Once again, the whole world was watching. But Chicago didn't devolve into 1968 redux. It wasn't the combustible World Trade Organization meeting in Seattle, either.I actually went downtown on Saturday of NATO weekend but not because I wanted to protest, or at least see a protest, because I had class. I was actually pretty worried about going. I thought maybe it might be too crazy down there combined with the Cubs vs. Sox crosstown classic going on, it just didn't seem worth it. However, I also had a feeling it was getting over hyped as the media was practically sobbing about it on TV/online for two solid weeks leading up to the summit. I intended to write something here about it prior to but rather than give into dark speculation as is my usual want I decided to wait it out and post some of my thoughts once the event was good and done. Once I knew the "black-block" tactic was, or was not employed, and that the media was doing their usual fear mongering song and dance.
By that barometer, Chicago's turn as host of the NATO summit could be declared a success.
Protests got rowdy but not wildly out of hand. Security was tight but the city wasn't on lockdown, allowing the business of the summit to proceed. Commuters were inconvenienced but by and large could get where they needed to go — and many decided where they needed to go was nowhere near downtown.
And thank the motha' fuckin' maker that nothing too serious went down. I really have found myself of two minds on this whole thing as the liberal in me thinks the protests are valid, justified, and all involved have every right to peaceably assemble and make their non-violent statements and so on and so forth. The liberal in me is also concerned about the pseudo police state mentality Chicago has adopted and, for that matter, the country as a whole has adopted. The way that the "war on terror" and the creation of the homeland security complex has combined with and complemented the already existing, bloated and terrible "war on drugs" backed with a nice dose of the industrial prison corporations. Then all of that is seasoned with; warrant less spying, illegal incarcerations, home invasions, citizen assassinations condoned and/or conducted by government just to name a few things. Leaving out the expanding militarization of police forces in general by way of storm trooper armor, incapacitating technologies (stun guns, pepper sprays, et. al.), and increasing use of unmanned cameras (not to mention civilian drone programs coming to an airspace near you soon) there really is a lot for Joe Citizen to worry about. It's bloated government that both sides ought to be worried about.
That all said, it's hard to fault the city for taking the course of action it did. It would be ludicrous to not have the jacked up presence because no one wants what happened in Seattle in the nineties to happen here. So, you take the good with the bad, I guess. Though, one could argue the Chicago and state PD seemed ready for an all out war. I saw the Coast Guard in the Chicago River and for the life of me I can't figure out what the machine guns were for.
Were the riot brigades going to force violent protests the sides of the bridge to be shot up by these boats? Who knows?! At least they didn't have to do any shooting, no burning, no flung shit and that I am grateful for the all the police and the work they had to do this past weekend. The police had to work 12 hour shifts and they have been panning for this for a year or more and "police state worries" aside, I am grateful for their hard work and glad they succeeded in keeping the city safe. I just can't help but also flip the coin and ask just how free are we really when you need this level of militarization?
Not to mention, and I am not claiming ALL cops are like this, but a lot of them see these protest as an opportunity to bust some heads. Beat some hippies, crush some liberals...Hell, I know a fireman who said those people should be shot for making them have to do all this riot stuff. That they should just show up and kill all the protesters because, I guess, they are no good, dirty, unemployed lay-a-bouts who are nusy holding "F the police" rallies and dare to march in direct opposition to the law. Apparently those people can cram their so-called "rights" up their ass with a stun baton for good measure. Again, I am of two minds, I can see both sides of this fence and there are no better answers that I can come up with.
What the hell can I do?
