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| NEWS > 13 June 2007 |
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Victims spark backlash against
SCENES of dazed and bloodied protesters lying on hospital trollies after being hit by rubber bullets provoked national outrage in Hungary yesterday.
The images were broadcast as Budapest awoke angry and shocked after commemorations of the 50th anniversary of the 1956 uprising sparked the worst violence since the anti-Soviet revolt.
Opposition Fidesz MPs demanded an inquiry after police forced a minority of hooligans into the main peaceful demonstration, organised by the party, where tens of thousands of protesters had gathered. The move caused chaos and panic as families and ... Read more
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 Article sourced from
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Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier,
13 June 2007
This article appeared in the above title/site.
To view it in its entirity click this link.
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Waterloo Police Department, IA
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Local NAACP concerned about po
WATERLOO --- Repeated complaints from community members have led to frustration on the part of a local organization, prompting leaders to once again voice their concerns about the treatment of the city's black population by Waterloo police.
Executive committee members of the Black Hawk County branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People have said the volume of complaints alleging police misconduct, especially among African-Americans, has continued to greatly concern members. The group plans to bring eight of those complaints before the Waterloo City Council Monday.
"We're talking about physical brutality, talking about verbal abuse, talking about searching without a warrant or without permission from individuals," said Michael Blackwell, an NAACP executive committee member. "It's a disregard for people's humanity, general disrespect, condescension and intimidation."
Blackwell acknowledged the NAACP only had one side of each story, and said they intended to ask the Waterloo Police Department to allow the NAACP to review the police reports and possibly video evidence to determine if misconduct occurred in any of the cases.
Police Lt. Rich Carter said the NAACP has brought complaints to the department on a case-by-case basis, and noted the WPD is "always willing" to investigate alleged misconduct.
"It's not an issue based on race at all," Carter said. "I believe our statistics would show it's not a problem here."
But Blackwell said the council meeting will be an opportunity to point out specific instances as part of a larger, ongoing problem between the police and the black community, resulting in more meaningful dialogue.
"This is a very serious concern that we have, and we feel that we cannot let go of it until justice is served," he said.
David Meeks, executive director of the Waterloo Human Rights Commission, said his organization has been tracking use-of-force incidents by police. He doesn't deny that use of force is disproportionately used against blacks, but said the public's perception of police misconduct and actual police misconduct are vastly different perspectives.
"African-Americans have a higher percentage of resistance," Meeks said. "They may be scared, upset or thinking they may be racially profiled. That may instigate resisting."
Blacks comprise around 12 percent of the population in Waterloo, but account for 50 percent of those involved when police used a Taser since the WPD began implementing them in August 2006, according to the Human Rights Commission, which has tracked the use of Tasers through April.
Meeks also noted that, of 2,890 arrests made over a six-month period ending in March of this year, only 134 resulted in some type of use-of-force, or 4.6 percent. That figure was not broken down by race.
"That (number) isn't a concern to me. What is a concern is the high percentage of African-Americans being in the database," meaning the use of a Taser was some part of the incident, Meeks said.
Both the NAACP and the Human Rights Commission take complaints from the community regarding human rights violations, and attempt to remedy those situations through legal avenues.
The two groups also have formed a "partnership," according to Meeks, which together with the WPD and El Centro Latinoamericano launched a public service announcement encouraging a nonviolent, nonresistant approach to dealing with police.
"We put out the message to not resist, cooperate, and if you feel something's been done inappropriately then you follow up with a complaint," Meeks said. "The use of force is 100 percent preventable."
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