In yet another ugly sign of the times, protesters took to the streets in Brooklyn on Friday night to whine about police enforcing the law. Approximately 1,000 anti-police demonstrators shouted against a proposed fare increase on the New York subway and two alleged police brutality incidents, which occurred on October 25.
The city is deploying approximately 500 extra officers to deal with fare jumpers, criminals who jump over the turnstiles to gain access to the subway rather than pay their fare. That decision, made by Democrat governor Andrew Cuomo, was a sore spot for the protesters.
And at least one segment of Brooklyn’s population is really upset about it. The protest lasted approximately two hours.
The near-riot began at approximately 7:00 p.m. Friday near Brooklyn’s Barclay Center. Protesters vandalized a city bus and shouted obscenities at police. They also unfurled large banners with slogans such as “F**k the police,” “Don’t let these pigs touch us,” and “Ante up! Punch that cop! NYPD out of MTA.”
Among the more prominent groups represented at the protest was the notorious race-hustling group Black Lives Matter. Many of the protesters wore masks and shielded their identity Antifa style.
At one point, demonstrators chanted, “What’s better than 14 dead cops? 15 dead cops!” Another time, they chanted, “NYPD how do you spell racist?”
One of the alleged police brutality incidents occurred when at least one officer drew his gun on a suspect through the window of a full subway car at the Franklin Street Station, causing panic as people scrambled to get away from the man, who appeared calm and put his hands up. A video emerged on Twitter.
The man who posted the video was Elad Nehorai, who wrote: “In case you’re wondering how an arrest in NYC goes down. The guy has made absolutely no indication that he would flee or fight and wasn’t trying to hide. If you can’t see, the reason everyone moved was because all the police had taken out their guns and aimed at him.”
According to the NYPD, the suspect, Adrian Napier, 19, was accused of brandishing a gun near Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues. Thus, police believed he was armed and followed the protocol for such a situation. Previously, Napier had jumped a turnstile to gain access to the subway and get onboard a southbound train.
Although no weapon was found on the suspect, NYPD claims that Napier is a member of the Crips street gang, with a rap sheet including 14 arrests on charges of assault, robbery, and grand larceny.
So, Napier was not someone the NYPD wanted to take chances with.
The other “brutality” incident stems from an incident where police were responding to reports of a brawl at the Jay Street-MetroTech Station. Video emerged that shows officers attempting to arrest one of the youths involved in the fracas. The youth attempts to break away from officers, which caused another officer to enter the situation and punch the 15-year-old, which started the brawl anew. Later, another officer can be seen throwing punches.
The youth’s family is reportedly set to sue the city for $5 million.
The other main beef of the protesters was that the cost of riding the subway was becoming too burdensome for low-income individuals. Fair enough, but that was a decision made by Mayor Bill DeBlasio, not the police. Why not protest down at City Hall?
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took the protesters’ side, connecting the demonstration to her efforts to end prisons as we currently know them. “Ending mass incarcerations means challenging a system that jails the poor to free the rich. Arresting people who can’t afford a $2.75 fare makes no one safer and destabilizes our community. New Yorkers know that, they’re not having it, and they’re standing up for each other.”
So, in AOC’s opinion, it’s just fine to commit a crime as long as you’re poor. Perhaps the fare raise would not be necessary if some people weren’t habitually skipping out on paying it.
The protest coincided with a Twitter message by President Trump that called Cuomo and DeBlasio to task for allowing New York City to crumble under their watch. “NYC is getting dirty and unsafe again, as our great police are being disrespected, even with water being dumped on them, because a mayor and a governor just don’t ‘have their backs.’ New York’s finest must be cherished, respected and loved,” Trump tweeted.
According to the “Battleground Poll” run by Georgetown University, up to two-thirds of Americans fear an upcoming civil war in the country. Protests such as these are a foreshadowing of what such a war might look like. On one side will be people who approve of law and order and individual responsibility. On the other will be those who can only see race and identity groups and find discrimination everywhere — even in the paying of a subway fare.
