By Kim Elliott
A journalist on assignment for The Guardian newspaper was arrested and beaten by police officers at the site of a peaceful demonstration on The Esplanade near the G20 security fence in downtown Toronto at approximately 11:00PM on June 26, 2010. Having been punched in the stomach and elbowed in the back by officers, it is believed that Jesse Rosenfeld, a 26-year-old writer from Toronto, was then taken to the temporary detention facility on Eastern Avenue in Toronto.
Rosenfeld had already filed a story for The Guardian, the United Kingdom-based newspaper founded in 1821, but was not able to receive media accreditation as the RCMP had dragged its heels through the accreditation process. However, Rosenfeld clearly identified himself to police as a journalist.
Steve Paiken, the Gemini-nominated TVOntario personality who has also covering the protest via Twitter witnessed the incident. The following are Paiken’s tweets journaling the arrest and beating:
“they repeated they would arrest me if i didn't leave. as i was escorted away from the demonstration, i saw two officers hold a journalist.”
https://twitter.com/spaikin/status/17137794505
“the journalist identified himself as working for "the guardian." he talked too much and pissed the police off. two officers held him....”
https://twitter.com/spaikin/status/17137826780
“a third punched him in the stomach. totally unnecessary. the man collapsed. then the third officer drove his elbow into the man's back.”
https://twitter.com/spaikin/status/17137863106
“the officer who escorted me away from the demo said, "yeah, that shouldn't have happened." he is correct. there was no cause for it.”
https://twitter.com/spaikin/status/17137918390
the demonstration on the esplanade was peaceful. it was like an old sit in. no one was aggressive. and yet riot squad officers moved in.
https://twitter.com/spaikin/status/17138017712
Rosenfeld’s family is livid that police would violate the rights of anyone but especially a journalist on assignment, and are supporting Jesse in this matter. Rosenfeld's father, Mark, is available for comment, as is Jesse's girlfriend and fellow journalist Carmelle Wolfson. Rosenfeld will be available for comment following his release.
Contact information:
Mark Rosenfeld, father
Carmelle Wolfson,
Adam Chaleff-Freudenthaler, friend
contact by email at: adamcf@gmail.com
Source
Sunday, June 27, 2010
WATCH: POLICE ASSAULT PEACEFUL PROTESTERS AT G20
UPDATE: TORONTO -- More than 500 people have been arrested in Toronto after a night of rioting that saw police cars burned in the financial district and storefront windows broken as leaders of the world's largest economies gathered in the city for the G20 summit.
As clashes between police and protesters moved into their second day, there were more reports of journalists and peaceful protesters being arrested. The National Post reported that two of its photographers were arrested, and a Post blogger says a cyclist was arrested after accidentally bumping into a police officer.
Meanwhile, the UK's Guardian confirmed earlier reports that one of its freelance journalists, Jesse Rosenfeld, was beaten and arrested at a protest Saturday night (see below).
The arrested protesters are being held in cages at a converted film studio on the city's downtown east side. News reports indicate that, so far, none of the arrested have been let go. The Globe and Mail reports that about 100 peaceful protesters converged on the facility Sunday, chanting "let them go."
As they stood outside the gate to the facility, at least two vans pulled up. Officers in plain clothes jumped out of the van and arrested a few protesters. Others began fighting back. A tense stand-off ensued as a bus with officers in riot gear pulled up to the scene.
Police grabbed some protesters out of the crowd, throwing them to the ground and dragging them away. Others streamed away from the area, crying. Three stood nearby consoling each other and hugging.
A woman who said she was arrested while peacefully protesting yesterday described the conditions inside the detention facility to CTV. She said protesters were housed in cages, some without benches.
A video posted to YouTube shows police in riot gear attempting disperse a non-violent protesters at Queen's Park, next to the provincial legislature, on Saturday. Officers can be seen grabbing protesters out of the crowd and assaulting them.
ORIGINAL STORY FOLLOWS BELOW VIDEO
The following video was posted to YouTube by user forzaferrarif1fan.
Source
Watch Jackboots Fire Teargas Into Protester's Face Here
As clashes between police and protesters moved into their second day, there were more reports of journalists and peaceful protesters being arrested. The National Post reported that two of its photographers were arrested, and a Post blogger says a cyclist was arrested after accidentally bumping into a police officer.
Meanwhile, the UK's Guardian confirmed earlier reports that one of its freelance journalists, Jesse Rosenfeld, was beaten and arrested at a protest Saturday night (see below).
The arrested protesters are being held in cages at a converted film studio on the city's downtown east side. News reports indicate that, so far, none of the arrested have been let go. The Globe and Mail reports that about 100 peaceful protesters converged on the facility Sunday, chanting "let them go."
As they stood outside the gate to the facility, at least two vans pulled up. Officers in plain clothes jumped out of the van and arrested a few protesters. Others began fighting back. A tense stand-off ensued as a bus with officers in riot gear pulled up to the scene.
Police grabbed some protesters out of the crowd, throwing them to the ground and dragging them away. Others streamed away from the area, crying. Three stood nearby consoling each other and hugging.
A woman who said she was arrested while peacefully protesting yesterday described the conditions inside the detention facility to CTV. She said protesters were housed in cages, some without benches.
A video posted to YouTube shows police in riot gear attempting disperse a non-violent protesters at Queen's Park, next to the provincial legislature, on Saturday. Officers can be seen grabbing protesters out of the crowd and assaulting them.
ORIGINAL STORY FOLLOWS BELOW VIDEO
The following video was posted to YouTube by user forzaferrarif1fan.
Source
Watch Jackboots Fire Teargas Into Protester's Face Here
Video: Police fire "muzzle blast" at protesters
Riot police fired “muzzle blasts” at protestors around noon on Sunday on Pape Ave., just north of the G20 jail, where minutes earlier a peaceful demonstration by the Toronto Community Mobilization Network was broken up when police stormed the crowd to arrest at least two people. After the arrests occurred, police ordered the crowd to move north, first surging forward with batons and then firing three or four “muzzle blasts,” which police say contain individual applications of tear gas.
Source
Source
Protesters, police clash at detention centre
A riot squad used rubber bullets and blank rifle shots to drive back about 100 demonstrators at a seemingly peaceful sit-in outside a Toronto detention centre holding people arrested during the G20 summit protests.
About 100 people who had marched from downtown Toronto to the Eastern Avenue detention centre were engaged in a peaceful sit-in to show their solidarity with those who were detained, when police moved in on a known anarchist who had been sitting with the group.
The group was chanting "peaceful protest, peaceful protest," when police moved into the crowd, reported CTV's Lisa LaFlamme.
"Police moved into a crowd, where they saw one of the known anarchists," LaFlamme told CTV News Channel early Sunday afternoon. "He was sitting in a white t-shirt and jeans, he was sitting there quietly. The minute he stood up, police moved in on him, grabbed him, dragged him out, a little riot ensued."
Television images showed riot gear-clad officers running toward the scene, getting off buses, while officer officers surrounded protesters with batons out yelling "back up."
LaFlamme reported that three rubber bullets were fired into the crowd, hitting one girl in the face, but she appeared to be okay. Numerous protests were seen being taken into custody.
Toronto Police spokeman Tony Vella confirmed that two "muzzle blasts" were deployed at the scene. (Muzzle blasts are non-lethal discharges of high-pressure gas from a firearm.) Vella said a number of arrests have been made, and the individuals taken into custody had been identified as "wanted."
The skirmishes follow a number of arrests earlier Sunday. Police detained around 100 more people in connection with Saturday's violent protests against the G20 summit.
The latest arrests bring the number of people placed in detention since Saturday to nearly 600, not including those arrested outside the detention centre.
While the streets of Toronto were eerily calm early Sunday morning, dozens of police officers headed out to their positions across the downtown core and raided a building on the University of Toronto campus.
A spokesperson for the Integrated Security Unit said officers found a cache of "street-type weaponry" such as bricks.
"Our officers are out pro-actively looking for anybody with criminal intent," said Const. Samantha Nulle. "Today they located a large number of people, they intercepted them and they did locate a number of street weapons on them."
Those arrested were taken to the prisoner processing centre in the city's east end. They are not believed to be students.
CTV News Channel footage showed men and women of varying ages being escorted by police on the downtown University of Toronto campus. Many of them had their hands bound in flex ties.
Those arrested over the past 24 hours face a wide array of charges, from mischief and breach of the peace to assault, drug possession and dangerous weapons, reported CP24's Sue Sgambati from the processing centre.
"I'm told that some of these people will be released from this facility, the people on the relatively more minor charge of breach of the peace, and others will be taken to the special G20 court that has been set up in North York," Sgambati told CTV News Channel Sunday morning. "So it's no rest for police today."
Police said Sunday they are ready for whatever shape protests take after Saturday's march through downtown streets descended into chaos.
"Our officers have been doing this all week long, we're coming at this with a consistent, measured approach," Nulle said. "We are here to make sure that the fence stays secure and that all participants of the summit stay safe, in addition to the protesters themselves."
Read More...
About 100 people who had marched from downtown Toronto to the Eastern Avenue detention centre were engaged in a peaceful sit-in to show their solidarity with those who were detained, when police moved in on a known anarchist who had been sitting with the group.
The group was chanting "peaceful protest, peaceful protest," when police moved into the crowd, reported CTV's Lisa LaFlamme.
"Police moved into a crowd, where they saw one of the known anarchists," LaFlamme told CTV News Channel early Sunday afternoon. "He was sitting in a white t-shirt and jeans, he was sitting there quietly. The minute he stood up, police moved in on him, grabbed him, dragged him out, a little riot ensued."
Television images showed riot gear-clad officers running toward the scene, getting off buses, while officer officers surrounded protesters with batons out yelling "back up."
LaFlamme reported that three rubber bullets were fired into the crowd, hitting one girl in the face, but she appeared to be okay. Numerous protests were seen being taken into custody.
Toronto Police spokeman Tony Vella confirmed that two "muzzle blasts" were deployed at the scene. (Muzzle blasts are non-lethal discharges of high-pressure gas from a firearm.) Vella said a number of arrests have been made, and the individuals taken into custody had been identified as "wanted."
The skirmishes follow a number of arrests earlier Sunday. Police detained around 100 more people in connection with Saturday's violent protests against the G20 summit.
The latest arrests bring the number of people placed in detention since Saturday to nearly 600, not including those arrested outside the detention centre.
While the streets of Toronto were eerily calm early Sunday morning, dozens of police officers headed out to their positions across the downtown core and raided a building on the University of Toronto campus.
A spokesperson for the Integrated Security Unit said officers found a cache of "street-type weaponry" such as bricks.
"Our officers are out pro-actively looking for anybody with criminal intent," said Const. Samantha Nulle. "Today they located a large number of people, they intercepted them and they did locate a number of street weapons on them."
Those arrested were taken to the prisoner processing centre in the city's east end. They are not believed to be students.
CTV News Channel footage showed men and women of varying ages being escorted by police on the downtown University of Toronto campus. Many of them had their hands bound in flex ties.
Those arrested over the past 24 hours face a wide array of charges, from mischief and breach of the peace to assault, drug possession and dangerous weapons, reported CP24's Sue Sgambati from the processing centre.
"I'm told that some of these people will be released from this facility, the people on the relatively more minor charge of breach of the peace, and others will be taken to the special G20 court that has been set up in North York," Sgambati told CTV News Channel Sunday morning. "So it's no rest for police today."
Police said Sunday they are ready for whatever shape protests take after Saturday's march through downtown streets descended into chaos.
"Our officers have been doing this all week long, we're coming at this with a consistent, measured approach," Nulle said. "We are here to make sure that the fence stays secure and that all participants of the summit stay safe, in addition to the protesters themselves."
Read More...
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