"Every Protester Needs a Digital Camera" or "WTO 1999 would have been different, today."

THIS is what Democracy looks like:

Every "good citizen" should own a digital camera with video capture capacity, and know how to use it.  It's more important than gun ownership, and in most circumstances, more effective!  Most people can afford to produce television quality video, for example the Canon PowerShot SD40: "Movie mode: Fast Frame Rate Movie mode allows you to record extremely smooth, full-motion movie clips for up to 1 minute long in QVGA at 60 fps (320 x 240 pixels). Select from VGA (640 x 480 pixels) and QVGA (320 x 240 pixels) with frame rates of 30 fps and 15 fps for recording up to 1 hour or 4GB."

This is a story of how alternative media will help society to improve.  We obviously need accurate information to make the right informed decisions.  The Business Community has recognized the value of "internal controls" in accounting, by having unrelated people examine financial records to prevent that special type of "inaccurate information" perpetrated by those covering their embezzling.  Many businesses now use this type of approach in management of organizational information by implementing "Parallel Learning Structures" to transcend their own structural blind spots thereby enabling themselves to adapt and grow in spite of themselves!  Society has relied upon mainstream media to inform itself, and now changes in technology facilitate the development of "Alternative Media" sources, that will enable us to create Parallel Learning Structures that will help our world to have more effective democracies.

Please consider the following as a case study:

The Seattle Police knew that the government had not properly prepared for the WTO to convene in Seattle in 1999 and as tensions grew among this over-extended group of "peace keepers", many of them decided upon a different approach, more of a "Preemptive Strike" approach.    As a rule of thumb, when people sit on the ground, they're probably not enough of a threat to require the police to launch "gas attacks."   For some reason, mainstream media sources did not say much about "The Battle for Seattle," which was one of those occasions when emotion seemed to get the best of the Seattle Police Department.  In other words, it was an occasion when a sort of mob mentality took over among the police force and Seattle experienced a "Police Riot".

According to unsubstantiated rumors, the police were put into a position where the outcome was predictable.   They were understaffed, and therefore supposedly had to work without rest for extended periods -- days? -- and not allowed to take bathroom breaks at reasonable intervals.   They were supposedly told that a few of them would probably die.   Those who become police are hired to do things like chase cocaine-ridden muggers down dark alleys; they're not highly-educated sociologists, they're not attorneys, they're not philosophers.  So what society expect when this group of people are placed in situations like these?

1999-Dec-1, Seattle, Washington, environs of the WTO meeting: peaceful protesters are doused with chemical weapons

What "Neutral" party could they call to aid their "peace keeping"?  Who had the resources to record all that transpired?  Some stood on soap-boxes and took a rather academic position:

The Nation: "Legacy of the Battle for Seattle"  by Tom Hayden:
"One of those returning to interpret the continuing "Battle of Seattle" was Lori Wallach, the indefatigable, street-talking Harvard trade lawyer who coordinates fair-trade lobbying and activism at cyclone speed from her offices at Global Trade Watch in Washington, DC. Wallach has molded herself into one of the more dangerous enemies of the WTO on the planet, able to wipe out corporate lobbyists in television debates, maintain a laser-accurate understanding of thousands of pages of trade regulations, knit together international alliances, forge and hold together aliances on the left and right, and inspire hope for political reform, while scheming, if necessary, to "ratfuck" her enemies, a term she learned somewhere in the underworld of the planet's largest corporations." [...]
"[Wallach said]... that "Seattle" has become an international code word for the progressive spirit of the American people. When American diplomats and apologists argue with overseas audiences that globalization is good, she says, they are often rebuffed by foreign nationals who simply reply, "Seattle," as evidence that Americans themselves do not agree with the policies their government is trying to impose on other countries."

But there is always a vast difference between the people who build a product and the marketers making the commercials advertising it; how many mainstream spin-doctors attended these protests?  Peaceful protesters refused to disperse, and the Seattle Police used Chemical Weapons upon them.  Not all of those injured were protesting; some were just walking home with their groceries or getting off work from downtown and they weren't thinking of the global implications of their being hurt.

COUNTERPUNCH: Five Years After WTO Protests, By CHUCK MUNSON:

"The media spin cycle leading up to major anti-globalization protests has become so predictable that activists have been forced to come up with better media strategies to keep up with the lies and disinformation. The mainstream media starts the cycle several months in advance with articles and coverage about the upcoming summit and accompanying protests. This coverage always includes an obligatory interview with the local authorities who claim that they will be "ready" for the protests. These early articles will include space devoted to the issues on the table, but as the event nears, the coverage focuses more and more on the expected clash between protesters and police. Activists have tried many different ways to change this narrative, to force the media coverage back to the issues and reasons for protest, without much success. Since these summit meetings never allow dissenters inside, people are forced to take to the streets in protest, thus reinforcing the spin that these events are mostly about protesters confronting the police. At some point in the media spin cycle, the media repeat some new police propaganda about anarchists and "outside agitators." The police plant fabulous stories in the media, ranging from alarmist stories about activist scavenger hunts to claims that protesters will throw "urine-filled bottles" at the police. When the police claim that activists are using plastic bottles to make Molotov cocktails, the mainstream media dutifully publishes the police disinformation with nary an attempt to investigate the police claims, or point out the fact that Molotov cocktails are made with GLASS bottles.
The cycle is the same every time. It's no wonder that more and more activists have given up talking to the media, if they aren't simply hostile to the media and efforts by activists to work with them."

The mainstream media didn't do a great job of reporting police misconduct.  Of course, these news sources tend to develop relationships with news sources, and the police will continue to be a valuable resource but many protest groups are fly-by-night operations.  However the internet has allowed a greater number of people to communicate, because it is now economically possible, therefore we have an easily accessible record of some first-hand accounts, from primary sources.  What constitutes mainstream media will undergo drastic changes.

The Albion Monitor: "...the sites of two major skirmishes which dominated media attention, Capitol Hill and the Pike Place Market, had nothing to do with conducting the conference or moving delegates between the Convention Center, the Paramount Theatre or the downtown hotels."

photo by Derek Chung; Do the people in the image above appear to be "Dangerous" to you?   Most near the protests were exposed to at least some tear gas or "chemical agents".

Many in the area recall the helicopters flying above the city for the duration of the conference.  The Seattle Police appeared to be wearing "Darth Vader" costumes.  It felt like living in a police state, and rumors started to fly.  The problem was the "us vs. them" mentality, instead of something more "collaborative" or a "We the People" attitude.  Eventually, things got out of hand resulting in many stories like:

The Albion Monitor:
"Tensions were high, due to the residents resentment of the police presence and police fears of violence. KIRO TV reported that the people opposing police that night consisted entirely of Capitol Hill residents. Afterwards, police said there were reports of agitators carrying gasoline bombs and throwing rocks and bottles. They said some protesters charged officers. No gasoline bombs were thrown that evening and news videos show only police charging, not civilians attacking police.
The Wednesday night fiasco on Capitol Hill began with the police radio relaying reports of "ninjas" armed with molotov cocktails stalking police with murderous intent. At 6:55PM Dispatcher says, "Unit 3 has been advised that some of the SPD undercover are in pursuit of some ninja-type individuals. Molotov cocktails have been falling out of their packs. There was no location given at this time." Later, "some ninjas" who were carelessly dropping molotov cocktails metamorphised[sic] into a dozen scary black-clad assassins. "We just got information from (intelligence) that says there are 12 ninjas -- as in people -- dressed up in black at Broadway and Olive, and it looks like they are trying to ambush some officers," said one call. Throughout the evening, police kept reporting non-existent "ninjas" who were always about to attack, but never materialized. At 9:19PM, one officer reported: "I was on the street just east of Broadway. There is a black-clad individual carrying a Molotov cocktail trying to flank our troops. He ran northbound on that street." By midnight, the imagined "ninjas" metamorphized[sic] into a crowd of 200 protesters taking over a gas station intent on incinerating Seattle's finest: "For units on Broadway: At the Chevron Station, callers advising there are about 200 protesters there and they're trying to get gas from the pumps. Station is open."
The incindiary[sic] ninja panic continued to spread for several days. After the protests, police were telling reporters about the tragic instance of an officer who was crippled for life as a result of being doused with gasoline and set afire by sadistic protesters. However, by the time that police began filing injury reports, the tragic case of the inflamable[sic] policeman had evaporated along with the mysterious ninja terrorists. Building on the local media's gullability[sic], police began insisting that they never "seriously" injured anyone whom they attacked.
On Capitol Hill, police began using pepper spray, tear gas and concussion grenades shortly after 9:30PM, first at John Street and Broadway to the south, moving north, and near Harrison, moving south. More police blocked side streets, preventing the crowds from dispersing.
"The protesters looked completely calm to me . . . They were not instigating this," said Erin Katz, a Capitol Hill resident who watched from behind police lines near Pine Street. "I heard absolutely no warning and they started to gas them."
For the next two and a half hours, police rampaged along Broadway. It was during this period that some of the week's worst instances of police misconduct occurred. National television repeatedly aired footage of a Tukwila officer kicking a young man in the groin and then immediately firing a shotgun within inches of the young man's torso. The officer has not been publicly identified, but has been placed on desk duty while an internal investigation is conducted. Police officials have described the officer's conduct as "appropriate." At a parking lot near Broadway, two journalism students were videotaping the action. A King County deputy went up to their car and motioned for the young women to roll down a window. When they did, the deputy pepper-sprayed them both, shouting "Tape this, bitch!" The deputy remains publicly unidentified and on duty while an internal investigation is conducted. These and other incidents have resulted in civil suits filed against the Seattle Police as the agency in charge, as well as the officers involved."

Hopefully, more activists will use some of the techniques employed by mainstream media.  Doing "spell checks" would help immensely.  We don't need everybody to study elocution, only those with the courage to speak out when necessary.

As the tear gas wore off the faces of tens of thousands of people, the City Council of Seattle and the Seattle Police was left with egg on their faces.  The Chief of Police resigned, perhaps because he didn't want to be the designated scapegoat.  Some members of the City Council, like those who got gassed, wanted some substantial change, while others looked for a waste-paper basket large enough to hold all of the complaints that poured in.

In 1999, the Seattle City Council established the Office of Professional Accountability ("OPA") within the Seattle Police Department....  [ (206)684-8797 | opa@seattle.gov ] :
"Mission:
The Office of Professional Accountability is the office within the Seattle Police Department that receives and investigates complaints by citizens about police misconduct. The office is headed by a civilian.
Its mission is to provide for citizen oversight of the citizen complaint process; to promote public awareness of and full access to that process; and to advance reforms that increase police accountability to the public by the Seattle Police Department."

However, the OPA hasn't been as effective as some people hoped...   Perhaps it wasn't given the authority, respect or resources needed for this task?   It would help if those who file instantly received a copy of their complaint, via e-mail; those who complain should have the ability to Cc: their complaint to other interested parties, like their attorney.  But it would help a lot more if the OPA networked with nonprofit organizations who could assist and oversee them.  For example, if those who complained of racial profiling / racially biased policing could Cc: nonprofits investigating the problems associated with their case on all e-mail sent to the OPA, then there would be a third-party witness for citizens who felt that their complaints were not handled seriously.

POLICE VIOLENCE AT WTO PROTESTS COST SEATTLE TAXPAYERS $250,000

By Kirsten Anderberg
"[The City of Seattle]...are paying $250,000, and rightly so, to protesters who were grotesquely violated at the WTO protests in 1999. And Seattle did not learn from that riot, as it produced two more unnecessary police riots in 2003, which still need to be addressed properly by officials, and perhaps the courts.  ...  In December 2003, U.S. District Judge Marsha Pechman said the police lacked probable cause to arrest the protesters outside a “no protest zone.” Pechman said the police had done an “atrocious” job at record keeping, as well as citing the use of improper warrant and arrest procedures to round up protesters...  And the City will continue to pay out in damages and settlements, in my estimation, until it REINS IN THE SEATTLE POLICE AND ITS UNSAFE, VIOLENT BEHAVIORS, WITH SERIOUS CITIZEN ACCOUNTABILITY REVIEWS."

Now standard digital cameras capture television quality video, instead of the several hundred or thousand dollars that this technology used to cost.  THIS IS WHAT DEMOCRACY LOOKS LIKE is the unique product of that historic media convergence, edited from over 350 hours of video footage. "The WTO protests were probably the most videotaped event in history," says Big Noise Films founder, and Democracy co-director, Rick Rowley. "With over 100 videographers, we had more cameras in the street than any corporate news agency could possibly mobilize. This amazing collection of activist video footage gives the film a scope and intimacy that the corporate media could never achieve." Everyone purchasing a digital camera will have the capacity to obtain footage that could appear on the nightly news, though many protesters would agree that "the Revolution will not be televised".  And anyone with wireless internet access may instantly transmit news around the world.  This will help real changes will come, and you may have a piece of it.