Free the St. Paul 8 and all political prisoners!
Here's a pretty old post from the blog archives of Geekery Today; it was written about 16 years ago, in 2008, on the World Wide Web.
These are video segments from a press conference hosted by members of the RNC Welcoming Committee and the Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign. Several police agencies, ramrodded by the Ramsey County Sheriff’s department, staged massive pre-emptive raids against houses where activists were staying and against the RNC Welcoming Committee’s convergence space. Many of the imprisoned protesters continue to be held without charges. Many have been abused by their jailers, including a woman being knocked to the ground and dragged by her hair, several protesters being denied prescription or over-the-counter medications for serious medical conditions, and a 19-year-old activist named Elliot Hughes, who was beaten and tortured for over an hour because, according to the Ramsey County Sheriff’s department, he was being verbally disruptive.
Ramsey County prosecutors have formally charged eight members of the Welcoming Committee with conspiracy to riot in furtherance of terrorism.
If convicted, the St. Paul 8 face up to 7 1/2 years in prison. Affadavits filed by police informants who infiltrated the Welcoming Committee allege that members of the group sought to kidnap delegates to the RNC, attack police officers with firebombs and explosives, and sabotage airports in St. Paul. These allegations have not been corroborated by any physical evidence or any other evidence independent of the testimony of police infiltrators. Members of the RNC Welcoming Committee held a press conference together with the Poor People’s Economic Human Rights Campaign in order to respond to these charges and to discuss violence against imprisoned protesters by police and jailers.
In related news, William Gillis is my fucking hero.
See also:
- GT 2008-09-05: Emergency action alert: Twin Cities protesters imprisoned without charges; human rights abuses in Ramsey County jail. Free all political prisoners!
- GT 2008-09-04: This is what a police state looks like. (Part 2 of ???)
- GT 2008-09-03: This is what a police state looks like. (Part 1 of ???)
Follow
I liked finding out what William sounds like.
It’s interesting that the GOP are funding the first $10 million “in damages and unlimited legal costs for law enforcement officials accused of brutality, violating civil rights and other misconduct.”
Admittedly it looks like they were pressured into doing so by the mayor, but even so it’s rather like awarding them a get out of jail free card in advance: allowing them to be as cavalier as they like and start making scattershot ‘preventative’ arrests on sus, etc.
As long as they don’t actually kill anyone, or do anything else that would result in more than /just money/ being at stake, then they’re covered.
These low IQ cops have no price to pay for anything they do. They do what they are told to do,and that’s if. Ask them to use their own minds,they will babble. How do their kids feel about what they are doing to America?…let’s – show & tell – them,the kids. These type cops are very SICK IN THE HEAD. Do they live near you?
Discussed at radgeek.com /#
Rad Geek People’s Daily 2008-09-11 – This is what a police state looks like. (Part 3 of ???):