UK Student Protests: Wheelchair-bound student dragged across the road by police officer, BBC defend

[Hosker]

It is extremely hard to see what is happening in that video. I'm sure they officers wouldn't have just done it randomly; there has to have been a reason.

 

[drbarno]

snip

But what could he have possibly done, you can see he is just sitting there, what possible threat could this hadicaped person have done to warrant being draggeda across the road.

In my opinion he might have done something, as the video is not that clear a the start and it doesn't show the before hand, but if he actually did something, it shouldn't warrant taking him from his means of transportation and dragging him across the floor.

I'm confused as to what you mean. If the kid did something that could have incited a riot, which would have resulted in property damage, and possibly even death, he doesn't deserve to dragged across the road? If he was a threat, there are much less reasonable ways they could have acted to stop him, like shooting him. I'm going to put my benifit of the doubt with the police on this one, they'd have to be pretty stupid to drag a cripple across the street at a riot full of college students with cell phones, if they didn't have a damn good reason.

What I was saying, and I may seem a bit repetitive, is that whatever he did, he did not deserve being dragged across the street. The police could have handled it in a much easier and peaceful fashion, but they chose the method that would have provoked the protestors near by them. I'm guessing that because most of the protests seemed to have been rather violent about this, they just we assuming the worst of him.

 

[KEM10]

I am in agreement that he might have been trying to start a riot. This isn't his first time being forcefully removed from his wheelchair by the police and is a political blogger who was described as "cyber radical" and even states in the interview that the fight needs to be taken into the streets.

Hell, in the first video the cameraman even said that he is a martyr. My bet was he was starting something and the police just wanted to get him out of there so they could disband it.

 

[BadassCyborg]

He has a disability, so instantly there has to be a controversy. How patronising. To be honest I don't even care.

 

[Polyintrinsic]

I love the way the BBC news anchor cuts him off everytime he tries to make a really substantial claim. It seems like every question posed to the guy is in some form trying to change blame from the police to him. Ask yourself, what is the point of BBC doing this interview if they aren't even going to cover both sides of the argument? Almost as bad as fox news IMO.

 

[hey_iknowyou]

Generally when these things crop up I try to side with the police. It is impossible to know exactly what happened without having been there, typically news reports won't be telling the full truth and I like to have faith in the police force as a whole that whatever was going on there was at least some form of valid reason for behaving as they did. I'd be interested to see the outcome if this went to court and was investigated properly. My bet is the kid wouldn't have a leg to stand on.....

 

[spartan231490]

snip
What I was saying, and I may seem a bit repetitive, is that whatever he did, he did not deserve being dragged across the street. The police could have handled it in a much easier and peaceful fashion, but they chose the method that would have provoked the protestors near by them. I'm guessing that because most of the protests seemed to have been rather violent about this, they just we assuming the worst of him.

I'm assuming the worst about him because the police considered him a threat.

Even if the man had been inciting the crowd, the police could have just pushed the wheelchair across the road. Dragging him from his chair was not necessary, and showed that the police at the scene were exercising very poor judgment. I know police hate student demonstrations because it's so easy for things to get out of hand in the chaos, but this is excessive force.

Off topic, I really wanted to hit that news anchor for the way he was trying to spin the situation.

Why was it excessive, how was the kid hurt any more badly than any other protester who became violent would have been? Because he's in a wheelchair it endangers his life to be removed from it, does it? is he a fish out of his wheelchair, so to speak?

Prove it. It's a one minute video, you have no proof as to what happened that caused the cop to act this way. For all we know, the cripple deserved it. He is a cop, if you can't trust him not to abuse cripples, how can you trust him to uphold justice and the law? Interesting philisophical question right there. Why do we allways assume the cop is at fault when one of these show's up, and not the other way around? My bet is on projection. We identify more with the non-cop, therefore we project ourselves onto the non-cop and think "I wouldn't have done anything wrong so it must be the cop's fault" sub-consciously at least. That's my two cents, not that I have any reasonable credentials for that to be taken as fact, but it IS my opinion.

Surely it would've been easier to move him on his wheelchair

"Surely it would've been easier to move him on his wheelchair," except that would have allowed him to continue whatever behavior they wanted to stop. The quickest way to stop whatever threat he posed, was to quickly restrain him physically so as to prevent him from doing whatever it is he was doing.

All other things beign equal, we should have faith in the officer of the law who had to pass whatever screening process, not some kid who just happened to be born into with a terrible disease. It isn't just healthy people who cause trouble and break the rules, sick people do it too.

 

[Polyintrinsic]

Generally when these things crop up I try to side with the police. It is impossible to know exactly what happened without having been there, typically news reports won't be telling the full truth and I like to have faith in the police force as a whole that whatever was going on there was at least some form of valid reason for behaving as they did. I'd be interested to see the outcome if this went to court and was investigated properly. My bet is the kid wouldn't have a leg to stand on.....

wow.....

 

[PatrickXD]

I found the skipping in the interview very aggravating.
OT: I don't think either side are totally in the 'right', in the end no serious harm was done so I don't see why it has been seen as such a big issue.

 

[Danzaivar]

The BBC are funded by the government so at every oppertunity they try to spin the situation in the police's favour.

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA, good one.

This kid is an idiot, the police who did this are idiots (who apparently want to lose their jobs and be vilified). This whole thing is just a frustrating exercise in showing how dumb the people of Britain are.

 

[CplDustov]

Prove it. It's a one minute video, you have no proof as to what happened that caused the cop to act this way. For all we know, the cripple deserved it. He is a cop, if you can't trust him not to abuse cripples, how can you trust him to uphold justice and the law?

I agree. So far I don't know enough to make a call on this one. But i think in that last part I've quoted is the key to what appears to be the current trend. It seems people no longer do trust the police to uphold justice or the law anymore. At times at least.

I'm reserving judgement too.

 

[spartan231490]

Generally when these things crop up I try to side with the police. It is impossible to know exactly what happened without having been there, typically news reports won't be telling the full truth and I like to have faith in the police force as a whole that whatever was going on there was at least some form of valid reason for behaving as they did. I'd be interested to see the outcome if this went to court and was investigated properly. My bet is the kid wouldn't have a leg to stand on.....

wow.....

I didn't notice that the first time I read that post, i just agreed with the overall message so I guess I wasn't motivated to try to find an ironic and most likely accidental pun in an attempt to discredit the poster. But now that you point it out, I think that is hilarious. Mostly because I believe that the poster is correct in his guess, but also because I'm not one of those polical correctness nutjob, I just actually believe that we should treat people the same. this allows me at jokes that make expense of both others and myself, and my life is better for it.

 

[ComicsAreWeird]

Ok, the video is a bit shakey and a lot of detail is lost, so i cant defend either. But it does look like the student did not pose a threat to them.
I also disliked the way he was interrogated by the BBC journalist. He seemed to be taking a side, and that is a no-no on objective reporting.

 

[One of Many]

Prove it. It's a one minute video, you have no proof as to what happened that caused the cop to act this way. For all we know, the cripple deserved it. He is a cop, if you can't trust him not to abuse cripples, how can you trust him to uphold justice and the law? Interesting philisophical question right there. Why do we allways assume the cop is at fault when one of these show's up, and not the other way around? My bet is on projection. We identify more with the non-cop, therefore we project ourselves onto the non-cop and think "I wouldn't have done anything wrong so it must be the cop's fault" sub-consciously at least. That's my two cents, not that I have any reasonable credentials for that to be taken as fact, but it IS my opinion.

And we have the tread winning post as the first post.

Honestly, the guy must have done something to warrant the officer's attention and that rather poor video doesn't have enough information about the event.

 

[MgalekgoloHunter]

The BBC are funded by the government so at every oppertunity they try to spin the situation in the police's favour.

Actually no, the BBC is funded by a 'license fee' that everyone pays along with their other taxes. It's just that the News team (during this interview at least, it would be unfair to generalise that all the News teams are like this) happen to be trying their best to discredit the assaulted man in a wheelchair.

 

[Wicky_42]

snip
What I was saying, and I may seem a bit repetitive, is that whatever he did, he did not deserve being dragged across the street. The police could have handled it in a much easier and peaceful fashion, but they chose the method that would have provoked the protestors near by them. I'm guessing that because most of the protests seemed to have been rather violent about this, they just we assuming the worst of him.

I'm assuming the worst about him because the police considered him a threat.

... I like to have faith in the police force as a whole that whatever was going on there was at least some form of valid reason for behaving as they did...

It is extremely hard to see what is happening in that video. I'm sure they officers wouldn't have just done it randomly; there has to have been a reason.

So... much... naivity - can't understand this blind faith in the status quo. "All police are nice guys who only use violence against violence" - wake up, Jesus -.-U

snip

But what could he have possibly done, you can see he is just sitting there, what possible threat could this hadicaped person have done to warrant being draggeda across the road.

In my opinion he might have done something, as the video is not that clear a the start and it doesn't show the before hand, but if he actually did something, it shouldn't warrant taking him from his means of transportation and dragging him across the floor.

I'm confused as to what you mean. If the kid did something that could have incited a riot, which would have resulted in property damage, and possibly even death, he doesn't deserve to dragged across the road? If he was a threat, there are much less reasonable ways they could have acted to stop him, like shooting him.

Or, you know, they could have arrested him? If he was actually doing anything illegal and warranting of action. I mean, he wasn't in a crowd or anything, he was just sat there. NO excuse to physically abuse him. Angry words at a demo are no excuse to do that - he was no danger, no threatening posture (from a wheel chair, lol), did no violence himself, NO excuse. If you advocate the sort of behaviour that that police man exhibited, you're advocating a most basic level of thuggery from the people that are meant to be protecting us and UPHOLDING our rights. They aren't meant to be inciting violence and fear in the crowd - that's a violation our right to protest.

 

[Wicky_42]

snip

But what could he have possibly done, you can see he is just sitting there, what possible threat could this hadicaped person have done to warrant being draggeda across the road.

He could have been trying to incite a riot/violence or anything like that.

Yea. Because any amount of goading always justifies beating on a guy with cerebral palsy.

Don't even try to justify this. Unless the fucker was holding a gun this was a 100% overreaction.

I don't have anything against the police. The majority of these people have been stuck between a rock and hard place, just trying to do the best they can with a bullshit situation. But there is no explanation on this Earth that can take away from the stupidity of what that particular officer did.

My God, thank you! Someone else who doesn't think the disabled activist 'got what was coming to him' by having a different political opinion. Anyone would think these threads were from Cold War era USA (or maybe even the USSR), the way people support and encourage oppression sometimes :/

 

[jedizero]

And people in Europe complain about how America is totally the worst country in 'teh world!11!!'

In America, if someone did this, they'd end up crucified before the American public.

Instead the news are trying to goddamned GLORIFY THE COP.

I'm sorry, I don't give a shit what the kid did, He's in a wheel chair, he's unable to do much more. You can even see him being wailed on with a baton while he's on the ground, struggling to do *anything*.


And you people are sitting here going 'oh well he TOTALLY DESERVED IT MAN.'

And apparently America is the one perpetuating horrible crimes against humanity.