USA Today had an article and video (below) that gives more information on what happened in Cleveland on Sunday where a transit police officer pepper-sprayed a crowd that was in town to attend the national Movement for Black Lives conference. The crowd was protesting the detention of a 14-year old boy the police said had been drunk on a bus.
Rhonda Williams, who is seen in the video and quoted in the article, is a professor of history at my university. She heads the Social Justice Institute and has done tremendous work as an academic and activist to highlight the issues of race and social justice. I am proud to call her a friend and colleague.
The RTA statement is here: http://www.riderta.com/news/july-26-2015-rta-statement-euclid-avenue-incident
The officer that was incorrectly named is a personal friend (well, the husband of a personal friend), and I got an up close and personal view of what happens when your name ends up on Twitter as the person who did something like this. He was suddenly targeted by Anonymous and other groups. It was terrifying to think that he and his family (and kids!) could be the target of vigilante justice -- and he wasn’t even working that day! It has given me a whole new view of the power of the internet.
Felt this link was worth sharing as well.
http://www.clevescene.com/scene-and-heard/archives/2015/07/30/an-activist-reached-out-to-the-officer-she-misidentified-his-response-is-the-best-ever