In the wake of the horrific lynching of George Floyd in broad daylight on May 25, a beautiful wave of demonstrations has rapidly spread from Minneapolis across the U.S. and around the world over the past couple weeks, and been met by a wave of repression, brutality and arrests. In Chicago, more than 1,000 people were arrested in one day alone on May 30, as the city desperately tried to clamp down on the emerging movement, and news reports indicate that as many as 3,000 have been arrested in this city alone.
While the media has attempted to cast this repression as a response to property damage and looting, in a majority of cases the repression and brutality have been inflicted on peaceful crowds of people or individuals righteously demanding justice for George Floyd and an end to police murder: from the clouds of tear gas unleashed on people in Seattle over and over again to the 75-year-old peace activist in Buffalo pushed to the ground by riot cops and who Trump said “could be an ANTIFA provocateur.” As of now, this outrageous repression has fueled the protests, as it only justifies and illustrates the reason for the protests themselves.
It is crucial that this movement continue to stand by and support those who have been targeted for repression even as it spreads. Defeating the official attempts to silence our voices now is an essential part of growing the overall movement. No one should be left alone to face the state while standing up for justice for everyone. This means demanding all the charges be dropped, contributing to bail funds, organizing jail support while people are locked up, contributing to legal defense and politically defending people under attack.
In Chicago, Troy Gaston, a student with dreams of law school and a future life of social justice advocacy, was brutally arrested by Chicago police at one of the first protests in the city, a relatively small, peaceful neighborhood march demanding “Justice for George Floyd, We Deserve to Live, We Need Revolution,” called by the Revolution Club Chicago and supported by Refuse Fascism Chicago Chapter.
Troy’s story and his case shine a light on the commitment and character of so many people coming out to demand justice and an end to police violence, as well as the complicity of local authorities with this repression. Though Chicago recently elected a Black lesbian mayor (a former prosecutor and police board president) and a Black woman state’s attorney with a progressive reputation, this protester is facing multiple felony charges that could send him to prison for years – all of them BS intended to cover for the brutality inflicted on him during his unjust arrest.
From the introduction to the petition demanding the charges be dropped:
Troy Gaston is a student at Roosevelt University who was targeted by Chicago police at a peaceful protest on May 28, 2020, demanding justice for George Floyd, whose murder by Minneapolis police has sparked protests around the country. Troy lives in Englewood on Chicago’s Southside where the protest, called by the Revolution Club Chicago, was held. He was dragged on the ground, thrown in a police van, and was held for more than 24 hours, ultimately charged with several felonies. Videos posted to Twitter showed his arrest:
FREE TROY GASTON pic.twitter.com/U7FAyoWFw3
— comradejj (@comradejj) May 28, 2020
Look at how they arrested Troy Gaston pic.twitter.com/4KZSze2gJO
— comradejj (@comradejj) May 29, 2020