LET me inhale-exhale first and place my (outside looking in) objectivity to crush whatever subjective drama that I harbor in me. <>I am not new to deaths in the streets where police (military, riot cops) confront protesters or civilians. I am a veteran of dictatorship-days tempests, both as a journalist and activist. Philippines, 1980s-1990s. These happened before my eyes, even. <>But I am new to this kind of street violence or public shootings, in America. From 1999 Columbine to this recent incident in Minneapolis, perpetrated by civilians or law enforcement. So I’d tackle this in a different but related context.
In Martial Law Philippines or during my coverage of the countryside war in Asia, my primal response to a person (police, soldier, Communist rebel, civilian) with a gun pointed at me and who yelled: “Stop!” I’d stop. Common sense. Even in actual war, when a combatant who drew the gun first yelled “Stop!” to the enemy combatant, the latter stopped and raised his/her hand in surrender. (Of course, per mass shootings in America, the shooter doesn’t yell stop, so you better run or hide or whatever. Save your life.)
In many cases or videos of “cop shoots civilian” (or takes down, choke-holds, a civilian) in the U.S. that I saw, the victims were resisting or “moving/running,” regardless of the cop's weapon/s drawn (or holstered). I didn’t really see these police-resistance or outright defiance in “military ruled” Philippines. Yet many soldiers in dictatorship Philippines went on mowing down protesters, in full view of the public and the media. More tragic.
So my question on impulse, in the Minneapolis shooting: Why didn’t the victim stop? Clearly, the cherry-picked video (always edited as in others) tells me, the ICE operatives were telling the driver to stop. Or by sheer instinct, when law enforcement approaches you, you gotta stop moving. Checkpoints, random traffic stops etcetera. Of course, given the heat of the moment as fueled by the eerie divide or hate-Trump howl in the current-day U.S., cops or ICE or law enforcers are told to exercise “maximum tolerance.”
But “maximum tolerance,” many times, flies away as adrenaline gets the better of the police. Yet I can’t really judge that since I am not a cop or a rebel combatant or a soldier (I don’t even own a gun). With rage and anger thrown all over ICE faces wherever they go, as they attend to their job, that “maximum tolerance” mojo is really tough to comply with. (A major reason why I don’t own a gun is–I have a short fuse.)
Anyhow, a full-investigation (of the Minneapolis tragedy) is warranted. If I am Defense or Prosecution, or whatever, I’d like to see the full, unedited video that led to the ICE operatives approaching the SUV and then firing. I won’t use the videos that are splashed all over social media but I’d enjoin the public to come forward in case they have a full, longer video. Then, the obligatories: The ICE agent’s mental state etc etcetera.
In a calmer voice, I’d like to say, an ICE agent–not President Trump–shot an American in America. That matters a lot per public perception of an individual crime or particular police-public engagement. Meanwhile, although that isn’t as simple-linear as the typical mass shooting here by a disturbed person, the mental placement of a law enforcer matters, especially in these days of hate and disquiet. Of course, there’s “command responsibility” as in careful deployment of ICE agents in “hot areas.” (Minnesota is currently hot, also because of the corruption probe, not just because of the unpopularity of ICE to this side of the divide.) What I am saying is internal affairs (IA) investigates their own, too.
Looking in from the outside again, my overall take on this is exactly what my dad used to scold me about when I insisted on going out as protests burned the streets of Manila in those years: “Don’t go out. Stay at home. Don’t get shot.” ☮️🗽☮️
On the subject of the ICE agent’s shooting of a civilian.
Response to an FB friend’s question.
MY reflex then (in front of soldiers in Manila's Martial Law) and my instinct these days in America (when caught amidst an intense street protest, cops all over): Comply and heed once told to stop by law enforcement with a gun. I was in fact told to freeze and pinned to the ground by cops in 1999's Battle of Seattle and LA protests in Obama days, though I was there as a journalist, not a protester. Same with the Occupy days in NYC in 2011. Cops stopped me and asked for an ID. I complied. Why would I run? Be shot? They have a gun!
As a protest organizer in the past, I was vehemently against engaging riot police and part of our duty as dissent leaders (as well as the police) was to advise the public to avoid the ruckus or noise where we are (something untoward may happen). As protesters, we had medics and first-aid people. My strong words to protesters who were my responsibility: "Don't dare the cops. Yield. We'll deal with circumstances later but don't challenge the man with the gun."
Based on the Minneapolis videos that I saw, the ICE agents approached the black SUV. By sheer reflex, if I was the driver, I'd stop. Same with being flagged down, just stay put. The shooting was uncalled for but given all the wayward adrenaline of the situation, people yelling and stuff, and a black van whose driver refused to comply, the ICE guy shot. As I said, uncalled for. But what if? These happen a lot, of course.
There was even one that I covered when a cop shot a teenager (a boy) who brandished a toy gun, mentally-bothered victims who posed danger to bystanders, victims who died resisting arrest. This ICE guy will surely lose his job or be sent to jail, I expect, for the quickie response or lack of maximum tolerance. But this case isn't a linear "cop shot civilian" case. ☮️🗽☮️
