops into U.S. cities to “quickly solve the problem for them.”

Atlanta Officers Charged After Students Pulled From Car

Atlanta - Six Atlanta police officers were charged Tuesday after dramatic video showed authorities pulling two young people from a car and shooting them with stun guns while they were stuck in traffic caused by protests over George Floyd’s death. Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard announced the charges during a news conference. “I feel a little safer now that these monsters are off of the street and no longer able to terrorize anyone else,” said 22-year-old Messiah Young, who was dragged from the vehicle along with his girlfriend, 20-year-old Taniyah Pilgrim. The Saturday night incident first gained attention from video online and on local news. Throughout, the couple can be heard screaming and asking officers what is happening.

Trump Threatens To Grab Protestors By The Posse

President Donald Trump has threatened to send “active duty” U.S. military to Minnesota to quell the uprising against the police killing of yet another unarmed African-American even though the state’s governor had not accepted Trump’s offer. The president made his intention known in a series of tweets on Friday. Trump said “we will assume control,” clearly meaning the federal government. The National Guard of each state is controlled by the state governor. The Washington Post reported that the Trump administration has offered “the use of active-duty soldiers and intelligence,” including “some forces who were put on alert to deploy.” The New York Times and other media said “military police” were being prepared by the Pentagon and that it would be the first deployment of MPs since the Rodney King uprisings  in Los Angeles of 1992.   

As Night Falls, NYC Protests Against Police Violence Grow Chaotic

As night fell in New York City, chaos and violent encounters fanned out once again between police and demonstrators. In Lower Manhattan, a dumpster was set on fire, forcing police officers to cordon off protesters. On some streets, there were bashed-in store windows even though some protesters had pleaded with others not to engage in looting. Around 10: 30 p.m., NYPD began making significant arrests at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. At one point, police could be seen racing after protesters. Some observers were maced at close range. There were at least half a dozen people arrested. In one video from PIX11 News, an officer can be seen shoving a protester down a set of stairs after another threw her to the ground.
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