An amazing demonstration in New York City took place last night, as about 1,000 protesters descended on a Brooklyn subway station to complain about police enforcing the law.
The city had deployed about 500 extra cops across the subway system to deter fare-jumpers. This, and two recent incidents involving the police at subway stations, were enough to bring out the worst in the social justice crowd.
Protesting a fare increase, which Mayor De Blasio is planning, is as American as apple pie. But these protesters weren’t demonstrating against politicians. They were enraged that police would dare to prevent people from getting a free subway ride.
The demonstration formed soon after 7 p.m. on the streets near the Barclays Center, with protesters unfurling large banners that read “F—k the police” and “Don’t let these pigs touch us.” The crowd began dispersing by 9 p.m.
The demonstration was in response to a planned crackdown on fare evasion by the NYPD — and two controversial police actions in Brooklyn subway stations in recent weeks.
There was also a sign being carried by a dozen protesters that read, “Ante up! Punch that cop! NYPD out of MTA!”
The protest degenerated into a near riot, as several scruffy youths decided to practice their fare-jumping skills.
https://twitter.com/rafaelshimunov/status/1190587471882596352
Not surprisingly, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has come down on the side of the protesters.
Ending mass incarceration means challenging a system that jails the poor to free the rich.
Arresting people who can’t afford a $2.75 fare makes no one safer and destabilizes our community.
New Yorkers know that, they’re not having it, and they’re standing up for each other. https://t.co/asvidIe5zV
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) November 2, 2019
One of the demonstrators’ beefs is that it costs too much money for poor people to ride the subway. This may be very true. So why not have a sit-in at De Blasio’s office and beg the liberals for a handout? Why go after the cops?
The two incidents in question involved a melee that broke out on a subway station and the cops trying to restore order. A couple of kids were slugged by New York’s finest. An iffy claim of racism at best.
The second incident was more worrying as some moron cop drew his weapon and pointed it at someone inside a crowded subway car. The terrified passengers complained.
There was other damage as well.
The point is that investigations into the actions of both officers are underway. If a couple of bad cops have been identified, they will be dealt with. But these incidents aren’t representative of the police force in general. And what the protesters are really calling for is an end to enforcement of long-standing laws and physical assaults on the police. Is that now an accepted liberal cause?
The lack of respect for the police in New York City has grown out of control lately. The lack of support for their own cops from City Hall has compounded the problem. The police are supposed to keep the streets safe, but now those same streets aren’t particularly safe for the cops anymore. And when large enough groups of people being rejecting authority and assaulting police officers, that’s the point where the fabric of society starts breaking down.
You would think that the social justice warriors would celebrate an effort by police to stop fare-jumping. After all, how fair is it that most people have to pay for a subway ride while others refuse? Aren’t they all about “fairness”?
Not that kind of fairness. We must automatically assume that every single fare-jumper is a poverty-stricken, oppressed minority and that it’s unfair for the poor to have to pay for a subway ride.
Taking it out on police who are just trying to enforce the law is stupid and self-defeating. Whether or not the cops are at fault for the incidents, trying to incite violence against them makes everybody of every color less safe.
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