The Spare Gary

10/02/2023

Despite initial statements from the police that there was no bodycam footage of the encounter that resulted in the killing of Forest Defender Tortuguita, bodycam footage has now been release. The footage confirms that the officers directly involved in the killing were no wearing bodycams, but the encounter can be heard through audio of the footage that has been released. What appears to be the sound of an overhead drone can also be heard, suggesting there may be drone footage of the encounter. The attorney for Tortuguita's family released the following statement in the wake of the bodycam footage:

"The videos released by the City of Atlanta raise more questions than they answer, but confirm the family's worst fears that Manuel was massacred in a hail of gunfire. The videos also show the clearing of the forest was a paramilitary operation that set the stage for the excessive use of force. The videos also call into question previous reports regarding the events leading to the police shooting of Manuel Paez Teran. The GBI’s refusal to provide the family access to the information in its possession continues to sow mistrust in it, particularly in light of the selective—and so far unsubstantiated—narrative it has put forth. The family of Manuel Paez Teran continues to call on the GBI and DeKalb County Medical Examiner's Office to agree to a face-to-face meeting in which they share all the evidence collected in the investigation to date."

Radio chatter audible in the bodycam footage further suggests that the narrative that Tortutguita shot and injured an officer in this encounter was a lie, as one officer can be heard saying “You fu**ed your own officer up," apparently substantiating what other Forest Defenders have been saying all along, that the officer was injured by friendly fire. This appears to support allegations of a cover up on the part of the police, and has sparked wider coverage of the fatal encounter.

Nonetheless, more coverage that questions the official police narrative is necessary. Of the mainstream outlets that have covered the incident and the subsequent protests in Atlanta, which resulted in property damage to banks funding Cop City and the burning of a police car, none have questioned the narrative around the killing of Tortuguita. Some mainstream outlets have gone so far as to call Forest Protectors and other activists, protesters, and organizers domestic terrorists when the reality is that charges brought against them amount to little more than trespassing and vandalism. Where reporting is inaccurate or omits details in favor of police and to the detriment of the truth, we should be bombarding those outlets with complaints and corrections. Outlets that continue to fail to report on the Stop Cop City movement should be bombarded with questions as to why they're not providing coverage, considering the national and global implications of Cop City. Where media outlets fail to address the historical context of Cop City and the implications of building a "crowd control" training facility in the wake of the 2020 uprisings, we should bombarding them with questions and corrections on the narrow scope of their reporting and analysis.

Keep talking about this issue. If you see this (you may not, these posts are not favored by the algorithm) share it. Tell people about this issue, and why it's important. The best thing we can do to support Forest Defenders right now is break through the tight control of the narrative the State has been holding. The cracks are appearing in both their control and the narrative itself. Don't stop chipping away at it.

Sources in comments.

Defend the Atlanta Forest

06/02/2023

An independent autopsy ordered by Tortuguita's family has been released. The autopsy revealed they were shot -at least- 13 times by police. The officers involved have still not been identified, and civil rights lawyers are now working with Tortuguita's family in demanding the release of any video or audio recording of the encounter and transparency from the police department.

Environmental activists continue to stress that the impacts to neighboring black communities -- sound pollution from gunfire and other ammunitions disrupting daily life, increased risk of flooding and heat waves, both coming with elevated risks of property damage, sickness, and death -- are expressions of environmental racism and have not been accounted for by the city. They also continue to stress that the Cop City project was proposed in the wake of the 2020 uprisings, in a clear bid to get more efficient at putting down political dissent. It's important to remember this facility will not only be used by police departments in Georgia -- at least 50% of people using the facility are predicted to be from out of state, including foreign entities such as police and military agents from Israel. The building of cop city is undeniably linked with the intention of future violence against political dissidents globally, something which seems to take a back seat in most of the reporting on Tortuguita's death. In the meantime, forest protectors and their allies point out that Tortuguita's death is an example of the violence Cop City is meant to facilitate.

Today Tortuguita's family held a press conference demanding transparency from the police department, which had previously been unresponsive to the family's many questions and demands for answers. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation now claim an investigation into the incident is ongoing but continue to decline the release of further information.

Slowly but surely more media outlets are beginning to pick up the story. This is a story that should be getting significantly more attention, as how it plays out potentially has dire implications for the future of environmental activism at a moment in history when climate change is harming more and more communities globally, and governments broadly continue to fail in providing adequate leadership on an issue that threatens all life on earth. Demand of your local news outlets that they report on this story, and the implications of it for local communities both effected by climate crises and potentially effected by police departments trained in political repression at cop city.

Sources linked in comments.

Defend the Atlanta Forest

02/02/2023

There have been calls for independent probes into the extrajudicial ex*****on of forest defender Tortuguita in Atlanta, GA. It remains unclear whether such an investigation will happen. Despite cops claiming there isn't any body cam footage of the fatal encounter, photos of the officers involved appear to show the presence of body cams on the officers. In addition, other protesters dispute the cops version of events. Defend the Atlanta Forest

24/01/2023

Last week a forest defender named Tortuguita was murdered by police. The police claim they shot in self defense but have provided no evidence to support this claim, also claiming that there is no body cam footage of the incident. Other forest defenders in the area believe it is likely that the officer injured in this incident was shot either by other officers or by himself, an event which would be pretty par for the course given how frequently cops harm themselves in their confusion.

Since Tortuguita's murder, activists and organizers across the country have been hosting vigils and marches in his honor. All of this has gone extremely under-reported, especially since the murder of an environmental activist is described as "'unprecedented' in the history of US environmental activism, according to experts." Others have pointed out that the escalation of violence by the state against environmental activists in Atlanta sets a dangerous precedent moving forward.

Protests erupted in Atlanta in which at least once police vehicle was set on fire while banks known to be funding cop city were targeted for broken windows, and other cop vehicles also had windows smashed. As far as I can tell 6 people were arrested in connection with the protests, but it's unclear whether these individuals were involved in any vandalism or simply found nearby.
It's important to not that construction of cop city was proposed in the wake of the 2020 uprisings with the specific intent of building a center for "crowd control training." This proposal was passed by the city against overwhelming opposition by the community, opposition that has remained strong despite the city consistently disregarding the people's wishes. Folks involved in organizing and resistance efforts against the project point out that this training center is clearly designed to increase the efficiency of police in putting down future uprisings and outbursts of political dissent. The destruction of such a large green space will also notably effect local black communities who will feel the brunt of the environmental impact of that destruction, which could include a great increase in flooding and related damage in the area. This is one of many examples of what environmental racism looks like.
There is nothing about the cop city project which represents safety for the people. Construction will actively endanger local black communities, play in to increasing local climate catastrophes, and has been opposed by local communities from day one.
Construction will increase the city heat island effect in the area, putting communities at higher risk of increased deaths and illnesses associated with increasing summer temperatures. The removal of the forest also increases risk of deaths, illnesses, and damage caused by flooding as the forest itself is a buffer and sort of "sponge" for rainwater. The facility itself is clearly intended to increase efficiency of putting down political dissent.

Cop city is a danger to the local communities and everyone in the country who could be impacted by the precedents it sets -- namely, political dissidents, activists, and organizers. One person has given their life trying to protect communities so far, and the city of Atlanta shows no sign of slowing down their violence against the remaining occupied protesters or anyone else engaging in activism against cop city, including leveraging domestic terrorism charges against activists and organizers.

The fact that this is being as underreported as it is, that so many people seem unaware of what's happening in Atlanta and that the primary narrative elevated around this story are those shaped and controlled by the police and the people pushing this project, is scary. Absolute control of the narrative, demonizing protesters, and limiting the spread of misinformation only serves to ensure that the powerful people behind projects like this don't face even the expectation of accountability. It protects people who are eager to wield and abuse their power to subjugate already vulnerable people.

Talk about this as often as you can.

Defend the Atlanta Forest

24/01/2023

Monday, January 23, 2023
Defend the Atlanta Forest has received the following submitted statement:

As health care workers, we strongly condemn the repeated escalation of police violence in their interactions with members of the public protesting the construction of Cop City. On various instances, in both the streets of Atlanta as well as in the Weelaunee Forest/Intrenchment Creek Park which is under threat of destruction, police have used violence including reports of toxic chemical irritants such as tear gas, rubber bullets and now live ammunition which most recently resulted in the police killing of one of the forest defenders, Manuel ‘Tortuguita’ Teran. A year after police in the U.S. killed more people than any prior year since records started to be tracked in 2013, we recognize violence perpetrated by police to be harmful to public health. We are also concerned by the detentions and the charges of domestic terrorism levied at individuals arrested while protesting the destruction of the forest. This fits within the context of a disturbing pattern and threat to public health whereby the USA has one of the highest incarceration rates in the world; perpetuated by a judicial and legislative system that targets Black and Indigenous peoples, migrants, those living in poverty, those who are unhoused, as well as environmental and social activists.

The construction of Cop City will not solve a government’s failures to listen to the wishes of members of the community, its failure to stop the widening gap between rich and poor, the lack of affordable housing, the negative effects of gentrification and racism, or the poor and unequal access to nutritious food, healthcare and mental health services. As physicians, we recognize that these failures have negative consequences on the public’s mental and physical health. Instead of strengthening community health, Cop City will be a dangerous attempt to invest in harmful and violent solutions, strengthening the corporate and political powers that seek profit over the well-being of the people, while simultaneously eroding and transforming natural and public spaces into privately owned property. The public health evidence for developing healthy and thriving communities strongly opposes the expansion of policing and its subsequent violence. All Atlanta communities deserve more life affirming investments, not those that value private property over human life.

For the well-being of the city and its residents, it is imperative that all police forces cease their continued escalation and violent activity by permanently withdrawing from the forest. We call on Georgia State University to end its support of the Cop City project and also the Georgia International Law Enforcement Exchange (GILEE) project. We also call on Atlanta mayor Andre Dickens, the Atlanta city council and the Dekalb County government to withdraw from all plans regarding the construction of Cop City; and for the Dekalb County government to withdraw from the land swap with Ryan Millsap and instead keep Intrenchment Creek Park a public park. We also call on Brasfield & Gorrie to end their contract with the Atlanta Police Foundation and cease all construction that furthers the destruction of the forest which has and will harm the community and the public health.

Signed,
Michel Khoury, MD, Co-director of Georgia Human Rights Clinic

Amy Zeidan, MD, Co-director of Georgia Human Rights Clinic

Mark Spencer, MD, Co-Leader, Internal Medicine Advocacy Group

Suhaib Abaza, MD, Co-founder, Campaign Against Racism ATL chapter

Social Medicine Consortium

As health care workers, we strongly condemn the repeated escalation of police violence in their interactions with members of the public protesting the construction of Cop City.

24/06/2022

Biden telling people to protest peacefully = telling people to accept and be complicit in their own oppression.

24/06/2022

does not want people living in this country have rights

01/06/2022

BLM activists leading the struggle for Justice for Patrick Lyoya were arrested on their way to City Commissioners meeting, and four Black leaders are charged with felony charges. We need every social justice organization, union, and other community and progressive organizations to show their solidarity. https://www.leftvoice.org/blm-activists-in-grand-rapids-face-felony-charges-arrested-day-before-anniversary-of-george-floyds-murder/

BLM activists leading the struggle for Justice for Patrick Lyoya were arrested on their way to City Commissioners meeting, and four Black leaders are charged with felony charges. We need every social justice organization, union, and other community and progressive organizations to show their solidar...

28/05/2022

A lot of people are shocked and dismayed that the police in Uvalde did nothing while an active shooter slaughtered children that were trapped in a school and calling 911 for help. People have been fed a rhetoric that the police are "on the front lines" doing dangerous work to keep them safe -- but the reality is that the police are not legally obligated to intervene in violent situations. They are not legally obligated to protect anyone. That rhetoric is a party line to secure the public approval they need to continue to militarize unchecked. It's just manipulation, nothing more.

09/05/2022

A previous iteration of this post was slapped with a fact check claiming it's false, when only one detail (which does not falsify everything communicated in the tweets) is inaccurate and the rest is mostly details about where the idea of a "domestic supply of infants" comes from. The link to the fact check will be included below, but arguably the fact check misses one very vital point that the tweets are getting at: theories of supply and demand should NEVER be applied to HUMAN BEINGS, let alone as justification for forced pregnancy, a literal crime against humanity. That it came originally from the CDC only makes it worse, as it demonstrates with further grotesque detail the moral bankruptcy of that institution as well (as though we needed more proof after the suspension of COVID testing and tossing aside of COVID precautions). The absolute disdain for human rights and dignity is abhorrent, and even if it's not surprising from this government it should NOT be tolerated.

Fact check: https://factcheck.thedispatch.com/p/fact-check-did-alito-and-barrett?s=w&fbclid=IwAR2kmfBn9nO7iPbK-opysrnYbTfFGSaqjUimpUJ6-RfilV1F8y2ev9-H8s8