Thursday 8 March 2007

Our brave boys in blue.

Another great piece of police PR.

Doing the rounds at the moment- CCTV footage of the arrest of Toni Cromer. Toni is a 20 year old black woman who weighs 9 stone and is 5'6''. She tumbles downstairs with a police office and once on the floor after she appears to have gone limp she is punched repeatedly with overarm full-force punches and is then dragged away with her trousers round her knees. The footage of her arrest shows at one point 12 police officers and a police dog in attendance.

Toni has a history of epilepsy and claims that rather than resisting the arrest she was in fact having a fit - she has little recollection of the police assault other than coming round whilst she was being punched.

Her crime by the way - drunkenness in a nightclub and vandalism to a car (which she has admitted).

The police motivation - racism, machismo or injured pride that the police officer couldn't (whatever the reason) subdue a slightly built young girl. It is noticeable that the assault seems to happen after she has been subdued.

But the motivation doesn't matter, the impression of watching the tape is simply that of fascist bullies - those in authority showing naked brutality simply because they have the power and can.

Watching the footage leaves me with a primeval urge to head-butt the next person in uniform I see. It should leave anyone with a sense of justice with the same feeling.

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