This slideshow is a compilation of photographs showing scenes of
police deployments beginning with the World Trade Organization protests in Seattle, Washington in 1999 to the most recent
OCCUPY WALL STREET protests in New York City,
through September 17, 2012.
QUESTION AUTHORITY
It is often said that "a picture is worth a thousand words"... at the moment we are compelled to find words that would begin to answer the questions that these photographs pose ... the implications of these haunting images cannot be simply grasped or routinely dismissed...
What are the consequences of heavily armed domestic police forces in our towns and cities, in our neighborhoods and on our streets?
Who are these police forces protecting?
Who is the enemy?
Who gives the orders?
Are they accountable?
What happens psychologically to those whose job it is to use force on civilians, in so many cases, badly hurting people who pose no threat to them?
What happens psychologically to the rest of us?
Are we safely free to assemble?
Are we truly free to speak out?
Why do the police have more access to public space and freedom to assemble then we do?
Why are they disrupting our actions?
Should we question their authority?
Do we have a right to power?
How do we access our power...?