Seattle activists reports brutal cop attack on protest

["Fred Feldman" <ffeldman@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

From: Freedom Socialist Party <fspnatl@xxxxxxx>

Subject: Seattle Police Attack Demonstrators

Issued by: Radical Women and Freedom Socialist Party
5018 Rainier Avenue South, Seattle WA 98118  USA
206-722-6057, RWSeattle@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
206-722-2453, FSPSeattle@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx,
www.socialism.com

June 3, 2003

End the Seattle Police Vendetta Against Demonstrators --

Chief Kerlikowske must resign

Seattle Mayor Greg Nickles and Police Chief Gil
Kerlikowske put on a show of brutality yesterday for cops
and spies attending the Law Enforcement Intelligence Unit
(LEIU) conference.  Ever since the 1999 anti-WTO
demonstrations, the police have been on a campaign to
prove they run Seattle regardless of whose rights they
violate. Any group engaged in the legal exercise of their
First Amendment rights is a target, from antiwar
demonstrators to African Americans protesting police
abuse.

In last night's siege, police from several cities used pepper
spray, concussion grenades, rubber bullets and agents
provocateur to break up a peaceful demonstration.  A dozen
protesters were arrested, many suffered cuts, welts,
contusions and stinging eyes and four were taken to the
hospital. Guerry Hoddersen, Seattle Radical Women, said,
"Downtown Seattle was like the Oakland, California wharf
in April where police shot at unionists and antiwar
protesters who rallied to oppose military shipments to
Iraq."

Over 700 champions of civil liberties attended a rally and
march organized by the No Big Brother coalition to protest
the annual LEIU gathering.  The LEIU is a private,
clandestine organization designed for sharing information,
training, and techniques among 250 U.S. and Canadian
police agencies. Founded by the International Association
of Chiefs of Police and funded by tax dollars and law
enforcement associations, it is a secret police force that is
accountable to no one. It maintains databases on myriad
activist groups, in a way forbidden to public agencies.
Luma Nichol, Organizer of the Freedom Socialist Party,
observed, "It's not supposed to be a crime or against the
law to disagree with your government, which is what most
of us do to end up in the LEIU files.

The 700 participants had a permit to go around the block
housing the Red Lion Hotel where the LEIU was meeting.
But half way through the route, they were stopped by the
police. People milled in the street for a half hour and many

police. People milled in the street for a half hour and many
left, thinking the march was over. That's when the agents
provocateur started fistfights in the crowd and the police
charged a handful of demonstrators throwing garbage.

Once again, Seattle police nametags were covered up and
other officers put tape over their agency names.
Washington State Patrol claimed that they did not have to
abide by Seattle's rules on wearing nametags.  The police
did not give the crowd orders to disperse before attacking
people as they headed back to Westlake Center--where
protesters intended to disband. Demonstrators were pepper
sprayed and shot with pellets on their backs as they were
fleeing the concussion grenade attack. At least one
undercover officer was filmed throwing punches on
Northwest Cable News TV before leaping to the safety of
the police line when teargas was sprayed. And some police
were seen with assault weapons.

The police had tried to disrupt plans for the LEIU protest at
the last minute - despite organizers having obtained
required permits - by insisting that march organizers must
buy insurance because the protest was an "event," like a
festival or street fair. They backed off this requirement the
morning of the march under threat of a lawsuit.

Yesterday's military-type assault on protesters shows that
the Seattle mayor and police chief still adhere to a "wrong
and strong" policy. Rather than negotiating with protest
organizers, they try to intimidate, harass, confuse and
provoke demonstrators. During the invasion of Iraq, for
instance, they ticketed passing drivers who honked in
support of protests at the federal building, a violation of
freedom of political speech. They corralled demonstrators
who were walking on sidewalks and detained them for
hours. They charged into lines of marchers and divided
them up into little segments so that demonstrations were
broken up, leaving protesters vulnerable to individual
assault by the police.

City Council hearings on this situation do little to improve
it. People blow off a little steam and the cops go back to
acting like this is Baghdad and demonstrators are criminals
and looters.

Said Nichol, "Chief Kerlikowske has to go and the mayor
and city council must be held responsible for these attacks
on First Amendment rights. We are not living in a police
state yet, but we will be unless people stand up for their
rights now and hold elected officials responsible for the
acts of their police forces."

Please protest to Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels:
greg.nickels@xxxxxxxxxxx and

the Seattle City Council: city.action@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx



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