The civil unrest takes a new turn
Once again, the NYPD has been thrusted into the national spotlight with negative publicity after a grand jury failed to indict officer Daniel Pantaleo who was filmed choking Staten Island’s Eric Garner causing his death. Thousands of protestors have swarmed New York City and other places across the nation to voice their frustrations with police brutality and lack of accountability. Various athletes, musicians and other celebs have been chiming in as well. Most recently, over 100 Congressional staffers walked out of their jobs on Washington to protest the grand jury decisions in Ferguson, MO and NYC.
One group is planning to counter all of the civil unrest with a demonstration of their own. This one in support of the NYPD. A Facebook page was created letting New Yorkers know that there will be a pro police rally on Friday December 19th in front of City Hall in lower Manhattan. The page uses the hashtags #ThankYouNYPD and #BlueLivesMatter, a pun the popular hashtag #BlackLivesMatter. The creator of the page claims that there have been several attempts to hack the page while there are duplicate pages being created telling New Yorkers that the rally has been cancelled.
The statement read:
“SOMEONE IS TRYING TO SHUT US DOWN BY HARASSING PEOPLE. WE ARE NOT WEAK. WE DO NOT LIVE IN FEAR. WE HAVE SURVIVED 9/11, WE WILL SURVIVE LITTLE BULLIES AND THEIR MEANINGLESS WORDS. IT’S STILL ON. KEEP SPREADING THE WORD”—it’s still planned for December 19th at 5 p.m., outside City Hall. Hooray.
As expected, the #ThankYouNYPD hashtag has taken on a life of its own on Twitter.
#ThankYouNYPD for frisking my 12yo brother & his classmates on their way home from JHS #BlackLivesMatter
— Chelle (@divatweetypie) December 11, 2014
#ThankYouNYPD for the chance to educate thousands of people on your history of systemic racism and violence. pic.twitter.com/G0wEDkbFV8
— The People's Library (@OWSLibrary) December 11, 2014
#ThankYouNYPD for beating many of my friends from Occupy so badly they now have seizure disorders.
— Cassandra Complex (@bombecerise) December 11, 2014
#ThankYouNYPD for your consistently ethical conduct and dedication to equal justice under the law! pic.twitter.com/5S6V08LtX7
— Emily Robinson (@See_Em_Play) December 11, 2014
