I wanted to share my experiences with you all in hope that it may change your view on who we are working with and who we are working against.
There are people, generally referred to as “inciters” who are responsible for trying to incite violence from the peaceful protesters, and trying to put tension between the CPD and Occupy Chicago. It is my belief that the majority of these inciters are payed off by the banks and corporations to make our movement ineffective, and to take them out of the spotlight of being the “bad guy”. To sum it up, they believe if we become violent toward them, all the terrible things they have done to do harm to this peaceful movement will be overlooked. Others just might be mentally unbalanced individuals that want to watch this turn into a war, another London Riot, or for their own sad reasons.
Some of these inciters are as simple as liars coming into our midst and spreading lies about police raids. Others are bullies that holler at us and egg us on to incite fights that the rest of the movement doesn’t support. The last, and most likely the minority, yet the scariest of them all, is this.
Bad cops.
Whether they are paid off by companies, or just violent in nature depends on the officer. We have no solid data on any bad cops in the city of Chicago, and our relations with most of the police have been wonderful, but there are the bad eggs. And they can be the most frightening part of our movement. This is a touchy subject, and will probably be discussed before being put on the site, but we need to take hints from what is happening in New York that even though we want to trust them, sometimes we just can’t.
Earlier today, at about 12:15 PM on October 3rd, 2011, we had one bad egg rear their face. Some of you may have noticed the white truck with the slogans painted all over, we have been using it quite a bit for the past few days to move supplies. They have let us keep it on the curb for hours at a time without even batting an eyelash. But one officer saw it today and decided he didn’t like it there.
Looking for a “leader”, he started talking down to us that if the truck wasn’t moved within a minute it would be towed. Several others as well as myself started running around frantically looking for the owner so they wouldn’t get a fine. It was in his legal right to say that we needed to move it, we had to comply.
But then he went to far.
I was looking toward the van and saw something that was going to far. He was opening sealed containers in the back of the truck and rummaging through them. Checking both ways, I ran across the street.
“What are you doing? You can’t do this. What your doing is illegal.” I said, albeit a slight edge in my town, partially from running 50 feet to stop him.
He immediately went on the defensive “I am searching for a bomb. There is probable cause.” For the record, there was no probable cause to check for a bomb, we have been a 100% peaceful movement and we have obeyed the cops every step of the way. Not to mention searching for a “bomb” by opening random containers is just a way to get yourself killed if there is one.
“You can’t do this, this is illegal. You need a warrant.” I wasn’t quite able to take the edge out of my voice since he didn’t back off and admit he made a mistake. He kept searching even though he was thoroughly warned that we were aware that his actions were a blatant violation of our rights, not to mention that he didn’t even ask if he could search the vehicle. He was trying to find dirt on our movement, or incite a struggle. This is how I know.
“Hey, be quiet or I’ll arrest you!” he barked, pointing at me with the authority he didn’t actually have. I know my rights.
“For what?! I know my rights, I’m not doing anything!”
Instead of responding with something a legitimate cop would respond with, aka a reason for arresting me, he started to approach getting louder and angrier “I told you to be quiet! I will ARREST YOU. Your on thin ice buddy.”
It was at this point my compatriots intervened and saved the situation from becoming another viral video. They pushed past me and approached the police officer trying to calm him down. I trusted them, backed off, and vented my annoyance with nearby bystanders so I could be calm if he chose to approach me again. He didn’t and after a while he quickly sped off on his bike, not to approach us again, perceivably because he had done something illegal and been caught in the process.
Illegal search and seizure is a serious charge, and it can result in serious penalties for that officer if we stick together and tell the truth.
The bottom line is know your rights, and if you don’t ask someone what they are and learn them. If a officer is violating your rights, or the rights of another, memorize their badge number and/or name, find witnesses, and talk to our lawyers about filing a formal complaint. Also, the supporters are there to help you, so if you find yourself in a sticky situation and they get you out of it, accept their help. We don’t need intentional martyrs.
On a final note, I want to remind everyone that this was a special case and most officers are good to us. Just watch out for the bad eggs.
EDIT: People seem to be misinterpreting my message as driving a wedge between two movements. That isn’t what I am trying to do. I am simply against people who may or may not be hired by corporate dollar or who may or may not be part of the violent section spreading misinformation to create violence. It doesn’t matter who’s cause it benefits, lying to hundreds of people to support it makes them no better than the worst of the politicians we are fighting against.