Tear gas is literally banned in warfare but the the police can use it on civilians lmao

Love how US police have been deploying chemical warfare agents (tear gas is classified as such under the Geneva Conventions) during protests against police brutality. The most egregious example that comes to mind rn is when they deployed a copious amount of tear gas to forcefully disperse peaceful protesters in Washington DC so that Trump could cross the street for a photo op at a nearby church. That one made Australian headlines because link two Australian journalists who were merely filming, with our PM Scott Morrison (a conservative who's normally very buddy-buddy with the US) making our embassy investigate the incident. Tear gas also has the lovely effect of making people cough, so it's particularly alarming that they're deploying it during a coronavirus pandemic. Oh and it can cause long-term lung damage. And tear gas cannisters have blinded people.

Don't get me started on rubber bullets and beanbag rounds, which have the potential to cause brain damage, blindness, and permanent disabilities.

And wtf was with the feds getting sent into states where the local govt didn't even want them?

Police should not be allowed to use violence against people protesting. Ethicallly, the government should not be permitted to inflict bodily harm on people showing political dissent. And even the ethics of it aside, it has too much potential for being abused, as police in the US are currently doing. All they need to do is declare a protest a "riot" (as they've been doing so for peaceful protests) and it's bombs (well, tear gas cannisters) away.

I say a hard no (even if the protest gets violent) because this opens the door to excessive force and the use of it at peaceful protests. Like I know that the government would totally use that as a stepping stone to normalize tear gasing crowds that are just standing their holding signs.

I'm also wanting to say that tear gas, rubber bullets, and what not is excessive force even if protests gets violent. Like we have a constitution that states that cruel and inhumane punishments are not allowed. There are other ways to get people to stop looting.These people (the law enforcement team) are literally wearing protective gear. I feel like it wouldn't too hard to arrest a person if they truly are a danger. They don't need to get violent themselves.

And like you said, it's not helping their case when this is done at a protest about police brutality!

Also one of the pics above is a literal child who was taken to a peaceful protest and got maced. link That's disturbing as hell.

"The government would totally use that as a stepping stone to normalize tear gasing crowds that are just standing their holding signs" yep and they're already doing this :) Some of the protests that were tear gassed were completely peaceful, eg. the one to clear out the street for Trump's photo op

"I'm also wanting to say that tear gas, rubber bullets, and what not is excessive force even if protests gets violent" Agree. Don't see how it helps, just perpetuates a vicious cycle of "the police are overly violent".

The kid getting maced is absolutely horrific. Also that 72 year man they pushed who fractured his skull.

Side note, the George Floyd video is indescribably awful. No wonder protests were / are getting rowdy. Idk how people can possibly view that video and spout off shit like "BLM aRe TeRroIsTs". Look what they're responding to, my dudes.

I think I heard about that too. And that's ridiculous and cruel. Like they were literally just lingering there and they got gassed because they weren't aesthetic enough for the photo op. Definite misuse of power.

And I agree. These people are litterally protesting police violence and the police are reacting to that with more violence. Doesn't make for a good look. Especially when children and the elderly are getting abused in the process.

I haven't seen the video and I don't think that I want to because I really hate seeing that type of stuff. Regardless of whether or not the arrest was warranted, the force used was not warranted. Still not sure how I feel about BLM as a whole.

Fair enough about not wanting to watch it, it's basically someone dying a violent death. Skip the next paragraph if you don't want a description of it, it's just background for my next point in para 3.

You probs know this from the media describing it, but the police officer was restraining him with a knee on his neck for 8 minutes while George was saying "I can't breathe", "please officer, I can't breathe, the knee on my neck, please" every 30 secs. Four or five bystanders were also telling the police officer to "ease up" and "get off' because George was clearly getting less and less responsive. After 5 minutes of this (they don't try and get him up or anything), George stops talking and falls unconscious. The officer does not remove his knee from an unconscious person for a further 3 minutes, even though bystanders are now pointing out that "you're killing him" and yelling in dismay. The bodycam video just came out a month ago, providing the lead-up to these events, and basically they were refusing to tell him what he'd done wrong, and trying to get him into a police car while he was telling them he was feelign claustrophobic / overwhelmed, and asking why they were doing this.

The two videos were... I think they'd make most people both sad and furious (provided they have a normal degree of empathy). A man died an unimaginably horrible death because of an unsubstantiated claim that he used a counterfeit $20 bill. It was obvious that he was dying and the officers did not care. He was less-than-human in their eyes, or just a "problem" to be "dealt" with. I don't see how anyone could watch that vid and be surprised, or even blame protesters, for protests getting rowdy. It filled me with rage and horror as a white person in another country. I can't imagine how horrible it would be to watch as a black person in America, with the constant threat of unprovoked police violence hanging over your head, something always at the back of your mind. Black people have rung up the police and reported a burglar, only for the police to arrive and shoot dead the caller, because they assumed the black person was the criminal. Black victims of crime can't even trust the people that are meant to protect them.

Sorry for the ramble but I've been meaning to say something about BLM / George Floyd for months. I wasn't using fanpop when it happened.

Don't feel like you have to read the video description.

Literally was about to go to bed and I saw this comment lol. I’ll be going to bed after this quick reply. I also read your PM and will reply when I get a chance lol.

But yeah I heard about those details and I think that it’s disturbing as hell. Just having a slow death like that is cruel as hell and I don’t think anything short of maybe rape could warrant such a punishment. Like even if he did have a counterfeit $20, that certainly doesn’t qualify as a death row crime :v like really, what is $20 in the grand scheme of things. I just don’t understand how a person could be so heartless as to not only ignore the pleas of a dying man but also several people around him. It just chills me to think about tbh.

US: "anarchist thugs threw cans of soup!! So barbaric"
Meanwhile in Greece: link

Notice that the police don't pull out the guns or chemical weapons. They look pretty chill actually (lol @ the thumbs-up at 2:57). Apparently this is just another weekend in Athens lmao

Imagine if you tried to pull the move at 1:40 on American police. Nek minit, twenty warning shots to the chest.

@zan "not only ignore the pleas of a dying man but also several people around him" dude's a literal psychopath on a power trip and he's totally allowed to be because he's on the side of the State. Don't wanna think about how much other shit he'd gotten away with previously in performance of his "duties".

Damn son, those police handled that like pros. Like they would have been more justified with tear gas but they didn't use it.

Yeah I watched that clip finally and it was super disturbing. People were literally saying that "you're killing him." And this guy just kept at it.