Chris Hedges: The Origins of Our Police State

[marmar]

from truthdig:


The Origins of Our Police State

Posted on Sep 16, 2013
By Chris Hedges


ELIZABETH, N.J.—JaQuan LaPierre, 22, was riding a bicycle down a sidewalk Sept. 5 when he noticed a squad car pulling up beside him. It was 8:30 on a hot Thursday night at the intersection of Bond Street and Jackson Avenue here in Elizabeth, N.J. LaPierre had 10 glass vials of crack cocaine—probably what the cops were hoping to find—and he hastily swallowed them. He halted and faced the two officers who emerged from the cruiser.

“We are tired of you niggers,” he remembers one of the officers saying. “We’re tired of all this shooting and robberies and violence. And we are going to make you an example.”

He was thrown spread-eagle onto the patrol car.

“What I bein’ arrested for?” LaPierre asked.

A small crowd gathered.

“Why you harassin’ him?” someone asked the cops. “He ain’t resisting. Why you doin’ this?”

........(snip)........

Police abuse is routine in Elizabeth, as it is in poor urban areas across the country. This incident did not make news. But it illustrated that if you are a poor person of color in the United States you know what most us are about to find out—we have no civil liberties left. Police, who arrest some 13 million people a year, 1.6 million on drug charges—half of those for marijuana counts—carry out random searches and sweeps with no probable cause. They take DNA samples from many of those they arrest, even some eventually found to be innocent, to build a nationwide database. They confiscate cash, cars, homes and other possessions based on allegations of illegal drug activity and direct the proceeds into police budgets. And in the last three decades the United States has constructed the world’s largest prison system, populated with 2.2 million inmates. ....................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/the_origins_of_our_police_state_20130916/

[gopiscrap]

1. This is a good read!

[blkmusclmachine]

2. K&R