The ABCs of Crowd Control
History and Research show police attitudes directly responsible for violence among protestors. Established protocols to guide crowd management is part of police training, why was that not employed? Or was it?
Ferguson residents want justice and Americans DEMAND justice.
The right to protest is one of the many fundamental rights referred to as unalienable rights, Natural Rights of liberty and freedom as stated in the Declaration of Independence. These rights cannot be surrendered or taken away. All individuals have unalienable rights.
Ferguson PD violated many of those rights. The wrong approach and attitude escalated an already tense racially-charged environment. Ferguson PDs display of open hostility and violence toward residents, non-credentialed media and organizations for humanitarian aide only escalated without listening to American and International requests for justice while trampling human rights
What is the goal or endpoint?
Now is the time to defuse. Change from a model of what not to do, to a model of what should be done to assist peaceful protestors.
What can Ferguson PD do to restore normalcy?
- First, calm the crowd…
Hard tacs and bearcats with heavy weaponry do not calm crowds.
Change the outfits…Americans want to see police officers in regular uniforms, providing service to ALL PEOPLE, not SWAT teams pointing weapons.
Friendly officers monitoring protestors from a distance is the American way.
- Work with the #MikeBrown ‘s community in Ferguson, find designated leaders and Faith-based organizations willing to coordinate protest activities through a designed representative of the PD.
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Clear communication crucial with involvement of organizers and community members in disseminating information, will ensure safe and peaceful protests.
Communicate Guidelines to protestors, media and police officers charged with monitoring protestors from a distance. Clearly communicated designated areas, times for protest and clean-up are more effective than curfews.
- If looting occurs, do not over react…think about the cost of life vs. the items stolen. Looters should be charged, not shot, tasered or choked to death.
Hiring mercenaries to control peaceful protesters is overkill and costly. Where is the money? Who will pay?
The above is a start to defuse tensions and start the process of justice. They are basic rules that work well because underlying each is respect for individual or unalienable rights.
Thank you Angela for posting this. I live in a very peaceful area. We fear no weapons for we only have few. Police are friends and the bad guys we have asked to stay away from the neighborhoods and they have. You are so very different, its scary.
The way I see it now is a good time for some training courses for everyone. Make a new norm. Understanding is a complex word when you truly don’t. Police do have a job to do and the people need to respect that. People have a life of normality to live and the police need to respect that too.
If your going to the rally tonight. Take some buddies with you. Do some role playing, like ‘cop and the civilians’ do’s and don’ts. Do it openly for everyone to see, ask the police if your doing it right. Ask the police what it takes for them to pull out firearms, get them to give mock examples. I’m sure they would want to show you what they do when they play ‘cops and robbers’ too.
This is not silly. I you want to live different find a different way. Sometimes you gain respect you have to show it first.
“Police do have a job to do, and the people need to respect that” And what is that job? In the USA, police officers are to serve and protect American citizens–that is their job.
Not to enslave, imprison and murder.
With that said…Claude the police are their own entity bestowed with privileges above the law. Look at the response by the Ferguson PD, the responses from governor down–their behaviors are viewed (by them) as normal.
One governor mentioned a sterner approach with Anglo -Values. What are anglo-values? ….They are KKK. Important to understand and a major obstacle to stemming the rising ire of other cultures. Divide and conquer no longer works.
I love the idea of designing training courses around #MikeBrown and #EricGarner and other victims of violence from our criminal justice system.
However, how do you ensure this happens? What are the indicators of success? Intuitively, we think we know. 😀
Guns are prevalent everywhere. Step one foot unto my property, POW!!! “””It was a quiet night, last night, there was only 1 shooting and it didn’t happen in our neighborhood””””. In certain states you get to go the store wearing your side arm in the open. What about a knife!!!! its likely legal too.
Holy crap if I was a cop I would want to have a third eye installed. Gang violence is right on everybody’s door step. I really don’t understand how or why they want to live this way. Cops with quick fingers, gangs scaring the be-Jesus out of the good people. No wonder so many innocent people are getting it.
Tell the gangs to stay out of the hood, the cops will likely then too. Go find your own spot. Police get a grip your actions are making national news.
Scary, very scary.
Hi Claude sounds great on paper in action it does not work…Maybe it is the paperwork. People gravitate to the point of least resistance. Shooting black people and others without privileges seem to be that point.
As you can see the police of Ferguson executed Michael Brown and now hold the community in open air prisons.
I understand Angela, but I don’t. It is a life style I am not familiar with.
Glad about that….
When people deal with things they are uncomfortable with, its a ‘sweat on’ right away. Everyone has had that feeling. Little droplets form on the back of your head, then slowly make way down the neck, and so on.
Just understand its the littlest things that make the biggest difference. Some would describe it as the 10% doing and the 90% dwelling upon. Use whatever percentiles you want just so long as it has a large gap between. Spending too much time on the large number will cause real human things to occur, like rioting in the streets for no value.
Yes, the promise of a difference, so course there is, you just have to see it first.
Doing some thinking about those words and I do agree…very wise.
I here tell the police captain, in charged, walked with the picketers the other day at the rally. Its a small start to something huge. Respect back.
Respect back is paramount… Police Departments across the USA exploit the poor with crimes against humanity on a daily bais. The one percent wealthy pale faces control government, the police and THE MEDIA. The Media is responsible for many of the conflicts we see today because of their irreponsible dissemination of intentional misinformation.
Boycott CNN, MSNNBC. FOX, NY Times, Wall Street Journal….all major newspapers and TV news stations. You have to inorder to get the facts. Turn off the noise.
Reblogged this on Failure to Listen.