 You know growing up we were taught that police officers were supposed to protect and serve They were supposed to serve at the pleasure of their communities But today when you look at all the videos that we see from protests across the country They don't look like they're serving at the pleasure of their communities. They look like an occupying force they're increasingly militarized and excessively violent they're using chemical weapons against American citizens oftentimes who are peacefully protesting and even public officials members of city council in Seattle for example like Shama Sawant are Reporting that they are being tear-gassed in New York. You have elected officials being pepper sprayed so they're completely out of control and as they get more and more out of control and tyrannical Who's gonna rein them in They're not following the laws. They're not abiding by the Constitution and The guarantee that we have to peacefully protest. So What do we do? Why are we allowing this to happen? Well, last week we talked about how tear gas isn't allowed in times of war because it falls under the category of Chemical weapons. So the question is if we're not allowed to use tear gas in a war because that would be considered a war crime Why are we okay with police officers excessively using it here at home? And we shouldn't just not be okay with them using it excessively we should be not okay with it at all because it's a chemical weapon and it is state-sanctioned violence that we should never be Okay, with we should never feel comfortable when we see the sight of police officers using a chemical weapon against protesters So, you know, there's got to be Some framework where we judge their actions And I think that if they're going to look like, you know a militarized force if America is going to look like a war zone Then I think that at a minimum we should expect them to abide by the laws of war they shouldn't be allowed to use tear gas and Another area where what they're doing would be illegal in war is when it comes to targeting medics because in a war You are never supposed to target any hospitals You're not supposed to bomb medics who are cysts who are assisting people on the battlefield and as article 24 of the Geneva Convention states medical personnel Exclusively engaged in the search for or the collection transport or treatment of the wounded or sick or in the prevention of disease Staff exclusively engaged in the administration of medical units and establishments as well as chaplains Attached to the armed forces shall be respected and protected in all Circumstances if a military isn't allowed under international law to target medics Then of course, we shouldn't allow police officers in the United States to do that, right? Target medics who are assisting wounded protesters Except that's happening That's happening. Take a look a Wide-curfew Other than essential workers A citywide curfew will be an effect other than essential Delhi Mike So what you just saw if just for a minute you suspend reality and pretend as if that was taking place in Iraq or Afghanistan That would be war crimes In other words what American police officers are doing is tantamount to war crimes But yet we allow it to happen. They are arresting medics who are assisting wounded protesters and On top of that they are arresting them and using the curfew as justification To arrest them when if you're an essential worker the curfew doesn't apply to you, right? Medical workers medical health care providers. These are essential workers So the curfew in theory isn't supposed to apply to them But yet you saw that you saw them destroying, you know supplies that volunteers brought to the medics that were at a medical tent and Look, this is all people who are associated with the protest But if you're just a health care worker and you're driving home from work after a long shift You know, even if you have nothing to do with the protest they still might go after you as well. Take a look at this So I mean this should outrage everyone This is supposed to be a free country. Does that seem like freedom to you? Does that seem like democracy to you? For them to arrest a tax-paying citizen who is on our way, you know home from work or going to work I don't know what it is, but she is a health care worker. She had scrubs on so clearly. She's an essential worker Why are you arresting her? It's because functionally They're above the law they don't abide by the laws created by politicians. They are above the law They think that they create the laws Or anything that they do by definition is good because they are officers of the law enforcers of the law And we can't allow this to happen and Jeffrey young of huff post. I think put it best He says even in their combat ready armor with their combat style rifles and combat-looking vehicles Police officers aren't soldiers and aren't trained like soldiers But if they want to dress up like soldiers, they should be expected at a minimum to follow the same rules Soldiers do yeah now. Of course the answer is we shouldn't have militarized police officers intimidating and Violently brutalizing communities that they're supposed to be protecting we should demilitarize the police They fund the police But so long as we're going to have Militarized police officers roaming the streets in the United States of America. I don't think it's too much to ask For them to be held to the same Standard as our military officials are held to If you target a medic, that's a war crime. So why is it not a crime for police officers to target medics here at home, which Is not a war zone last time I checked It's unacceptable and it's why you know I think that calls to defund the police and even abolitionist arguments are really important because you know We have always just kind of been on one setting in America, right? We take this incrementalist approach because that's all we know. That's what our institutions will allow But think beyond the parameters of you know, what is within the Overton window expand the scope of thinking have some imaginative Responses to what's happening. We have to radically Transform the way that we even conceive of policing in policing in America and we're not going to do that By you know opting for some milk toast approach We have to think outside the box and we have to find ways to have some sort of Institutional check on police officers if as a society we agreed to keep them because this is not acceptable You should not be assaulting taxpayers that are paying your paychecks. It's completely unacceptable So again, you know, we shouldn't have militarized police But if they want to you know pretend as if this is a war zone Then they should be held to a higher standard as if you know, they are in a war zone They should be prosecuted for you know using chemical weapons against Americans and targeting medics It's completely unacceptable and I don't even know what to say This is just it's demoralizing and depressing to see this you think that you know human beings Would not want to do this You know there'd be some sort of mechanism in the brains of these police officers that makes them not want to target medics and use tear gas against people but They've dehumanized the people that they're supposed to protect. This is not just you know a matter of a couple of bad apples This is you know a culture of Anti-blackness it's a culture of them feeling as if they're always under siege and they're above the law and since you know They feel as if they're a threat and they could do whatever they want use whatever force necessary even if it's excessive It's unacceptable and we have to do better and you know what we're Seeing with these protests. I think it's important that we listen to the protesters and we don't pontificate about what they need They're telling us what they need and we have to listen to them