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Video: Student Protesters Violently Arrested

There's not much background on this video depicting the violent arrest of a demonstrator last night, but it's still a bracing way to start your day. New School students and their comrades brought the ruckus downtown to show solidarity with students at the University of California, who are occupying various administration buildings on multiple campuses to protest budget cuts and an increase in student fees, among other grievances.

According to one student protest blog, last night's demonstration included activities like "dropping banners off of statues and buildings, crashing New School art parties and decorating the city in solidarity with all the UC occupations!!!" This video shows two arrests, but the NYPD press office did not have any information for us. It's been a while since those peppy New School radicals have given us a crazy arrest video or occupied anything, so it's nice to see they've still got it. They've also been busy putting together a direct action how-to manual, sort of a "Student Occupation for Dummies" [pdf], which includes advice like "occupy fucking everything" and an illustrated guide to barricading doors.

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Comments [rss]

  • Yeah it is a really big problem. Why does this sort of thing happen?

  • Police brutality is a big problem, As you can see those fat pigs beating on some school kid.

  • hbszanto

    Your revolution is over. The bums have lost. My advice is to do what your parents did: Get a job!

  • F*** the police!

  • occupyeverything

    I am the original poster of this video. Here is a longer version of it with more lead-up:



    Nov. 19, 2009: Students Occupy New York Streets

  • CatankerousPrick

    More lead up but no context. It clearly shows you kids are destroying an event with your hipster stench and then bothering police officers at their station.



    I hope someone gets sick of this shit and beats you down (someone whose not a police officer) and when the police do come to the rescue, they watch till the end because you caused them so much trouble in the past.



    You DO realize that living in this city and paying its taxes, you are funding the people that beat the shit out of you? But I guess that's a good thing too.

  • Liam

    Brats vs Pigs discussion aside, there is something beautiful about this video.



    Cops get some exercise, and the students probably feel all the more vindicated in their "fight". They need eachother!

  • NannyState

    Look at it this way: do you really want California kiddies to flee their tropical paradise due to skyrocketing tuition and come here to bitch about the lack of medical marijuana stores and decent Thai food, then commandeer Starbucks bathrooms while yapping loudly into their iphones about what a "hella great place NYC is"?

  • HOTCUP

    but new school and nyu are "commuter schools," for "real new yorkers"!



    gug gug gug gug gug guguuuuuuh

  • 5borough

    Attention student activists/pussies: If you don't like the tution at your private school, vote with your feet and go to a less expensive school. Also, occuaption = trespassing = crime = arrest. Resisting arrest = force by the police.



    If any real New Yorker feels bad about out of town white kids running around in their tough guy black hoodies giving the police and working people a hard time, give me a break.



    I'd bet the NYPD has a lot more diversity, and is more likely to come from NYC and from lesser means than these "radicals." Real "oppresive." Please!

  • Stewart

    Well said.

  • idiolect

    Something's fishy with their math. They themselves report a "32 percent tuition hike," compare http://registrar.berkeley.edu/Registration/feesched.html for what 32% would look like (certainly more than what you're quoting, even though what you're quoting, by the way, ends up adding up to >$15K extra over the course of 8 semesters, i.e. a 4 year degree).

  • idiolect

    Er, this was supposed to be a response to "tingo" above re: the amount of the tuition hike.

  • nyuworkstudy

    They were arrested because the two students started throwing pies at the NYPD (hello!?). These are the same two fools who recently threw pies at two speakers at an NYU event (see gawker). They're just looking for attention, they wanted to get arrested. They're simply extremists.

  • idiolect

    Ok, if they really did pie-in-the-face Ayn Rand Institute people, I suppose I can't stay mad at them forever. That is kind of awesome. Although, I wish they'd tone it down with all the shouting and name-calling and sloganizing and such; a good pie-to-the-face should be a sudden surprise, I think.

  • HOTCUP

    get back to workstudy, kid.

  • Tower18

    I don't support police brutality (though I'm not sure this is an example of it), but ever noticed every one of these videos has some shrill-voiced girl screaming "what the FUUUUCK". It's like nails on a chalkboard.

  • chubbyemu

    I love these comments about American freedom and how it's so much worse in other countries. But if shit like this has happened when dozens of universities across the UK were occupied last year, it would have been a national scandal.

  • Kojak

    I agree. Check out France. When they protest, its something to behold.



    If the government taxes cheese, the next day 2 Million people will be on the streets of Paris with cars burning.

  • thats a democracy

  • JenChungsBaby

    That white-shirted captain or inspector must really miss his days on the street dishing out ass whuppins because he jumped into that one with enthusiasm.

  • valeriob

    This is how these kids will describe their college experience in the future:



    Spent 2 years occupying libraries and shit.

    Spent 1 year abroad getting enlightened. and shit.

    Spent 2 years pursuing degree in sociology.

    Spent 2 years settling for a history degree. shit.



    "And I almost finished college, if it hadn't been for those damn bureaucrats, conservatives, and capitalists holding me down."

  • NannyState

    I'm just glad that someone got this on tape, that someone is documenting this heroic struggle to inspire the masses to rise up against their oppressors...and to get enough hits on YouTube to drive advertizers to their shitty website.

  • Guest

    It would be nice to see the cops do this to all of the fat slobs that are always outside buildings protesting that unions are not being used for whatever work is going on.

  • Don't know the full details (did anything happen off camera?), but that was pretty wild and, IMO, deserves follow up.

  • gotham10004

    Police have to "beat" people that resist arrest until they're taken into custody. Don't want to get hurt? Don't resist arrest.



    These kids are just fishing for "cred."

  • felixthecat2

    " Resistance is futile? They are protesters and only lame protesters done resist the powers but it doesn't excuse the police from excess force.

  • Dick Pounds

    I was standing next to black man probably in his late 50's , and he said 'you better stay away, these are white folks and you're not' (to two black hipsters)

  • Kojak

    So true. I hope those black hipsters learned a valuable lesson. If they pulled the same shit, they'd switch to metal batons and end up beating them harder.



    They should be fortunate the cops weren't the LAPD. They would'be been beaten just standing on the side watching.

  • John Del Signore

    Think he's got room for one more?

  • Angelheaded Hipster

    So he's pretty cool, like, racially?

  • felixthecat2



    Damn, you are so lame and too old to be a hipster. Age is a number.

  • Angelheaded Hipster

    Hey---thats was a post in unfractured English



    You are full of surprises

  • felixthecat2

    You're too old to be " scene" ROFL

  • felixthecat2

    This happens because Quinn pass the bill that now requires a permit for any assembly of 50 or more persons. This is outrageous. The permits are expensive and it give police a heads up on group activities. Worse, now NYPD can beat people and arrest them when they are assembled in groups of 50 or more. Horrible.

  • Angelheaded Hipster

    stepper----you ever call a cop a pig on the sidewalk? not from a crowd or a speeding car?

  • hotstepper

    that's a great question angel and i'm glad you brought it up. face-to-face i refer to them as officer and i've always made it home in one piece. self-preservation is key. but i also wouldn't call a priest a "choirboy predator" to his face, but it doesn't mean i don't think it.



    whatta 'bout you soldier?

  • Angelheaded Hipster

    i'd never speak disrespectfully to a police officer. they are our friends



    thats why it hurts me to see you call them 'pigs' in here but not out on the street

  • felixthecat2

    passive-aggressive, explains a lot. Grow a pair.

  • hotstepper

    i did, they are in your mouth, which explains why everything you say comes out garbled.

  • felixthecat2

    If you had a pair then you wouldn't have your tail between your legs as you pissed down your pants when NYPD looks at you. You're passive-aggressive, the worst social defect there is.

  • hotstepper

    nothing is more pathetic than an internet troll tough-guy.



    i will go back to ignoring you now, but always remember son: keep up your studies and soon enough you too may learn to speak proper english.

  • felixthecat2

    son? Why you trippin on me, dawg?

  • valeriob

    If you consider that to be the most egregious social defect then you have more serious issues than we'd all imagined. Which is serious. And...well, unimaginable.

  • felixthecat2

    Why don't you name one? You never stated anything but just like to disagreed. FAILED

  • felixthecat2

    passive-aggressive persons as you are the worst danger in society. Please deal with your anger directly before you go postal on some innocent person.

  • hotstepper

    that pig in the white shirt looks like he's warming up during batting practice for the Lawsuit City Sluggers.

  • felixthecat2

    NYPD are not pigs. Pigs are intelligent and loving.

  • Angelheaded Hipster

    And you've loved them, I bet!

  • hotstepper

    pigs are delicious.

  • valeriob

    +1

  • books

    Go to China? You should go to China - people protest there - they protest in South America - They protest in Europe - they even protest in the Middle East - and you guess what? The goverment doesnt taser, mace or club them as frequently as they do right here in NYC.



    This notion that this is okay cause America is somehow more free than other places in the world is factual wrong. America=freedom, democracy, equality, whatever - Its all just a myth

  • farleft

    Agreed

  • tingo

    Also...though it has nothing to do with the actual incident...I would love to see how many letters were written to their senators and city council members and school board and other alumni pleading their case against the fees? Or how many even attempted ot file a class action suit in a court of law over budget cuts? Or at least trying some avenue of recourse that has been purposely put into place for civic disagreements.



    Again, we should save the protests and occupations for when it really matters.

  • felixthecat2

    That is a real great point and an issue I have with my fellow comrades. What is the use of all the drama when we don't write to our legislators. It is a disconnect that hurts our causes. The LGBT movement is small but strong because they are a political force. Unfortunately, my causes are not so politically united or even aware. However, I still support strong protests and I am prepared for arrest but not to be unnecessary brutalize by NYPD. If I defend myself then I am arrested for assault on an officer. It's a no win situation for democracy.

  • tingo

    Let's wait to see what other video comes out and hear all sides.



    If there was a draft and these kids were protesting having to go die to fight for strategic interests fueled by a corporate-funded state...then yeahm I might feel differently. But they're overreacting to a sit-in by a California school over slightly higher tuition. It's as if they're just looking for a reason to act out, like children do.



    How do you fight the injustice of higher tuition because of a global financial meltdown that we're all paying for?

    -$90 sneakers.

    -The $99 ipod.

    -The $300 tattoo.

    = Extra tuition money found.

  • idiolect

    It's not slightly higher tuition -- last I heard, it's a prohibatively high 30%+ increase across the board for all University of California schools (i.e. *public* schools). This is a pretty big deal. It is also, you know, in California, and I (a New School student) don't really think there's any call for any "action" over here -- besides perhaps civilly-worded letters of concern to UC administrators if you really care about higher education in the U.S. that much -- unless you're just looking for an excuse to throw a big ol' self-congratulatory pseudo-anarchist party (ding ding ding).

  • tingo

    http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/11/20/california.tuition.protests/index.html



    "The first tuition hike, which takes effect in January, will cost undergraduate students an additional $585 a semester. The second hike kicks in next fall, raising tuition another $1,344, she said."



    I just finished paying back over 30k in student loans for a state school where I also needed to cover living expenses for.



    Unfair society? Yes, to a point. Deal with it like an adult.

  • idiolect

    Ugh, tried to respond but it reposted below somehow. Anyway, the upshot is that I'm skeptical of whatever math that reporter is using, that I think the hike is significantly more than what you just quoted (but in line with that article's "32%" statement), and that even if it is as "low" as what you said, over the course of a four year degree, that will add up to more than $15K. Your 30K debt sure is a lot better than 45K, isn't it?

  • tingo

    Not after adjusting for inflation.

  • felixthecat2

    I also participated in protests against tuition hikes since I was working over 30 hours to pay for my own education. At that time it was important to me. Now that I am longer a college student, other issues are more important to me. Just as public health care option is important to me but not important for the seniors since they have medicare, Yes more videos would be helpful of course but I just didn't like the brutal force used by the white-shirted officer. It is unjustified in my opinion.

  • tingo

    And from the video...I didn't like how the protester ran from the cops, which could have possible led to a more unsafe situation for non-participating bystanders. Nor did I like the baiting of "F the Police' in this instance. Both were also unjustified, in my opinion.



    Then again, unless either of us were there, we don't really know what went down. So when Gothamist posts a video that already supposes a judgment in the opening credits from one side, it's not a balanced view. It's propoganda.

  • John Del Signore

    Well, if the NYPD would deign to give me a comment and details on the arrests, we'd be able to provide more context. But the press liaison told me he has no information on any of this.

  • tingo

    Then someone should re-edit this very same video, replace with the words 'violent demonstration quelled' on the title up front, and that could be posted as well. Or at least have the presupposing video title up front removed until we do know what happened.



    Walter Lippmann's turning in his grave.

  • tingo

    You're right. They don't tase or club. They imprison or kill them.



    Look, I'm not defending overall cases of police brutality and injustice that ocassionally creeps up. But to lump NYC into some abusive police state is delusional. "F the Police"? Well, they should "F you" too.



    Judging what happened from this one video, along with the accusatory text introducing is not thinking critically - something students should be learning to do. But they can't because they're too busy protesting 'student fees'...something that really isn't an issue as important as say...oh, I don't know...human rights, war, world poverty, or corruption.



    Save your anger for the stuff that matters, kids. Then more people will stand with you.

  • felixthecat2

    The system has conditioned NYers to not resist or protest against the machine. This explains why many are so apathetic and tend to focus on irrelevant small matters to feel falsely empowered.

  • tingo

    Yes. Speaking of irrelevant, small matters...

  • Angelheaded Hipster

    most of those kids are from roslyn and they are infatuated with being protesters and 'occupying' buildings --- so they got a little beatdown to talk about



    so everyone is happy

  • Stewart

    too true

  • FrankMartin

    "From New York to Greece

    Fuck the Police"



    Huh? Is that what they say?

  • mellow_fellow
  • idiolect

    Yeah, it's sort of an anarchist kid meme at this point; I forget exactly what happened but I know there were giant synchronized protests a few years ago in the U.S. and Europe and Greek anarchists somehow caught the spotlight; U.S. anarchists have been going around saying "Fuck the police, from [current city] to Greece" and feeling very good about themselves since. (I know there's more of a story here, sorry I don't quite remember the particulars).

  • Wza

    NYPD and college kids.

    Hmmm..who should I root against?

  • potsmoker

    wow a higher ranking cop beating a girl with a baton repeatedly then a whole bunch of cops tackling her.



    and comments say its ok because it was worse in the 70's or at least its not china..outrageous.



    its an abuse of power and one day some commenter will be just getting a starbucks and caught up in some rally or protest and have to deal with getting beaten and teargassed and have people say they deserve that.



    fuck the police is right, and fuck anybody who thinks that this chic deserved to be treated that way.

  • tingo

    They should go to China or most any other country for that matter, and try protesting something so inane. Then they'll redefine 'violent suppression.' I'm sure when they acted up in their den room at home, they're claim of violent suppression was also used.



    This edited video and description did much less to make me feel for them, and more to side with the police.



    Which is a shame, since I'm usually quite anarchistic.

  • HOTCUP

    how much editing can you do to decontextualize a cop clubbing a fleeing, unarmed student in the head?



    some anarchist.

  • tingo

    "Clubbing?" I saw a single or maybe 2 hits on a guy resisting arrest and running from the cops. Why do you think they use a club and not a gun?

  • felixthecat2

    He tried to club the kid on the head at full force. Kid was lucky he dodge the club otherwise he would be in a coma right now.

  • tingo

    That sounds subjective. Why not leave it to a court case to decide? That's how it's supposed to work. The kid can sue. If he wins, no more worries about fees.

  • schadenfreudian mensch

    Sure he can sue in the comfort of a hospital bed while he's in a coma and if wins it's all on your dime while the cop still collects his fat pension so don't complain about your high taxes next time.

  • tingo

    Uh, I don't complain about high taxes. Where do you get your information, sir?

  • felixthecat2

    Not so subjective based on the video. The cop almost club the kid on the head and would have made contact but the kid dodge it. Who cares about money when they are brain damaged? NYPD tend to be over aggressive with certain protesters and it's condone by Kelly and Bloomberg

  • tingo

    Then upload the previous 20 seconds of video. Upload video from other cameras. It's called context.

  • PS39Grad

    Enough with these kids.

  • Rocknrope

    It must be nice to be a youth with no idea of how the world actually works.

  • thewildpansy

    ugh, these spoiled, nasally-voiced hipsters whining "fuck the police" is the most annoying shit. you won't be saying fuck the police when someone does something bad to YOU.

  • schadenfreudian mensch

    Going to New School is being spoiled? Man I hate to think how you're going label kids who go to City College.

  • idiolect

    Let's be honest, going to the New School *is* being spoiled. Much of this "solidarity with people thousands of miles away [i.e. an excuse for more rabble-rousing]" stuff is motivated by the same deep-seated white-upper-middle-class insecurity that motivates it everywhere else.



    -New School Student



    (P.S. What's going on in this video is very uncool, though, and the UC fee hikes are also very uncool).

  • thewildpansy

    did i say going to new school "is being spoiled"?

  • schadenfreudian mensch

    Well that is where most of these kids are from right or did we not read the same post?

  • thewildpansy

    Yes, and still - I didn't say that. I was referring to the fuckheads in this video. Idiot.

  • dagblad

    Spent most of my time occupying various administration buildings, smoking a lot of thai stick, breaking into the ROTC, bowling. To tell you the truth Brandt, I don't remember most of it.

  • Cautious Pessimist

    Pfft. Let's get some Chicago police officers from the 1970's in here and see how many more of these there are.

  • HOTCUP

    The New School: 3, NYU: 1 (if that counted, it seemed pretty lame)

  • Casper

    Actually, you're wrong to compare us to the dude.



    "We believe in nothing, Lebowski. Nothing."



    But seriously, if you want to know what this is about:

    http://wewanteverything.wordpress.com/2009/09/24/communique-from-an-absent-future/

  • felixthecat2

    NYPD should be taken over by the federal gov't. That fat out of shape cop try to club that kid's head. disgusting.

  • Police brutality is a big problem, As you can see those fat pigs beating on some school kid.

  • buttface

    lol

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