New Black Panthers’ Violent Clash with Police in Baton Rouge

Wednesday, July 5th was the one-year anniversary of the shooting death of Alton Sterling, the 37-year-old man who got into an altercation with Baton Rouge police outside the Triple S market.  To mark the day, the New Black Panthers got together with family and friends of the deceased man and staged a protest at the Baton Rouge police department.

The purpose was not made clear other than it was a show of solidarity with the family members of Sterling in order to bring more news awareness to the event, which was assumedly a walk through the town from the Triple S market and ending at the police station.

Protesters stood outside a barrier Baton Rouge police constructed in front of their headquarters. The situation escalated quickly when some protesters tried to cross it despite police commands not to do so. Officers used stun guns and Tippmann PepperBall guns to stop the protesters from crossing through the barrier.

Four men and three women were eventually arrested and charged with misdemeanor entering and refusing to leave, and resisting an officer, Sgt. L’Jean McKneely, the police spokesman for the department, said.

“We didn’t hinder them when they were up underneath the tree. We didn’t hinder them when they were across the street,” McKneely said.

New Black Panther Party National Spokesman Malik Maumau blamed the police for escalating the situation.

“We were not disruptive,” Maumau said. “We did not go to hurt anyone. We did not go to damage any property. We were orderly. We went in. We had seven individuals … women who were tased and shot with paintballs.”

In viewing the video, it didn’t actually seem that “orderly” would be one way the protest could be described.  In fact, just the opposite, “chaotic” was more in line with what this appeared to be.

Situation escalate. Tazers out and cuffs on. One cop tazed too. Sterling’s aunts screaming on ground. pic.twitter.com/fmC0QJUCbA

— Emma Discher (@EmmaDischer) July 5, 2017

In a video leading up to the incident at the Headquarters, you can see that the rhetoric is nothing but expletive-laced accusations and aspersions that serve only to heighten the tensions between the attending and the police.  It almost appears as if the bullhorn-wielding provocateurs are actually aiming for that goal, to rile up the crowd to the point where they will be knocking down barriers and defying police commands.

What is not shown in the video of the scuffle at police headquarters is the fact that one of the New Black Panthers protesters was holding a taser gun himself and actually tased one of the officers.  In the following video about the incident, the news broadcast makes note of the police release of a photo which shows the man who held such a device that was used against the officer who was tased.

In looking more closely at the initial video, however, it is clear who tased the officer.  At 11 seconds into the video, pay special attention to the Black officer (bald) near the front of the scuffle who has a hand on the heavy woman.  As he is holding onto her and she is struggling, you can hear the pop of the taser and he immediately falls backward holding his arm where he was tased and falls to the ground beyond the barrier.  The woman follows up by standing completely still and raising her hands up in the air as if to signify that she was not the person who tased the officer.  The photo of the man who used the taser that was released by the police is exactly right, although the news broadcasts makes it seem like police are unsure of who did the tasing.

It’s not said if that man was among the seven who were arrested at the scene, but if he wasn’t, then another arrest needs to be made.  It’s absolutely crazy that the gangs in Chicago are using AK-47s against he police, and in Louisiana, the New Black Panthers are employing tasers.  This is a situation that appears to be, once again, escalating toward the mass killings of police officers.

Hopefully, we learn from the mistakes of the Obama administration and don’t wait until many officers are dead before we pretend to do something about it.

I’m hoping that the Trump administration treats this seriously.

Source:  The Daily Caller