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Police brutality prompts campus protest
Police brutality prompted a national day of protest, held yesterday.
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On the day before Nicole Bell's wedding, she couldn't wipe the smile off her face.
"I was living my dream," she told NYU students at an event on Monday. "How many women actually get to marry their high school sweetheart?"
But it never happened.
"I was awakened at 4 a.m. by my mother," Nicole said. "Something had happened to Sean. We weren't sure, but we raced to the Jamaica hospital."
Sean Bell was Nicole's fiancé. On Nov. 25, 2006, he was shot 50 times by NYPD officers because they thought he was armed.
But he wasn't. Sean was walking out of a strip club and getting into a car with two friends. The officers thought Sean, who was African-American, was trying to run them down and that the men were armed.
"This was racism at its finest, and I needed to make sure there was justice and no other family would have to go through this," Nicole said at Monday's event; she was invited to NYU by CAS senior Josh Xavier to speak out against police brutality, which was the cause of about 2,000 deaths — more than 1,000 of which were unarmed victims — in the 1990s.
Since her husband's death, Nicole has spent much of her time raising awareness of police brutality.
Yesterday, on the west side of Washington Square Park, dozens of people, ranging from NYU students to family members of police brutality victims, came together for the same cause. Members of the NYPD were present at the park as well.
The protesters wore black and held signs criticizing the police.
"The whole damn system is guilty as hell. Indict, convict. Send the killer cops to jail," the protestors chanted.
Tisch sophomore Adewunmi Ogunfowora said Nicole's appearance at NYU inspired her to fight actively against police brutality.
"It's been plaguing me, as a black woman at NYU, a human being in society, just as an American, to see throughout history how the institutions we live in continue to objectify ... people," Ogunfowora said.
The protest was organized by the October 22nd Coalition, a national group founded in 1996 that aims to put pressure on police departments.
"I don't expect this police force to change," said Carl Dix, co-founder of October 22nd. "I think we have to change the system that puts together this police force and unleashes it and backs it up."
Others, though sympathetic toward the cause, saw the event as just another protest.
"It's NYU and anything can happen," Stern freshman Eugene Bang said. "It's really not much of a surprise. Frankly, I don't think there's much police brutality around here, but I'm just a freshman."
The movement has gained national attention. October 22nd has become a day of national protest against police brutality, and people from around the nation have rallied for the cause.
"One of the most important lessons we as a community have learned is that we can no longer be silent and hope that this doesn't happen to any other families," Nicole said.
cesar
Oct 23, 2009
6:05 a.m.
Demonstrations like this are so inspiring for me and for anybody who is tired of this epidemic of police brutality and the systems complacency in not delivering justice. I really feel for Nicole Bell and all grieving families who had their loved ones snatched from them.
Her taking her stand and raising awareness about this and not cowering in isolation shows what a true fighter really is. Props to her and all who refuse to remain silent.
Lloyd
Oct 23, 2009
11:13 a.m.
I don't know the circumstances surrounding this incident. Your reporting - rather weak by my standards - makes it sound like a guy comes out of a strip club, gets in his car to drive home, and the police shot him 50 times. Can I get some details on that? What initiated the confrontation? Was the victim intoxicated? Was there an exchange between the police and the victim? What was the cause of the police feeling threatened by the victim's car? Did he try to run them down? Who are the witnesses?
I am not discounting police brutality or racism. But, if the police really did shoot him without provocation, why hasn't the DA filed charges? What is the position of the police and the DA on the incident?
There has to be more to the story than what I have heard on the news networks and in the news papers. Certainly, there is more than what you reported in your "fluff" piece.
rdrd
Oct 23, 2009
2:53 p.m.
As Cesar said, this is an EPIDEMIC of police brutality and murder. It is systematic and systemic and we need to be talking about a whole different way society can be organized where we can finally put an end to this situation.
People should come hear this talk Monday night, 10/26, Cantor Film Center, 7pm with Raymond Lotta - "everything you've been told about communism is wrong, capitalism is a failure, revolution is the solution." ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.
Lloyd: basically yes, a guy left a club, got in his car and was shot 50 times. These were 3 undercover cops who shot at point blank range into Sean's car. They didn't identify themselves and Sean and his two friends thought they were being carjacked. You can find a more detailed description here: http://revcom.us/a/072/seanbell-en.html
The 3 cops were found not guilty. This is what happens over and over again when police harass, brutalize and kill people by the thousands across the country. (A recent NYCLU report states that from Jan to June of this year, the NYPD stopped and frisked 311,646 people, the overwhelming majority of them Black and Latino.) The days need to be gone when this unjust, illegal and illegitimate treatment is approved and encouraged.
rdrd
Oct 23, 2009
2:56 p.m.
and check out this video [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARB1QK3s45A] of Sunsara Taylor (who's pictured above) for more on police brutality and the need for revolution. Look for her on campus helping to organize that Ray Lotta event Monday night.
jack ellis
Oct 26, 2009
2:01 p.m.
Yes, rdrd we need a "revolution" to stop things like this from happening again and again.
How about a revolution that stops young men from going to low life strip clubs at 3 in the morning, hanging out with low life thugs in a place with rampant drug dealing. That's why the POLEEEECE were there.
I suggest people see the Chris Rock video "How not to get your ass beat by the police". Chris Rock lists all the stupid actions that result in Black men getting their asses beat or here shot by the Police.
If's 3 AM you should be home in bed, get up early and do something productive with your life and stop contributing to the culture of vice, violence and just stupid actions that result in people getting killed.
And don't try to run over police officers with a car.
Come on - we're supposed to be intelligent college educated people!
boo hooo
Oct 24, 2009
8:16 a.m.
To those who think Sean Bell was a model Citizen:
Would you let this criminal date your sister or daughter? Sean, including all others in the car were real criminals with violent histories, including drugs and guns. There were drugs found around the car and police testimony which stated they were throwing, "items" out of the window. Fortunately for them, they were young enough that most of their criminal history has been sealed due to juvenile privacy laws.
Think about that: When would you throw contraband out of your window? A) you think you are being car-jacked, or B) you are about to be busted by the cops..... you go to NYU, you should be smart, figure it out.
Secondly, there were reports that even though there was no gun recovered, bullet holes showed there was gun-fire from inside the vehicle.
Thirdly, a 3000 lb automobile is just as deadly as any gun, what would you do if you were a cop and someone was trying to hit you with their vehicle? Let them? They were trying to run over and kill police officers. This is why they were found NOT GUILTY, because the criminals in the car were trying to KILL THEM and the PO's were defending themselves against DPF based on Article 35 of the NYS Penal law.
Ironically, this wasn't a race debate because 2 of the cops were BLACK and 1 was HISPANIC. Unfortunately you Liberal, lead by "Reverend" Al Sharpton, idiots couldn't use the race card this time, sorry.
Lastly, to the mope who cited the stop/frisk statistics. While I will not waste my time checking it's accuracy, you failed to mention that 95% of all stop/frisk's were initiated by third person reports, meaning sheep like you called 911 stating, "so and so, that looks like blah blah, just robbed me", so if 95% of the people call 911 stating that either a black or hispanic person just committed a crime against them, should the cops stop white,asian, or eskimo looking-people?
Fact is, a majority of crimes are committed by Black or Hispanic's, you can debate the causes of this, be it government policies, socio-economics, or just genetics, that is the hard reality of it all. If you are Black or Hispanic, I emplor you to spend your time trying to reduce Black on Black, or Black on Hispanic, or any other combination as 90% of the violent crimes in this country will fall into one of those categories. Maybe then, instead of complaining about Police Officers trying to defend themselves against savages, will you actually MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
P.S.: Next time you are getting robbed, don't call 911, call a crack head.
I am ashamed, as Alumni, to see the quality and direction NYU is headed. I am witnessing the devaluing of my degree as we know it.
rdrd: I don't think it's possible to survive after being shot 50 times. Was he shot AT 50 times, or was he SHOT 50 times? Check your facts.
liberatehumanity
Oct 25, 2009
1:11 a.m.
boo hooo. i'll look past your racist comments to try and get to the heart of your "refutation" of the fact that Sean Bell was viciously murdered by three "savages" who were members of the NYPD. 1st, the cops were undercover and did not identify themselves before they fired a hail of 50 bullets (one cop firing 37 shots) into the car. 2nd, there is no proof that Sean Bell tried to run over the cops. It seems clear to me from the story that he was trying to drive away from the (unidentified men with guns drawn- were they trying to rob them? they had no idea). 3rd, there was no gun found. nada. nothing. Sean Bell and his two friends had no gun. Your nonsense about bullets being fired from inside the car just doesn't correspond with reality. sorry. did the gun evaporate? 4th, even if drugs were found tossed from the car (which they were NOT), since when did that crime entail death by firing squad before trial? on a side note- why don't you cite your statistics about "95% of all stop/frisk's were initiated by third person reports, meaning sheep like you called 911", because here's the citation of the stop-and-frisk statistics-
"An August 14, 2009 press release from the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) is titled “Record Number of Innocent New Yorkers Stopped, Interrogated by NYPD During First Half of Year.” Based on figures from the NYPD, the NYCLU reports that in the first six months of 2009 alone, cops in New York City stopped more than 273,000 people who—according to the police themselves—were not violating any laws. This represents the highest number of innocent people stopped and questioned by the NYPD in six months since the department began keeping stop-and-frisk data. From January to June of this year, the NYPD as a whole (including the various precincts as well as bureaus such as housing, transit, and narcotics) stopped and frisked 311,646 people, the overwhelming majority of them Black and Latino. Of that total, more than 9 in 10—or 273,556 people—were not arrested or given a summons."
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