I Have To Wonder

Five protesters were arrested yesterday at a protest at the Mexican consulate in Saint Paul.

Five people were arrested at the Oaxaca Solidarity demonstration this morning at the Mexican Consulate. We do not currently know what they are being charged with or where they are being held. The demonstration was peaceful and nobody enterd the consulate. One person was arrested for leading chants, and another for taking pictures. Two of the people were arrested while trying to follow the cops' order to disperse. The fifth was arrested apparently for having a knife (that wasn't out) in his possession, though this is unclear. If you know the name of the person with the knife or the person taking photographs, please contact me at mk (at) [some liberal jagblog].

I'm as big an advocate of free speech as anyone; as a conservative in Saint Paul, one has to be watchful of one's liberties.

But I'd love to know the real story behind these arrests. I've I've noticed anything about left-wing protesters, it's that they have a very self-indulgent sense of ethics; my favorite example was during the Gulf War protests at the U of M in 1991. In an incident captured by a TV crew, a group of Young Republicans carrying out a peaceful protest was spat on and doused with red paint by a crowd of patchouli-reeking, fly-eaten peace creeps. Years later, I discussed the incident with a lefty who claimed to be there; he insisted that the Young Republicans had attacked.

Supporters are currently at the Ramsey County Jail (100 11th St E, St Paul) which is the place we assume they'll be taken to. Nobody has been booked yet, and the cops are telling us it will be a few hours before there's any information.

5 Arrested at Oaxaca Solidarity Demonstration
Five people were arrested at the Oaxaca Solidarity demonstration this morning at the Mexican Consulate. We do not currently know what they are being charged with or where they are being held. The demonstration was peaceful and nobody enterd the consulate. One person was arrested for leading chants, and another for taking pictures. Two of the people were arrested while trying to follow the cops' order to disperse. The fifth was arrested apparently for having a knife (that wasn't out) in his possession, though this is unclear. If you know the name of the person with the knife or the person taking photographs, please contact me at mk (at) thejackpine.org.

Supporters are currently at the Ramsey County Jail (100 11th St E, St Paul) which is the place we assume they'll be taken to. Nobody has been booked yet, and the cops are telling us it will be a few hours before there's any information.

We are asking people to call the local Mexican Consulate (651-771-5494), the Ramsey County Jail (651-266-9350), and the national embassy (202-736-1000).

If people are not released, we will put a call out later for a jail solidarity action this evening. Stay tuned.

The demonstration itself was about 35 people. When we tried to enter the consulate they locked the doors and told us that though it was a public place they could refuse entry for any reason. People using the consulate for its "intended purposes" were allowed in. There were about 7 squad cars present and a paddy wagon.

Posted by Mitch at November 3, 2006 07:38 PM | TrackBack