I have become very, very troubled by what the Corporate Owned American Press is not covering during the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota.
St. Paul has become a de facto police state and the only coverage most of us have seen on network and cable news has been the relative handful of Black Bloc anarchists (less than 2% of total protesters) committing actual illegal acts and not a total picture of what is really happening - including abridgment of the constitutional rights of a free press.
But wait. There's more....
Here is who I would like to see interviewed on your show.
This child would be a great interview. Doesn't she look absolutely threatening to the throng of marching storm troopers with that flower in her hand?
Especially as she is walking away, coughing and gagging. So, of course, they have to spray her from behind to make sure they are safe!
How about one of your own? I would love for you to interview Amy Goodman and her producers who were arrested.
Here's a student at UT Knoxville and badged member of the press getting tear gassed.
My son is actually in this clip. Don't they all look menacing?
They start blocking off access to streets, herding protesters into groups from which there is no egress, and then start spraying them with pepper spray. Even disabled guys in wheelchairs.
How about Michelle Gross?
Last night they did not allow Rage Against the Machine to perform and cut their power. The only conceivable reason to do this would be to try and provoke a riot.
Rage took their audience to the streets and joined up with the Poor People's March. The police started barricading and blocking streets to herd them all into an area from which they could not escape and then started firing tear gas at them all.
This is not the America that I grew up believing was free and fair. This is fascism.
Here is my diary from yesterday, recounting what happened to my son.
Here is the information I have as of now (3:30 pm cdt).
My son has now been held for 48 hours without being charged. They are telling him they have until 10 pm tonight but I don't know why.
There may be some lag time between arrest and booking. But he was arrested about 3:30, 09-01-08, was in holding until sometime around 9pm, and taken to "transfer" where he remained until about 2 am. Then he was taken to a cell.
He was grabbed from a park somewhere off Kellogg (maybe Rice Park? I'm not sure if that's exactly where he was). The park had a permit.
His removal from the park and subsequent arrest were witnessed by 4 or so National Lawyers Guild observers, one of whom had a video camera. Another may have had a still camera. My son shouted his name and DOB as they threw him down. He had a backpack and an IDF surplus gasmask.
If anyone witnessed or taped this event please get in touch with me here or let the fine folks at Coldsnap Legal Collective know.
You will notice at that link there is a PayPal button for donations. PLEASE, I beg everyone, reach deep down and give these guys some money. They are working very, very hard to get people released, get their possessions back, get information to friends and family, and make sure folks are getting what they need while incarcerated.
On that note, there is a Hunger Strike going on in support of the numerous vegans at the Ramsey County jail. My son told me that only about 5% of the meals brought last night were vegan and they had 16-18 vegans in that section so it wasn't even close to enough but allows them to say, "We are providing vegan meals". Do NOT let them get away with this. They are asking us to call the jail at 651-266-9350 to demand they provide an adequate number of vegan meals.
He also informed me one of the prisoners got tasered this morning and dragged from his cell. He does not know what for.
They filled out a receipt for his stuff when they brought him in but it is likely to be difficult getting anything back. He was arrested by one agency (Bloomington) who told him St. Paul police would have everything but his backpack was taken by Minnesota State Patrol so he now has 3 agencies to deal with.
He refused to sign the receipt in fear they would add items he did not have in his possession after his signature. They did not offer him a copy.
He says there are police from everywhere. He saw cop cars from Tuscon (!) and one marked "Savage" which is southwest of St. Paul.
If I have not heard from him by 5pm, I will contact Coldsnap and try and figure out which planet they are using to calculate "48 hours".
In the meantime, if the Corporate Owned American Press refuses to actually cover what is really happening in the Twin Cities, I have a contact, ironically enough, at the Chinese press who will be more than happy to tell the world what is going on in the "land of the free". We still have "the brave" but many of them are currently housed at the Ramsey County Jail.
Last photo my son sent me from St. Paul:
Tell the world, Keith. Please. I am begging. This administration has already doomed me due to their NIH cut backs and refusal to allow stem cell research. Don't let them take my son, too. And, for the love of G-d, don't let them pretend that this nation now resembles in any shape or form that which our founding fathers envisioned.
Thank you.
Update: My son has just been released from jail. No charges were ever filed, he did not have to post bond, he never saw a judge.
He has everything but his backpack which has his shoes and glasses and a rented camera in it. He's working with Coldsnap to try and find where that is now.
YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!
Update 2: St. Paul is refusing to release any confiscated personal belongings that were brought into them from various agencies. They have stated they are under "lockdown" until Monday and, therefore, unable to give folks, most of whom are being released without charge, their stuff back.
This means if they have your ID, plane ticket, whatever, you are stuck there until Monday. School? Too bad. Job? Serves you right.
The Collective is working on a lawsuit pronto to try and get property released.
The other thing the police are doing is asking people for booking or case #'s. Since they are just letting folks out with no charges, there is no paperwork, no number, nothing for them to reference.
I had my son's booking number from the police so gave that to him but they are determined to act in a dickish manner, apparently.
They are also clearly using imprisonment as a harassment tool, punishing people they never intend to file charges against. There will be many, many lawsuits. I think it will, in fact, dwarf the number of suits filed from the RNC in NYC All White Rich Guys Revue that went so swimmingly.