SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Tear gas fills the air as demonstrators clash with police near the Seattle Police Department's East Precinct shortly after midnight on June 8, 2020. (Photo: David Ryder/Getty Images)
'Google the Geneva Conventions,' Kshama Sawant Tells Seattle Mayor After Police Use Tear Gas on Protesters Despite Ban
"Seattle police are banned from using tear-gas unless Seattle police disagree."
Jun 08, 2020
Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan's Friday promise that law enforcement would stop deploying tear gas against protesters for 30 days didn't even last the weekend as police flooded city streets with the chemical weapon Sunday in an attack on peaceful protesters demonstrating against police brutality.
"This is a wild abuse of power," tweeted progressive group MoveOn.
Demonstrations against police violence and racism have roiled Seattle as they have in cities around the nation in the two weeks since George Floyd was killed by four Minneapolis police officers last month.
The unrest has sparked a shift in national opinion on policing and cities around the country are defunding police departments--and in Minneapolis, beginning the process of dismantlement. The Seattle city council on Monday debated rerouting funding from the police department, with most members agreeing some money could be better spent on community service and the public good.
Seattle police have continually escalated conflict with demonstrators even as other departments around the country have pulled back on their violence and attacks on peaceful protesters.
On Monday, council member Kshama Sawant demanded Durkan "Google the Geneva Conventions to know what tear gas is all about," citing the international protocols' ban on using the chemical on civilians. Sawant, who was among those gassed and attacked by police on Sunday night, is calling on Durkan to resign.
Council member Lisa Herbold added that Durkan's order included language allowing Police Chief Carmen Best to override the ban, rendering it effectively powerless.
Earlier on Sunday, an armed counter-protester drove his car into demonstrators and drew a gun, firing into the crowd and wounding one young man. The shooter, a white man, was taken into custody by police after the incident.
The calm behavior of the police officers as they arrested the shooter was not lost on progressive activist Jordan Uhl, who has compiled a number of videos of footage from across the country of police abuse of protesters.
Journalist and activist Joshua Potash cited the use of tear gas by Seattle police and the attacks on demonstrators in the city as an indicator that simple police "reform" won't work.
"Small reforms aren't enough," tweeted Potash. "The culture of policing is rotten."
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan's Friday promise that law enforcement would stop deploying tear gas against protesters for 30 days didn't even last the weekend as police flooded city streets with the chemical weapon Sunday in an attack on peaceful protesters demonstrating against police brutality.
"This is a wild abuse of power," tweeted progressive group MoveOn.
Demonstrations against police violence and racism have roiled Seattle as they have in cities around the nation in the two weeks since George Floyd was killed by four Minneapolis police officers last month.
The unrest has sparked a shift in national opinion on policing and cities around the country are defunding police departments--and in Minneapolis, beginning the process of dismantlement. The Seattle city council on Monday debated rerouting funding from the police department, with most members agreeing some money could be better spent on community service and the public good.
Seattle police have continually escalated conflict with demonstrators even as other departments around the country have pulled back on their violence and attacks on peaceful protesters.
On Monday, council member Kshama Sawant demanded Durkan "Google the Geneva Conventions to know what tear gas is all about," citing the international protocols' ban on using the chemical on civilians. Sawant, who was among those gassed and attacked by police on Sunday night, is calling on Durkan to resign.
Council member Lisa Herbold added that Durkan's order included language allowing Police Chief Carmen Best to override the ban, rendering it effectively powerless.
Earlier on Sunday, an armed counter-protester drove his car into demonstrators and drew a gun, firing into the crowd and wounding one young man. The shooter, a white man, was taken into custody by police after the incident.
The calm behavior of the police officers as they arrested the shooter was not lost on progressive activist Jordan Uhl, who has compiled a number of videos of footage from across the country of police abuse of protesters.
Journalist and activist Joshua Potash cited the use of tear gas by Seattle police and the attacks on demonstrators in the city as an indicator that simple police "reform" won't work.
"Small reforms aren't enough," tweeted Potash. "The culture of policing is rotten."
Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan's Friday promise that law enforcement would stop deploying tear gas against protesters for 30 days didn't even last the weekend as police flooded city streets with the chemical weapon Sunday in an attack on peaceful protesters demonstrating against police brutality.
"This is a wild abuse of power," tweeted progressive group MoveOn.
Demonstrations against police violence and racism have roiled Seattle as they have in cities around the nation in the two weeks since George Floyd was killed by four Minneapolis police officers last month.
The unrest has sparked a shift in national opinion on policing and cities around the country are defunding police departments--and in Minneapolis, beginning the process of dismantlement. The Seattle city council on Monday debated rerouting funding from the police department, with most members agreeing some money could be better spent on community service and the public good.
Seattle police have continually escalated conflict with demonstrators even as other departments around the country have pulled back on their violence and attacks on peaceful protesters.
On Monday, council member Kshama Sawant demanded Durkan "Google the Geneva Conventions to know what tear gas is all about," citing the international protocols' ban on using the chemical on civilians. Sawant, who was among those gassed and attacked by police on Sunday night, is calling on Durkan to resign.
Council member Lisa Herbold added that Durkan's order included language allowing Police Chief Carmen Best to override the ban, rendering it effectively powerless.
Earlier on Sunday, an armed counter-protester drove his car into demonstrators and drew a gun, firing into the crowd and wounding one young man. The shooter, a white man, was taken into custody by police after the incident.
The calm behavior of the police officers as they arrested the shooter was not lost on progressive activist Jordan Uhl, who has compiled a number of videos of footage from across the country of police abuse of protesters.
Journalist and activist Joshua Potash cited the use of tear gas by Seattle police and the attacks on demonstrators in the city as an indicator that simple police "reform" won't work.
"Small reforms aren't enough," tweeted Potash. "The culture of policing is rotten."
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.