“I watched firsthand, standing toward the front of a crowd of perhaps a hundred unarmed protesters on the edge of Civic Plaza late Sunday night, as we were almost completely surrounded by literally an entire police force prepared not for a group of dissatisfied citizens but for war. And that is not an exaggeration. There were hundreds of armed police, all with riot shields, batons, gas masks and guns, in row upon row upon row. The smell of tear gas was everywhere, stinging everyone’s eyes and throats; and on every side but directly behind us, I could see police with their faces hidden; machine guns or assault rifles in their hands; police cars; flashing lights; and armored vehicles―the kind you’d typically see in Iraq or Afghanistan.” ~by Mike Smith, excerpted from his article, APD Ad Absurdum, in alibi.com
“Like many of us in Albuquerque, I was horrified, again, at the APD shooting of another citizen. This time, it was captured on video which I first saw on national TV. I was initially embarrassed that Albuquerque was in the news for this institutional murder, but then I watched the video. I was heart broken as I watched and heard [the now murdered] James clearly say, “We have an agreement . . . don’t worry about safety. I’m not going to harm you.”  Then a voice says, “Do it” and the shots ring out. Ralph DiPalma, the minister who worked with James, known as Abba, said at his vigil: “That’s where he ended up: Crying for mercy, crying for mercy . . . And he didn’t get it.” ~Meta Chaya Hirschl

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