Humanize the Earth!

account of arrest

A bicyclist was killed.  During a memorial for him four people were arrested.  Here is a piece from one of them:

The Constitution of the United States of America
Article One
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or;
prohibiting the the free exercise thereof; or  abridging the freedom of
speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble,
and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

Let me rephrase that as it concerns me; Congress shall make no
law…..Prohibiting the freedom of speech……or the right of the people to
peaceably assemble.

I participated in a Memorial for a fallen biker.
Someone I feel was just like me. I forget that this was  a fifty year old
Hispanic male, with a completely different history and religion. And I am a
36 year old white woman from a completely different background.

This man Issah was just like me. I never met him, but he was my brother.

Why would anyone expect his brothers to do anything else but to memorialise
Issah. He was just like most of us. We are all different. But we all see
that bikes are fun, bikes a a reasonable way to navigate these city streets.

I gathered with people just like me.  To honer Issah.  And I was arrested,
handcuffed,extremely tightly,and thrown into a paddy wagon. In front of my
step daughter- who cried.
What happened to my right to peaceably assemble? ??????????????????
Yeah the cops wanted us to disperse. But We Have the Right to Peaceably
Assemble. Blah Blah they have to protect us from ourselves, Blah Blah.
Whatever law they cite is superseded by The Constitution of the United
States of America. I have the right to peaceably assemble. I was peaceably
assembled. And I WAS ARRESTED.

A lot of  people want to know about the handcuffs. I come from a cop family.
Yes I do. And I asked about the handcuffs. Apparently it is police procedure
to handcuff tightly. So a prisoner cannot escape the cuffs easily. There is
another function of handcuffs- that you lock them in place so they don’t get
tighter. My handcuffs were not locked. As many of you know, I was the first
arrested. Yeah I have a big mouth. So what. All I said is ” A man just got
Killed here, he was torn into three pieces.” That’s enough to get arrested
in 14. As they separate prisoners, and I was the only woman in my private
Paddy Wagon Compartment, I got plenty jostled around By Evil KenEvil on the
trip back to the station. The cuffs were tight to begin with. They were
unbearable before we even left Western and Cortez. I kept thinking “Well
they will remove them soon, as soon as we get to the station.” They did not.
They kept the cuffs on and they kept their prisoners waiting. I also should
mention I was wearing a messenger bag. My wrists were not tight to my back,
but a few inches from my back. I was in pain. I also asked my cop family
about the acoustics of a Paddy Wagon. Specifically, could an officer hear me
outside of the Paddy Wagon asking for help. I was told that it is indeed
certain that a prisoner can be heard from inside the Paddy Wagon. My cries
and those of my companions who tried to get help were unheeded. It bothers
me greatly that those sworn to serve and protect would ignore a cry for help
by one in pain. In desperation I started kicking the door. I was threatened
that I would be charged with criminal damage to government property. Again I
pleaded for someone to loosen the cuffs. At this stage my hands and fingers
were stone cold- from lack of circulation. A nice lady cop, I think
Wojokoski, finally assisted me. I was still the last taken out of the wagon.
The officers turned the lights out before allowing me to exit “to save
electricity.” They kept me cuffed longer inside the station while they
tracked down the arresting officer-the Sargent -to issue instructions. He
ordered I be cuffed to a rail during processing. So while I was being issued
tickets for “Obstructing Traffic” (I never left the sidewalk) and “Refusal
to cease and desist” (?) I was cuffed to a silly rail. My Wrists were red
and the skin compressed from the cuffs. Three days later, I have small
bruises on my wrists. I think it was obvious that I posed no danger to law
enforcement officials. Thanks again to lady officer Wojokski  for stopping
the pain.

What’s the big deal? What”s illegal or wrong about a memorial? What is wrong
for that matter about meeting in a public place and going for a fun bike
ride with fellow citizens? NOTHING I SAY!  And I plan on doing it MORE
FREQUENTLY in the future.
Congress shall make no law….Probating the Freedom of Speech…….or the
Right of the People to Peaceably Assemble.  Any other argument is Bullshit,
pure and simple. I am guaranteed these rights as an American Citizen.

Brenda Eileen O’Connor