Last Friday I took part in Chicago’s Critical Mass. Rain was expected and it was the first Mass of the summer, so we numbered in the hundreds rather than thousands. Those who road found gorgeous weather, only light rain, and high spirits all around.
Hundreds of cyclists riding in unison tend to block traffic out of a necessity that has become convention. Cars can’t cut through the Mass without endangering folks, so active riders will stand in front of cross traffic for everyone’s safety. This sometimes angers motorists.
At 8:00 PM we were riding north somewhere in the vicinity of Irvin Park and Ashland, when a black SUV started accelerating into stationary riders who were attempting to block traffic. Everyone close enough to do so began pounding on the side of the vehicle, shouting for the driver to stop. He continued to push through, driving over at least one bicycle and endangering the livelihood of everyone he knocked to the side.
I witnessed this. I became very angry. I hoisted my bike over my shoulder, ran through the startled crowd of cyclists onto the adjacent parking lot, and mounted for the pursuit. The driver realized he was being chased and fled–speeding dangerously from stop sign to light to alley, nearly spinning out after each stop as he tried to escape. I noticed a couple other enraged cyclists had joined the chase. We pumped our fury into each revolution, grunting in solidarity and frustration, speaking no words. There were times when the SUV was no longer visible, when we thought we might have lost him, but we took the most obvious turns and each time got him back in our sights.
Eventually, he made a bad turn into an alley, and we knew we had him. We lept of our bikes and charged the car. Some threw rocks and bottles as he tried to escape, but we blocked his exit, and he eventually surrendered.
“WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?” I screamed into his face as he rolled down his window and offered parley. We exchanged rage, not words; his excuses of bourgeois panic skirmished against my summons to reckon. He called the cops to report us for damaging his vehicle. I called the cops to report him for felony hit-and-run.
There was that moment back when he pulled into the alley and I knew we had him where I considered smashing a couple of his windows with my u-lock and calling it a day. I knew this arrogant suburbanite would never respect bikers, and thought I might teach him to fear us.
But I hadn’t smashed his windows. No, I had broken neither windows nor laws–not for fear of punishment, but that I might afford myself the position of calling the authorities down on him for what he had done. And so, yes, my anarchist ass phoned the police. It was purely a strategic move–felony charges are a greater consequence than one or two broken windows.
Our verbal dance continued while we waited. Several times he started acting as though he were about to leave, but we had him blocked in and there was nothing he could do.
And then the canned pork I so despise rolled up to strut the strut. There were no charges. There was no report. There was no listening. Two authoritarian mongrels exit a squad car, lay eyes on the two factions, and make their decision before any words are spoken. A black kid and some dirty, bearded white kids versus clean-cut, well-to-do suburbanites. We didn’t stand a chance.
I walked right into the Kobayashi Maru. I explained what had happened and that we wanted to press charges. Before the driver said anything, before more than a few sentences were spoken, before the situation could be appraised with even the pretense of objectivity, this pig cuts me off and threatens to charge us with mob action.
“That’s a felony charge,” he explains. “Now leave.”
“I’m sorry, did you see me? What are you basing this on?”
“Go now.”
“Okay, I will go, because I wasn’t directly involved, but I want to make sure you are going to talk to him, because he was,” I say motioning to one of the other pursuers who was in front of the SUV when it plowed through.
“Leave.”
“I’m just trying to make sure that you will look into this, because this man committed a hit and run.”
“You need to leave right now.”
And that was that. And that’s what folks less privileged than myself must confront consistently. Police are full of shit, and I will never doubt it again. I’m grateful to have had this experience before trusting them with something more serious.
I don’t believe in the institution of police as it is, and this was a gentle reminder to maintain my integrity by seeking resolution through direct action rather than institutional channels.
I said in one of my first posts that government is only as legitimate as it is petitionable. What I witnessed was but mild coercion, mild oppression. This occurs daily. We who are privileged to participate in the blogosphere probably do not see much of it. It is easy for us to believe the mirage, to see oasis transposed over wasteland, but we must dismiss the illusion.
Say what you will say about the social theory, about the historic factors, about the human aspect. But do not try to say that cops give a shit about me until I shave my beard and buy a suit to cover my tattoos.
June 1st, 2008 at 9:13 pm
City cops, man. I don’t know what it is about cops and bicyclists, but they seem to believe that anyone riding a bike is somehow committing a crime. Critical Mass in Minneapolis on Friday was nice; it rained a bit, but there were still a few hundred people.
There was also something interesting that happened: there were about eight bike cops who rode to the front of the whole column and for the first half hour or so were actually steering the entire critical mass. That was scary.
I’m pretty sure they’re practicing for the RNC.
Cops. Sigh. I keep telling myself they’re necessary, but they just seem to be such bastards.
Next time, just smash the guy’s windows.
June 1st, 2008 at 10:14 pm
I recommend you instead invite a lawyer friend to go with you next time. He doesn’t have to even say anything - just take notes.
Did you get the license plate and an id on the officer? It may be worth filing a complaint. And even if the established channels result in the anticipated “jack squat” reaction, at least you have another incident on which to base your distaste for the established channels.
June 2nd, 2008 at 1:49 am
Is it a sad day when we utilize the very institution we despise for our own strategic maneuvers? I feel like it is justified by the fact that, although oppressive, they are resources that can, and should, be used to our advantage. Thumbs up to direct action. Thumbs down to fuck-ass judgmental pigs and dumbass drivers who instigate trouble then try to flee the scene.
June 2nd, 2008 at 6:56 pm
Though I’ve never been a big fan of law enforcement, instances like this make me wonder who is truly being protected by the law.
June 2nd, 2008 at 9:23 pm
i was bred to hate cops, from a tender age. but take warning: any and all prejudice is oppressive and plane stupid. Cops are individuals, like you and I. If we truely want to create change here, we cannot hate. It throws out all of our energy, its consumes, and dwindles our creativity. it leads us to feel victimized, and not empowered. By using our energy to spread ‘I hate cop’ propaganda, we are only putting more negative energy into our pshyse, something that is already in over abundance.
It is easy to hate. much harder to love.
June 3rd, 2008 at 7:10 am
I agree with Celeste on some level, that there are some committed cops just as there are some excellent teachers and doctors and businesspeople. (At least I think so, ahem!)
I think we do get into dangerous territory when we allow ourselves to adopt THEIR mindset which is to generalize as one might about a biker with ink.
But then again you described a scenario that people are faced with all the time- trying to use a system for its intended function and being unable to access the protection of that system. There is the potential, when one tries to access a system, to become a victim of power abuse and that is a real concern. We know it is, and even more so for people in more vulnerable situations.
I think what we need to do is come together more on strategy. Come together more on “coaching” where our rights are concerned. What have others done? What can people do to make police or really anyone accountable to citizens? How do we become more empowered citizens, activists, parents, etc?
The trouble is that we know on a certain level that we are at the mercy of bureaucracies that can manipulate circumstances. Suppose you asked for a badge number, were defiant..suppose you had it in your head that you would complain or get recourse. Well suppose you were accused then of “getting aggressive”. You might just find yourself on the ground. THAT is think is what makes all the talk about what we could do or should do difficult. We fear a powerless situation.
I think that many people can trace their beliefs about groups back to some of these kinds of experiences, where there is a real breach in trust regarding authority.
June 3rd, 2008 at 8:26 pm
This is direct from my insurance man and a cop in my hometown:”Get the license plate number of the vehicle that has committed the hit and run (left the scene of the “accident”) stay where it happened, do not try and talk with them (if their lips are moving they are most likely lying) and wait for the “authorities” to come to you.” Leaving the scene is the crime that gets the cops attention. I believe it is because only the guilty that choose to run away. I got trapped this past year in this scenario and I am still pissed about how I got manipulated by a drunk driver who knew more about the nuances of the law than I could have imagined.
June 4th, 2008 at 9:10 pm
I have met a few really nice cops. They smiled and helped me out and really seemed to care about their job. I have also met a lot of shameful, poop-butt, stinky boys who need a lesson in relaxation and kindness. The latter have been in the majority.
The profession seems to attract a group of people who were not held enough as children, and it fucking pisses me off. The knee-jerk reaction is to shoot them in the face, but that’s just impractical. I think one of the biggest things we need to use to our advantage is at least a basic understanding of how the shitty system works, so that we can use it against them as much as possible.
I can only imagine it will get worse. But hey! We can still poop for free in a lot of places.