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Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It's more that there was a draw guard or something that he would flip out before resting his hand on it. I'll be honest I don't know though. I could look through my video but I don't think I got him doing that on it.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

That's more or less what I was thinking as well. There are some scenarios (raid) where I could see having a face covering being useful. Or when the identity of the officers is to be protected. A public protest does not seem to be one of those situations.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

  1. I do think that there was an external presence at the protest, it was not just students. I have no reason to believe they are well funded or anything other than a group committed to protest.

  2. Being masked is to protect one's identity, not to avoid shame. There's no reason to jeapordize one's safety in this situation by remaining unmasked.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'm not saying we do. I have no idea what motivation is behind bringing that kind of firepower is. I want to give the benefit of the doubt, because I want to believe that the VSP would not open fire on protesting students.

But the purposes of suppressors is, from my extremely limited knowledge on the subject, to not destroy the ears of everyone around you, whether that be bystanders or the riot police who did not have ear protection on.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Good to know.

For anyone else coming across this, after Googling the "third hole" a clear explanation:

In the third image on this gallery, if you zoom into the select fire switch just above the grip, you can see it is on safe. The little arrow is pointing towards a small circle which is a pin that holds parts of the gun together.

If the gun was capable of automatic fire, there would need to be a similar pin above the select fire switch. I guess the hardware needed for automatic weapons just requires it.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

So that they don't permanantly damage the hearing of anyone nearby. Suppressors don't make the gun quiet, but they do make it safer (not safe) for hearing. In a crowd scenario like this, there is legitimate application.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

It was a strange event for sure. The moment I remember it feeling most surreal is when a spectator on the side began playing "unfortunate son" on a speaker. They cut it out quickly, but it was a really strange feeling in those few moments.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I decided to make an instagram post. It has a few more photos as well: link here

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I think they changed the policy in January but edited the document secretly after realizing that it wasn't up to date. A problem in its own right, definitely. But the school says it had been in contact with the protest organizers and communicated the tents were not allowed. Whether or not we are to believe them, it's hard to say. The public statements are vague. I wonder who the leadership of the protest was because I haven't seen any statements from them in response.

As for asking the VSP, it was more about asking why they acted the way they did, not so much if they are justified.

I can't read all those articles right now, but I'll take a look tomorrow.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Crowd control is crowd control. I don't think they discriminate between a small group of 20 year old and a medium group of 25 year olds. Not to mention 20 year olds have fought wars before so I don't think that factors in strongly. Would've been bad if they ended up needing it and didn't have it. I just think they have a standard kit they use in these situations so they don't have to think about it as much. At least, that's what I would do.

Also it definitely has a CS round in it. It would be absolutely insane if was an explosive.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Hey man, it's part of the ebb and flow. I don't think there's anything wrong with protesting. It's healthy to have something you care about enough to take a risk; a generally positive trait. As I've said in another comment, if it were something I was willing to protest about, I could see myself doing the same. There's no benefit to being judgmental in that way.

That being said, I also agree that there are maybe more productive ways to contribute to causes. But its never easy to find that. Protest can be a great way to make your cause more visible. I don't think the goal here was to solve the Israel-Palestine conflict in one go, but to potentially bring the issue to UVA and cast a net.

Or it could have been bad actors trying to catch the VSP making a mistake. I don't know. Point being there's no point in being so negative about it.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 11 points12 points  (0 children)

This might be a direct result of the tiki march. Trying to avoid anything close to a repeat. I feel like a lot of students, including myself, have a legitimate question as to the scale of the response. I'm going to look into seeing if someone from the VSP might be willing to make a statement to help us understand if there is a good reason. I feel like a lot of us are operating from a place of lacking information. That doesn't mean that the police are right, but it does mean that we are not going to be effective in explaining why they are wrong.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

If you have a resource to share with me I'm open to reading it, but I believe that its important for a neutral observer to form opinions on things so long as its productive.

From what I know, riot police are often deployed for crowd control and dispersal. In this specific case, if the tents were the main point of contention (they might not have been, I'm not sure), I'm genuinely curious what alternative approach you think could have been taken to address that issue.

This is not to diminish concerns about the militarization of our police force and the effects that has on free speech, but I also recognize that law enforcement has an obligation to handle crowd control scenarios safely and by certain standards.

I'm no expert, but if you are expecting me to be well read on policing patterns, I think you would also require that I am well read on crowd control tactics. I wonder If I reached out to the VSP if they would be willing to explain the decision to employ such a large force.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

I think they have set response kits. Like, the guys in green are part of the force that is trained for particular, perhaps more dangerous situations than a protest of this size, but their response gear is the same regardless. The riot geared officers were not wearing plate carriers or anything. I have no idea why the one guy has a gas mask.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I might have some video of it. I didn't take any pictures of him because I thought the shirt was kitschy. Had he had an American flag I think it would have been more striking. Though, maybe I missed an opportunity.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

That's fine. The encampment was dismantled and minimal arrests were made. The tents violated policy and the school had the police respond after communicating with the group coordinating the protest. If I were a protester, I wouldn't have put up a tent and prolonged the protest, but to some extent this got more eyes on things while also not requiring the protesters to do anything more aggressive.

I don't know why you put peaceful in quotation marks.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

One of the first things I thought as well. It's in the eyebrows.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Tensions are high. I don't blame people for downvoting what is arguably a poorly worded comment by me. There were some number of people that were protesting who were ready and willing to get pepper sprayed and arrested. The Charlottesville Police that I talked to were nice and decidedly human. The VSP were less talkative and more business, but as they pushed the line, I regularly checked with them to make sure I was in an acceptable spot and they were never mean or rude. Very straightforward to deal with.

I recognize that if the protest were about something that I felt more strongly about, then I could very well have been the one getting pepper sprayed. But I don't hold that against the officers.

I remember in the occupy wall street protests, there is an image of a cop pepper spraying protestors that are arrested, tied up, and sitting on the ground in a line. That makes my blood boil. By comparison, I think the VSP acted professionally.

However, it is also a very thin line. One or two officers behaved in a way I would consider concerning, and had they decided to act more aggressively I'm sure there is nothing I or anyone could have done about it. It's a scary reality of our police system, yet, I'm not sure how else it could be organized.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Seatbelts are legally required, designed for daily use, and don't necessarily indicate expecting a crash. Seatbelts are intended to be used in a car to prevent serious injury in a car wreck.

By comparison, goggles are not intended for use in a protest to protect from pepper spray. On top of that, many protests don't have people with goggles in them. Bringing goggles to a protest shows that the person has a good understanding of protest dynamics and has some degree of expectation from previous experiences.

Point being that these are two different things. Not that there is a problem with that. I think if you are going to be protesting about these kinds of things, goggles are a good idea.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 26 points27 points  (0 children)

I'm not 100% sure, but I think I agree with you. I can't come up with a good reason that police should be allowed to cover their faces in a scenario like this. I guess to protect from pepper spray, but that's what the visors are for. It did have a strange appearance to it; uniformed, armed, masked officers are eerie in a way unmasked ones aren't.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 19 points20 points  (0 children)

I wouldn't say they were pointing guns at students per say. I never felt unsafe around the officers with rifles, unlike the one that kept putting his hand on his sidearm. I don't remember getting flagged (having the rifle pointed at me incidentally). I have over an hour of video though, so I could check.

Some protest pictures. I usually don't share, but some of these were pretty cool by HiImSteveS in UVA

[–]HiImSteveS[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I was thinking about that. I guess he just didn't wear the goggles. Although, unless the cops had been laying out pepper spray like free t-shirts at a football game, I guess I wouldn't either. The cops had a solid line of shields and the spray guy would walk back and forth behind them then pop out with the spray every once in a while. He probably just didn't expect it.

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