Anti-Israel Groups Heading to Chicago Tell Young Members To Take Police Beatings, Disregard Personal Safety

Radical anti-Israel groups headed to protest the Democratic National Convention are egging on their young members to up the ante and prepare for a bloody battle with police. “Make bruises from Chicago police batons the 2024 back to school Fall fashion!” one so-called anti-imperialist organization, Behind Enemy Lines, told its members on its website. “Have you thrown down against the Chicago police yet?” the group wrote on its site, urging “anti-imperialist students and youth” to “flood the city.” The organization — which was identified as a potential threat to the DNC by law enforcement earlier in August — further instructs its members to “bold and audacious, take the frontlines, and yes, take police beatings and arrests to oppose Genocide Joe.” A section of its website titled “DNC Dispatch” boasts several blog posts addressing “the important political and practical questions rising in the fight against Genocide Joe and Killer Kamala.” The most recently published one is titled “Who Says Protesting Should Be Safe?” and disputes whether a protest can be “successful” if it doesn’t “disturb the normal functioning of a society.” “Why do people in the US have the right to prioritize their own safety?” the unnamed author asks. The post further denounces the left for avoiding confrontation with the police and encourages young activists to “start treating protests and demonstrations as political battles” and “take risks.” The text of the post — or what the group calls a “DNC dispatch” — was shared this past week on Instagram by another anti-Israel group planning to attend the DNC protest, Palestine Action US. Palestine Action US has its own history with violence, particularly on college campuses. The group has come under fire for praising several arson attacks at UC Berkeley, including the burning of a university police car, and calling for the entire campus to be “incinerated.” The group’s Instagram is filled with pro-militant content including tips for how to construct barricades on college campuses, guides for protecting against police batons, infographics on the best “pushing posture” for confrontations and even tips for how to avoid police arrest — known as “de-arrest” — “to keep your comrades safe.” Although the spokesman for the march coalition insisted that the event would be “family-friendly,” the organization has made clear that they have no plans to denounce protester violence. “Diversity of tactics means that we will not condemn the various forms of protest that people will engage in throughout the week of the DNC,” the coalition posted on X. The city of Chicago, however, is not taking any chances. The police force said it has been preparing for the event for over a year. “It’s not 1968. Our officers are trained differently,” police superintendent, Larry Snelling, said in his brief to reporters, referencing the violent police clashes that took place the last time that the DNC was hosted in Chicago. “The department has evolved. Our officers have evolved. We’ve been training for this event for over a year, so the preparedness is what’s important.” The Chicago police say they will be assisted by a total of 17 different agencies, including the Secret Service, to secure the site of the convention. Law enforcement officials securing the event underwent training on both the First and Fourth Amendments and were taught de-escalation tactics. “We will not allow people to come here and destroy the city,” Mr. Snelling insisted.

Anti-Israel Groups Heading to Chicago Tell Young Members To Take Police Beatings, Disregard Personal Safety

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