Police Brutality at the Berkeley Oak Grove

[mytfew]

What a dumb ass, English major..Yeah she's not gonna make any money..

[cynicsfaith]

why are protesters always surprised and horrified when the police actually enforce the law? They should feel lucky that the police tolerate so much bullshit.

and despite being native american (although I don't really identify with any of my ethnic backgrounds) I could really care less for some burial ground. Those people are dead, they've already decomposed and returned to the earth. Also, the university owns the land and gets to what it wants to there regardless of what you think.

[cynicsfaith]

Let's see why was the guy in the purple getting arrested? 1) he was harassing some woman 3:32, so the cops pulled him away and 2) he resisted the police 3:55

Preach sister: 5:04

From seeing this footage I conclude that Berkeley protesters are weird, and obnoxious, and they think they know better than everyone else as if their enlightened.

And what was the context of that whole "let him go!" situation? what lead to that struggle? FYI pain => cooperation. "You're killing him!" 13:42? LOL

[gjn00100]

the trees have feelings too mannnnn they told me how they felt when i was tripping on acid

[TubbsLite]

I hate dirty hippies

[m70c00l]

cutie at 12:02 nniiiccceee

[goldeneaglearchangel]

THIS IS SAD, DONT FUCK WITH INDIAN BURIAL GROUNDS

[Ilovecomedy7]

Hippies just want attention when it comes to the nature, but they have no knowledge in education so they just want to scream at people.

[nycwiseguy91]

you want your protest not to fall on deaf ears rush the gate riot fight don't sit there and play drums and scream show them how angry you are

[np6622]

oh please you hippi scum, what difference are you making in the world trying to save these trees... I just bought a new Oak table and I really hope it was one of these trees.

[jackrok]

Called resisting arrest. Not Police Brutality.

if your going to fight against the police...and interferre.

Stop being a pussy. And take it.

[umpy91]

i fail to see where the brutality is lol

maybe if the tree huggers had stopped interfering with the police trying to arrest the guy around 13:00 it wouldnt have been such a big deal

also, what a drama queen lol

[DeaThDealEr969]

LMAO 13:53 woman screaming bloody murder :your killing hiiiiim!" lol dumbass

[menm811]

its not called police brutality its called resisting arrest

[code3responders]

The cops there did nothing wrong these people need to have respect for authority and listen

[doofusgerms]

Kid was bleating like a baby cow stuck in a barb wire fence. If you can't take the police brutality, you shouldn't be there in the first place. These cops can't wait to get physical or shoot someone. It's what they live for.

[zhavas]

GO BEARS

[falcons288]

i would of shot the bitches yellin at me dumbass hippies

[falcons288]

fuckin tree huggers go fuck a monkey to feel more tree like or fuck a tree which ever u prefer

[fraroc]

@falcons288 go fuck your mother you hippie hating redneck. I hope a fucking tree falls on your head and makes you brain dead

[nihonjin44]

kill the trees!!!!!!

[tohuvohu2]

lol masonic and kabbalistic lolololololl

[tohuvohu2]

what a puss yell fuk yu at the cop not hellllppppp bitch

[tohuvohu2]

wtf people passing thru on a staturday to watch a football game is more important then the legacy of your kids , get fuked you stupid whore , stupid KUNT KUNT KUNT

[tohuvohu2]

hey fuk face yur in cali go to bohemian grove , plenty of tree,s and queers up there ya pussy

[nbctc]

hahahaha I must have missed the police brutality. But that was a very good acting job by the blonde kid once he saw the camera was on him.

[cbstout12345]

Did you see that Stihl chainsaw that was great. Those wanta be hippies look only like homeless crack heads along with the worthless adults promoting the kids to do stupid shit. Next time I hope the police fuck them up.

[whmacleod]

great doc. those hippies are characters and i can always find myself laughing at them.

[standj21]

I must have missed the police brutality.

[SupaFastVideos]

jocks are a bunch of douche bags

[funnystuff123d3]

where is the pepper spray when you need it?

[DaniPower0]

with all due respect, you're a loser, as are all of the tree-sitters and their supporters. does everyone realize that all of this effort was to save less than 45 trees, planted as a landscaping project in the late 1920s BY THE UNIVERSITY??? Go save a rainforest being clearcut in Brazil! Because the majority of the planet supports you in doing that! But these people were a needless nuisance and an embarrassment to my wonderful city in which I have lived my whole life.

[wdganjpot]

Fuck you Dani. Why don't you save a tree you fucker.

You ever save anything? Ever stand for anything that can't stand for itself?

It doesn't matter if it was 45 trees, and btw I saw oak grove and it was more than 45 trees.

I think you are a fuck bag and should most definitely hang yourself.

Oh and fuck that cunt who said Bears roll on. What a bitch...

[nbctc]

haha your just as much of a joke as the douche bags in the videos. That bitch was hilarious in the video.

[wdganjpot]

It was only hilarious cause she was drunk.

[Tedleo875]

As a student of documentary filmmaking, I was really impressed by your coverage of the event.

Make sure to do a better job framing the people who you're talking to next time, but obviously that is something that's easier said than done.

Very nice opening, the voice-over is very strong throughout, good editing, very well done. Kudos.

[goldenjoeblow]

Berkely appears to be quite a compartmentalised community, and not in a good way.

[ballzee11]

Damn Tim, you're a dick.

Steve C.

[ballzee11]

The guy who's getting arrested, and unnecessarily brutalized by the police is a friend of mine named John. He's a student at UC Santa Cruz who was taking classes at Berkley over the summer. I've known John for five years, and anyone who's ever met him knows he's the most non-violent person in the world. Him sitting there did not warrant the subduing tactics the officers used. I've talked to him about this, and urged him to file suit against the police. It's my sincerest hope that he does.

[raultalbot7]

Unnecessarily brutalized??? Which video were you watching? Everyone arrested resisted and the cops used only enough force to get the job done. BTW...was John the one screaming like a little girl?

[ballzee11]

I went by your page; It's good to see that the internet is used by close-minded, intolerant people as well as the intelligentsia; That's what freedom of expression is all about. You should start a hate site, except instead of being about race, it could discriminate based on values and beliefs.

[bayleyasher]

Yeah I've known John since 1998. I hope he's doin alright. I hung out with him this summer by the grove and at the People's Park. Fantastic peacelovin fellow; wouldn't hurt a fly.

Don't know why he kept screamin tho.

[raultalbot7]

So...where's the brutality? You promised me some brutality and you gave me nothing...shame on you!

[ANGLEBOOT]

They really should have kick every damn one of them out of the school and still hold them to paying off the loan.

[gunbuck7]

Pretty even-handed look at this. I'm in the middle too. I love trees and think we need to protect natural spaces all over the world but I felt like a lot of the tree supporters were being a-holes. It looks like the guys who got arrested deserved it.

And it was a nice ironic twist to see 'Ayr' getting arrested for yelling at the student counter-protesters after hearing his many claims that most UC students supported the tree sitters.

[Bellita1]

I want to save the trees but I can't support a bunch of crazy hippies. Get better spokespeople than a bunch of dirty pot smoking hippies.

[BUDDAWG2004]

where is the brutality?

[spenceII]

She talks about how peoples attention should be on the homeless. How many people could be fed with the money it costs to this centre

[Durthalion]

Resist arrest and your gonna get hurt, no pity at all

[bleunt]

Less trees = More global warming. Trees can save us from the co2.

[bassmanpaul]

This video fills me with sadness and fury.

[sublimeselftitled]

Im a huge fan of the gamejew, but if anyone honestly looks at this and sees "brutality" you're simply looking to find something wrong with society. If you watch the video, you see the cops sitting there for literally hours doing nothing, then when they ARE called in, they do what they can and the guy goes all "dead weight" on them. Look, do your thing, more power to you, but don't throw around "brutality" when it DOES happen around the country, when it DOESN'T happen here, it hurts the cause.

[sublimeselftitled]

what i mean is that police brutality DOES happen around the country, but this isn't a good or even reasonable example of it. Don't go throwing accusations of something when its not the case... it's a detriment to those that DO have to deal with the problems you are highlighting

[sublimeselftitled]

spoiled rich kids at berkeley are NOT targeted by the police. In fact, these cops KNOW that these people are going to record them and put up the video--they'd be utter idiots if they didn't know that was coming--you think they WANT to assult people in that case? No. They don't, and they don't here. Chill out Berkeley, the entire world isn't out to get you, quit making it hard for those that ARE ACTUALLY oppressed please, you are hurting the cause.. not helping it..

[thegamejew]

In one sense, I completely agree with you and

jbrock1980. The people getting arrested were definitely resisting, and in that sense (in a legal sense), I suppose the police had every right to be as brutal as they were. Do I think they were being unfair in how brutal they were? Yes. Are there instances across the country of the police being MORE unfair and MORE brutal. Of course. I did struggle with this idea. But I came to the conclusion that, well, police brutality is police brutality.

[thegamejew]

And in an even BROADER sense, I think you raise some complicated issues. Should people in Berkeley who are being oppressed in some way just lie down and take it be cause they are not AS oppressed as people in other parts of the country? I'm not saying I'm completely in line with the protesters' mode of action. For instance, I would have liked to enjoy the trees while they were still there, but because of the tree sit, I was unable to do so. However, the tree sit did bring national attention to

[thegamejew]

their issue, so that's a trade off. But ultimately, I generally support people who are fighting oppression, no matter how small.

[sublimeselftitled]

I agree Jonathan, your arguments are well thought out and spoken. I'll stick by my point that some might see this and say that these students (and/or the one's claiming brutality/oppression) are just stirring the proverbial pot, but I'll also accept your point that brutality is brutality, and oppression is oppression. Thanks :)

[kissbeatsall]

its unbilievable , arresting people for what they believe in , todays cops are nothing butg modern day fascists.

[jbrock1980]

So, the police "brutality" seems awfully horrible. But, it seems these people were resisting arrest. Don't get me wrong, alot of cops are power hungry, but watch this vid carefully. I find it funny that these people are bitching about 20 trees when tons of trees are being cut down and burned in the amazon rainforest every single day. If they really want to make a difference, they should go there and tree hug. I think the authorities there would be quite "brutal".

[WumboWarrior]

Agreed. I think this is a good example of how if it's out of sight, it's out of mind. They only make an effort to save what seems real to them, and they dont care about these things so far away because they dont seem real to them... :(

[ChillyWillie]

I fail to see whats wrong with "tree-hugging" in your local community.

[kaltech19]

Jonathan...I'm proud of you.

[CaseyFinnigan]

That's terrible.

I wouldn't consider myself a huge tree lover but the fact they tore down a monument to those lost in war just to build some football training thing is horrendous, and the police response to the protest is disgusting.

[saddasdas2]

what song is in the background?

[thegoodherb]

Tidal wave of angry response? The lies continue. There are some wacko obsessives who wouldn't have a real life, but the community and especially the students HATE the three sit.

And burial ground? BS! They found bones and no ethnicity was determined.

[Multiplayas]

saddness and powertrips, but there are good people out there, like the guy holding the camera

[steveo6890]

power bitch cops they gota get fired

[thegaminggoose]

Did I miss the part where there is brutality? Are you shitting me? The guy tried to get in the way and the police subdued him. I guess the fucking metal gates didn't tip the kid off that he shouldn't go there.

[moondy11]

ok i dont give a fuck about the trees and i dont give a fuck about American football.

But what i do give a fuck about is how arrogant the cops in America are. they are so power hungry it makes me sick.

They outnumbered the cops too, all they had to do was rush them, take their guns and fire...

everyone should be a cop so everyone can be equal. btw Jonathan i love your work, you show America for what it is.

[GloryGraydon]

fucking cops!! fuck the USA!! and fuck the system!!

SOAD Deer Dance!!

[elspoko]

I'm a believer of militant demonstrations. Results by any means necessary.

I'm just saying, some of those fat fuck cops would wise up a bit if they see their fellows get shot down. They might actually treat people with some civility if they realized they were mortal.

Just me though.

[FrosChannel]

Kinda sad the trees had to go. Are they actully gonna plant any new trees?

[AcousticDave94]

This ordeal and the way everybody was acting on each side reminded my of Across The Universe, It was pretty saddening to see the man being restrained or the ground by that many cops, the guy looked like he was being crushed. Police should be more willing to communicate, and one trained police man should be able to restrain one "hippy" without that much battery and man handling.

[Bamshu]

Yeah, that was not right. The woman was shouting at him back too and she wasn't manhandled and arrested like that. How messed up.

[marceloyanez111]

Sports are killing the beauty in this world! That makes me all pissed I remember the oak grove it was beautiful! :(

[TheHillsHaveEyeBrows]

this brings a tear to my eye, just the heartlessness of the football fans, wheres they humanity, putting the tree lovers down like this?

[Radpeterguy]

Don't taze me bro!

[jackal27]

Another thing, I'm a Christian, but I try my hardest to see the best in people and to put myself in their shoes, even if their outlook on life differs from mine. Because I feel like we all, generally, have about the same amount of intelligence, we just use it in different ways. So it makes me really sad to see so many people trying to communicate to others in THEIR OWN context, which just doesn't work. Even the police, when I look at them I think "Man, I wonder how I would have handled that..."

[wogsland]

Football and athletics in general is destroying American universities.

[eggnog4073]

yeah many schools are becoming more athletic based that academic based, which is a total joke

[jackal27]

"A lover of trees in general." I lol'd. Hahaha, I'm fairly indifferent about trees in general, but in this situation, that pisses me off. I think because it was a memorial and it honestly looked really beautiful. I liked your view on the situation and I agree in a big way. I was afraid that this was going to be another "Down with the man!" video or something, but I should have known that Jonathan Mann is smarter than that.

[brak]

Thanks for keeping the troublemakers off the street, cops!

/sarcasm

[coocoo10]

dam that sucks man , its soo sad.

[Residentmoron1]

In todays world, protest don't do much. although I appose the grove being torn down, I don't think the protest would do much. Considering the project might have been finalized, but it might have worked out if people where more civilized about the situation and came up with an agreement to build somewhere else. Ripping down a piece of history just isn't right.

Disregard my last comment, I wanted to give my thoughts about this.

[jacktchance]

Damn, trees are sparce enough these days.

[LetMeCubeYouBaby]

This flick is a downer.

[AkewsticRockR]

Who owned the land?

My perspective is, it's the owner's right to decide what they want to do with their own land.

End of story.

It really is a shame to see how everyone seems to think anger and obscenity will accomplish anything positive.

[thegamejew]

UC Berkeley owned the land, so technically the state. Sadly enough, it's actually illegal to cut down old growth Oak trees in Berkeley...but since technically it's on state land...

[RelaxingFrankie]

wow thats crazy, but thats what quite common these days

always interesting what u gotta say about issues like this

[eviltravolta]

very sad

[Residentmoron1]

You're awesome