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Protestor Kidnapped by NYPD in Unmarked Car

On Tuesday evening, an unmarked van attacked and kidnapped a protestor. The event marks an escalation in the police tactics against the uprisings for Black lives.

Kimberly Ann

July 28, 2020
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On Tuesday, during the early evening, the NYPD reached a new level of covert tactics. A broad coalition of leftists put together 24 hours of protests against the NYPD’s violent raid on the Abolition Park encampment last week and as a part of the larger protests against police brutality that have been happening globally for two months. The day of actions included a teach-in on abolition, lunch, and was supposed to end with a Revolutionary Rave. However, at the intersection of 2nd Avenue and 25th street, the police violently disrupted a peaceful march on its way to Madison Square Park for the scheduled meditation.

Caught on video by several witnesses, a Trans femme protestor was violently grabbed off the street and thrown into an unmarked car. While protesters shouted for the police brutality to end, more officers on bikes came to aid the kidnapping, using their bikes to block protestors from helping their comrade. One particularly aggressive officer ran into the crowds screaming at the protestors to, “Get back!” with his hand on the holster of his weapon. In typical NYPD fashion, not a single officer can be seen wearing a mask properly during this close contact assault. Twelve protestors in total were arrested at the scene.

Many see this as a continuation of the civil rights violations perpetrated against dissenting voices in Portland. They also believe that this is a sign that the federal agents that President Trump and his right-wing lackeys have been threatening New Yorkers with are here. But these assailants were not the federal agents terrorizing people in Portland — they were members of the NYPD. The NYPD News twitter has accused the person in custody of, “damaging a police camera during 5 separate criminal incidents in & around City Hall Park. The arresting officers were assaulted with rocks & bottles.” However, the video does not substantiate these claims.

Further, allegedly damaging a police camera is no reason to kidnap someone off the streets in an unmarked vehicle. Those are the actions of secret police. 

It is clear that the NYPD is choosing to escalate tactics against the public, and it is all under the guidance of the Democrats who overwhelmingly control both the city and the state. We cannot allow the story in Portland to make us believe that the Democrats are any better or any different than Republicans. This is just further evidence that cities led by Democrats also violently repress protesters and violate their constitutional rights. Mayor deBlasio has allowed the city’s police officers to kidnap political dissenters. Federal agents may very well be on our way, but that won’t stop the NYPD in a Democrat-led city from brutalizing protesters while we wait and see. 

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Kimberly Ann

Kimberly is an educator and writer for Left Voice

United States

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