Why Not Call the Cops

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That is horrifying footage. Kicking her belongings away, leaving her in a heap on the sidewalk. Handling her like that after a fall is asking to paralyze her!

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Corrupt cops are the only criminals I support the death penalty for. They’re given so much power, and when they abuse it they need to be put down like rabid animals. We should hold them to the highest standards and the harshest penalties.

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LASD shot LAPD with rubber bullets and tear gas during No Kings protest
Radio transmissions reveal officers frantically shouting “hold your goddamn crossfire” as the joint operation broke down at Saturday’s downtown rally.

https://lapublicpress.org/2025/06/ice-police-protest-lapd-lasd-tear-gas/

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They keep doing that don’t they?

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Something I’ve been considering lately, and I’m asking this very seriously: have there ever been any examples of police, however you wish to define police, showing up at a protest in riot gear where they were ultimately on the right side of history?

I’m not saying there’s never been a police presence to defend the progressive side of things, but I really can’t find any immediate examples of that sort of heavily armed and armored defense for any socially just causes. I can find examples of “deputy escorts” for school integration (e.g., Ruby Bridges, et al), but these look far more like Barney Fife (or at least Andy) than they do like the RoboCop wannabes we see defending the bigots.

(And yes, I’ll freely acknowledge that there’s a bit of unfair comparison of baselines here. The lousy Pinkertons that showed up to kill Union protestors in the early 1900s look downright quaint compares to the municipal war-machines deployed today.)

So am I missing some? Any at all?

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That might be because they tend to be there to protect buildings / property, instead of the people protesting as members of society fighting for justice.

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The biker gangs that show up to protect kids having to testify in court against their abusers?

It’s a great question. How often do men do power cosplay in order to protect those less strong?

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I love those bikers and many of those stories have made me cry, but to me that’s an example of good citizens stepping in when the cops (as an organized, municipal group) aren’t doing something that needs to be done. (De-fund the police, redirect the money to better uses, etc.)

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Yeah, that certainly covers a hell of a lot of it, doesn’t it? (How many Chicago cops does it take to stand around and protect a Tesla dealership?)

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Zero, unless overtime is offered, then 15

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Following up on my own question, I can think of some instances where riot police were attacked by bigots, January 6th, for example, but even there, the police weren’t initially there to oppose them. Or at least, that’s how I’m seeing things. I really am trying hard to think of other solid examples.

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The police were there to protect the Capitol building and its mostly wealthy inhabitants

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Ah, right, how could I forget that? You’re 100% correct. I think it was that moment of seeing some images of riot gear vs J6 terrorists that threw me off.

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Technically the army, but Little Rock.

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