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BEYOND THE ONIONS: Police brutality or necessary force? A lesson in taking things in context
The comments and outcry that followed reached a crescendo late Thursday evening (Oct. 15), as thousands had seen the video, heard the news reports, and gave thought to what they believed to have transpired on that afternoon in the halls of the Social Sciences building at the University of Western Ontario campus. But despite all the posturing of Western officials, the campus top cop, and yes, those who were quick to cry foul against the boys in blue, the truth, the essence of what really transpired has escaped us all, lost somewhere in the effort to point fingers or justify the actions of the six officers – four university cops and two, Johnny-come-lately, London police officers. What really transpired can only be found in the minds of that lone suspect, who may or may not have been intoxicated, who may or may not have been a danger to others, and of course those six officers who, by donning that uniform and that badge, were obligated to protect and serve, to uphold the law – only within those minds does the truth somewhere lie. We, as a society, can only "rage against the machine" and hope that somehow, someway, the moral wheels of justice – those that do not turn predictably in the court rooms of the land – will gain a voice of reckoning and right the wrongs that so many see so often and of which so few do so little. As Edmund Burke said, "The only thing necessary for the triumph [of evil] is for good men to do nothing." This much-used quote seems chameleon-like in its uses, but fits well in the incident of this past week. It raises the questions: Was the suspect who was, for lack of a better word, beaten by those six police officers, the personification of "evil," therefore giving those six officers the status of "good men" in relation to this perceived context? Or, was the suspect who was, for lack of a better word, beaten by those six officers, the personification of the target of "evil," and are we, or those who have the power, the "good men" who may or may not take action to right this possibly perceived wrong? Context is a tricky thing. History is always written by the victors. Terrorists today could become the heroic revolutionaries of tomorrow. Context is not objective by any standard, but is deemed and categorized by one influence or the other, be it the police, school officials, or the voices of those who bare witness. Context be damned – this man was down, clearly incapacitated, with six large police officers on top of him – yet he was kneed repeatedly in the back, punched repeatedly in the head, struck repeatedly with a night stick. He was arrested in every sense of the word. Anything else was simply and plainly excessive. So… where are the good men now? That's all for now from Beyond the Onions. -- -- -- -- Ross McDermott is the editorial director at LondonTopic.ca. Opinions are those of the author. E-MAIL: Ross McDermott RELATED STORY: UPDATE: VIDEO - Suspect in violent UWO arrest had barricaded himself inside an office |
| Maybe the UWO police were somewhat excessive. Maybe the 220 pound man was overpowering them. We weren't there and the video does not paint a black and white picture. The problem here is a man tried to fight against six police officers. If he got hurt, it\'s his fault. I wouldn\'t go out and try and pick a fight with six large men, cops or not. |
| By: Jeff on 10/19/2009 |
| Your last few sentences say it all. Since when does it take 6 huge men to arrest one man? Unless this man was on a very strong illegal drug, it should not have taken more than two officers. Are they not trained to apprehend a suspect? Are we going to have to call six officers to arrest one person every time?? Are they going to have to use brute force every time? No, we do not know the exact circumstance here, so why doesn't someone tell us!!! Let's hear both sides of the story instead of all the interpretations. |
| By: Just A Reader on 10/19/2009 |
| I agree, let's wait until the full story is told by all sides before jumping to conclusions. I agree from the short video clip we have some 6 Police vs 1 Citizen. I agree it appeared the Police were the ones using force, and not the Citizen - at least from the clip. What happened before this that lead up to this? No one knows just yet. I agree with Jeff's comment, I wouldn't try to pick a fight with 6 people, cops or not. Clearly the Police were there that day for a reason - and didn't just happen upon that 6'0" 220lb Citizen for no reason. Lets hear the whole story. |
| By: F. Timmins on 10/22/2009 |
| Only in the movies is it a one person job to put handcuffs on an uncooperative suspect. A small female can be a handful for 3 large male police. A full grown male can do a lot of damage throwing elbows. Hate to have a law officer loose an eye to a drunk. I have seen 5 cops put a fellow, off his schizoprenia meds, in a paddy wagon. He did not want to go and they did not want to hurt him. They could not get cuffs on him. Saw a big guy not do as he was told and have 6 London cops administer 2 cans of pepper spray and multiple hits. He went down fast and was cuffed in seconds. If you raise a hand to a law officer you get what you deserve. Raise hand to bouncer or security you're asking for it. |
| By: Howard on 10/22/2009 |
| I hope this isn't considered to be 'a model arrest' -used as a teaching video. All the same, I am certain this is a typical arrest - which is more worrisome and one that has been declared as such by 'the authorizing officer'. It was also inferred by him that if you don't like it - just look the other way -myob, in other words - and above all be cooperative. The very fact that it is frightening, among other things, is why it must be protested against. If you are thinking: 'Whew, I'm glad that wasn't me' is ample fodder for protest. Why? Because, of course, we know it could be us. Or our brother, or son, friend, or.... There are no guarantees that one'sbrain won't short circuit. No matter how truly wonderful we are. Our bodies do amazing things without us having to lift a finger. But when it goes awry - we may appear intoxicated, rude, even threatening, and heaven forbid: DISORIENTED due to really high blood sugar levels if diabetic, or psychosis, or predomal, or several other physiological situations occur- look out . The cops are 'there for you'. If you think this could never happen to you (because you are 'good') - think again. |
| By: L.B. on 10/23/2009 |
| Howard, I work in the security industry, often alone on the sites I am on, and have often had to single handed arrest someone, so maybe learn what you speak of before spouting garbage, police are taught to take suspects down alone, it isn't the preferred method, but they are taught it, but these guys simply went too far. |
| By: Scott on 11/03/2009 |
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