Anti-cop riot at the Evergreen State College

*NOTE: THIS IS FOR NEWS PURPOSES ONLY. COMMENTS THAT VIOLATE SECURITY CULTURE WILL BE DELETED ON SIGHT.


Photo by Tony Overman of The Olympian

There was an anti-cop riot on the Evergreen State College in Olympia, WA, at about 1 am on Friday, after a show by Dead Prez. The gist, as I've derived from the two following reports, is as follows: Shortly after the show was over, a small fight of about 3-5 white people broke out. A campus cop arrived, entered the venue, and arrested a black man for allegedly having hit a woman in the fight, even though everyone present said he had nothing to do with any of it. (The police later claimed to the corporate press that the man was arrested for smoking marijuana.) About 50-100 people followed the arresting officer, demanding she release the man. They surrounded the cop car with them inside, not allowing them to leave. They pounded on the hood and chanted "Let him go!" and "Fuck the police!" The campus cop called for backup from city and county cops, who began shooting pepper spray at the crowd, but even they were outnumbered as the crowd had swelled to about 500. In the end, one cop car was completely overturned and totaled, its laptop and radar gun expropriated, and three other cop cars were vandalized.

From Seattle IndyMedia: http://seattle.indymedia.org/en/2008/02/264735.shtml

About 100 people raised a ruckus after Evergreen State College (TESC) police officers arrested a Dead Prez concert goer on alleged assault charges. The event took place around 1 AM (2/15), shortly after Dead Prez finished their set. TESC police officers were called to the show after a fight broke out among 3-5 people in the crowd. The sole arrest was of a black man, although most of the "fighters" were white.

As police escorted the man to their cruiser they were confronted by a small crowd of people who had witnessed the fight, including one woman who had been hit. They all told the cops that the man they were arresting was not involved in the altercation and they needed to let him go. The cops responded that the community members could file their statements/objections at a later date. In response a handful of people stood in front of the police vehicle and demanded that the man be freed. As more and more people left the venue, they added their numbers to the crowd that now surrounded the police vehicle. Chants of "Fuck the police!" and "Let him go!" accompanied a steady percussion of fists on the hood and roof of the car for about 20-30 minutes. During this time TESC cops called in Olympia, Thurston County and WA State police for backup. When the cops had sufficient numbers, they proceeded to charge the crowd preceded by a cloud of pepper spray and flying clubs. Throughout the incident police never made an audible public announcement via megaphone ordering the crowd eto disperse.

After thoroughly enraging the already on-edge crowd, the cops found themselves looking for a fast exit. Unfortunately they had all parked in such a way as to be in one line facing the same direction and essentially blocking themselves in. The slowed retreat of cop cars offered easy targets for rocks, garbage cans, bottles, and boots. Much to the delight of many ruckus raisers one Thurston County car was left behind in the fray. In short order the car was on its roof and became the target of any remaining anger.

After the majority of people dispersed, the State Police SWAT team moved in to "secure" the area.

And the article from the corporate press: http://www.theolympian.com/570/story/360984.html

The article is, of course, from the cops' point of view. It starts out by quoting a police threat that the people involved were caught on tape and will be caught, and outlining the fines and jail time they would be looking at. It makes a point to say that many Evergreen students were against what happened, and that some people in the crowd tried to stop it from happening. They quoted someone in student government saying "Evergreen prides itself on its reputation as an institution that promotes social justice and social responsibility. Riots on campus defeat our mission of uplifting the world." The paper also had another article alongside this one, about campus security in general, likening this incident to the shootings in Illinois and Virginia.

But the most telling this as far as the corporate press goes is the printing of various peoples' online comments on page 2: http://www.theolympian.com/news/story/360976.html

The youngest person they quoted was 45. They show the full extent of the range of opinions on the issue, from calls for tighter security and polite demands that the people involved be brought to speedy justice, to outright bigotry and calls for a police state enforced crackdown on miscreants.


EDIT: Seattle corporate TV station KING 5's coverage, with an amateur video of the tipping of the cop car:
http://www.king5.com/video/news-index.html?nvid=218623
For my part, I'll back up what the musician said at the end. We haven't liked cops very much in Olympia for a long time.