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Protesters Shut Down a Major Freeway In Minneapolis. Stage Die-In.

Nice Squirrel

Nice Squirrel

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http://www.kare11.com/story/news/lo...-protesters-shut-down-i-35w-in-mpls/19900521/

MINNEAPOLIS - If you really want to get attention, shutting down a major urban interstate is a sure-fire option.

Protesters moved from a pair of demonstrations down an on ramp onto the northbound lanes of I-35W. Police shut down the interstate, blocking traffic just short of the ramp. Close to 200 of the protesters massed across all the lanes, holding signs and chanting. There were two groups protesting in the area Thursday afternoon, one group targeting higher wages for fast food workers and another calling for justice in the case of Eric Garner, the man choked to death by New York police officers. A grand jury voted not to prosecute the officers in that case.
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Rumor has it police "escorted" them onto the freeway. Arrests have not been made yet.
 
Not sure what the benefit of shutting down traffic is.

Something like this makes more sense:
Students from around Florida have converged at the state capitol in Tallahassee demanding that Gov. Rick Scott heed their demands concerning racial profiling and school-to-prison pipeline issues in the wake of the George Zimmerman verdict. The youth — mostly Latino and African Americans — call themselves the “Dream Defenders” and have occupied the building since Tuesday making pleas to speak with the governor. Leaders of the Defenders say Gov. Scott has so far refused to meet with them so they plan to stay overnight, through the weekend if necessary, until the governor responds.
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http://colorlines.com/archives/2013...ors_office_demanding_justice_for_trayvon.html
 
Anyone NOT have any protests?

Where I live, the whole thing isn't really of interest.
 
credoconsolans said:
Anyone NOT have any protests?

Where I live, the whole thing isn't really of interest.
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Well the whole thing is entirely a US issue, so the 95% of the world population not in the US are pretty much unaffected, other than by rolling their eyes at more stupidity from a country that likes to think it is better than all the others, while continuing to have massive problems with race, poverty, firearms violence, medical care, and compassion for those who find themselves at the bottom of the heap.
 
The police are being praised for their restraint and assistance of the protestors.

http://www.kare11.com/story/news/local/2014/12/05/protest-police-praised-bouza/19968815/
MINNEAPOLIS – The restrained and cooperative attitude of law enforcement to a major protest drew praise from a police expert. There were no arrests at the protest that shut down a major interstate highway for more than an hour Thursday afternoon.
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"You have to bend the law and let us face it," said Bouza. "The mindless enforcement of the law is silly…the reality is: you have a lot of discretion and you need to use it. You need to conflict manage, understand it, negotiate and deal with it very patiently."
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Nice Squirrel said:
The police are being praised for their restraint and assistance of the protestors.

http://www.kare11.com/story/news/local/2014/12/05/protest-police-praised-bouza/19968815/


"You have to bend the law and let us face it," said Bouza. "The mindless enforcement of the law is silly…the reality is: you have a lot of discretion and you need to use it. You need to conflict manage, understand it, negotiate and deal with it very patiently."
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Yes, this protest really made it clear how great the police are.
 
Or more exactly how to handle protest professionally by not over reacting.

And isn't that the problem these folks were protesting: police overreacting to situations.
 
Maybe the police are also starting to realize that those members who are quick to turn to deadly force damages the public perception of all of them.
 
Nice Squirrel said:
The police are being praised for their restraint and assistance of the protestors.
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The police assisted the protesters who broke laws and prevented lawabiding citizens from getting where they wanted to go?
That police chief needs to be fired ... from a cannon.
 
Derec said:
Nice Squirrel said:
The police are being praised for their restraint and assistance of the protestors.
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The police assisted the protesters who broke laws and prevented lawabiding citizens from getting where they wanted to go?
That police chief needs to be fired ... from a cannon.
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Indeed.

When will people wake up and realise that the law is far more important than the people. Every law must be obeyed at all times, and every single infraction must be harshly punished. The only alternative is common sense anarchy.
 
Derec said:
Nice Squirrel said:
The police are being praised for their restraint and assistance of the protestors.
Click to expand...
The police assisted the protesters who broke laws and prevented lawabiding citizens from getting where they wanted to go?
That police chief needs to be fired ... from a cannon.
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Well considering the mayor is looking for an excuse to fire the chief especially in light of pointergate, and maybe that whole First Amendment thing might be a bit more important in the larger picture than the inconvenience of the drivers. (The protesters did not win friends by marching down the freeway. First rule of protesting: don't make the public your enemy.)
 
Nice Squirrel said:
Derec said:
The police assisted the protesters who broke laws and prevented lawabiding citizens from getting where they wanted to go?
That police chief needs to be fired ... from a cannon.
Click to expand...

Well considering the mayor is looking for an excuse to fire the chief especially in light of pointergate, and maybe that whole First Amendment thing might be a bit more important in the larger picture than the inconvenience of the drivers. (The protesters did not win friends by marching down the freeway. First rule of protesting: don't make the public your enemy.)
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The first amendment does not give you a right to obstruct a major freeway.

Except now in MN maybe it does due to this precedent. If they stop a group of neo-nazis from marching down I-35 at rush hour it would seem to be viewpoint discrimination.
 
bilby said:
When will people wake up and realise that the law is far more important than the people. Every law must be obeyed at all times, and every single infraction must be harshly punished. The only alternative is common sense anarchy.
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It's not some abstraction - allowing protesters to shut down freeways shows that some people (the handful of protesters) are deemed more important than the thousands who needlessly get stuck in traffic. Also all these idling cars is not exactly good for the environment. Time for another internecine fight within The Left. :)
 
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