WTF!!! #DHS Tells #Police That Common #Protest Activities Are ‘Violent Tactics’
DHS is urging law enforcement to treat even #skateboarding and #livestreaming as signs of violent intent during a protest, turning everyday behavior into a pretext for police action.
By Dell Cameron, Jul 10, 202
"The #DepartmentOfHomelandSecurity is urging local police to consider a wide range of protest activity as violent tactics, including mundane acts like riding a #bike or livestreaming a police encounter, WIRED has learned.
"WIRED has made this article free for all to read because it is primarily based on reporting from Freedom of Information Act requests [#FOIA]. Please consider subscribing to support our journalism.
"Threat bulletins issued during last month’s '#NoKings' #protests warn that the US government’s aggressive immigration raids are almost certain to accelerate domestic unrest, with DHS saying there’s a 'high likeliness' more Americans will soon turn against the agency, which could trigger #confrontations near federal sites.
"Blaming intense media coverage and backlash to the US military deployment in #LosAngeles, DHS expects the #demonstrations to 'continue and grow across the nation' as #protesters focused on other issues shift to #immigration, following a broad 'embracement of #AntiICE messaging.'
"The bulletins—first obtained by the national security nonprofit #PropertyOfThePeople through public records requests—warn that officers could face assaults with fireworks and improvised weapons: #paint-filled fire extinguishers, smoke grenades, and projectiles like #bottles and #rocks.
"At the same time, the guidance urges officers to consider a range of #nonviolent behavior and common #ProtestGear—like #masks, #flashlights, and #cameras—as potential precursors to violence, telling officers to prepare 'from the point of view of an adversary.'
"Protesters on #bicycles, #skateboards, or even 'on foot' are framed as potential 'scouts' conducting reconnaissance or searching for 'items to be used as weapons.' #Livestreaming is listed alongside '#doxxing' as a 'tactic' for 'threatening' police. Online posters are cast as ideological #recruiters—or as participants in 'surveillance sharing.'
"One list of 'violent tactics' shared by the Los Angeles–based Joint Regional Intelligence Center—part of a post-9/11 fusion network—includes both protesters’ attempts to avoid identification and efforts to identify police. The memo also alleges that face recognition, normally a tool of law enforcement, was used against officers.
"Vera Eidelman, a senior staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union [#ACLU], says the government has no business treating #constitutionally protected activities—like #observing or #documenting police—as threats.
"#DHS did not respond to a request for comment."
Read more:
https://www.wired.com/story/dhs-tells-police-that-common-protest-activities-are-violent-tactics/
Gus Posey