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Showing Original Post only (View all)In New York, Thousands Protest Officer Liang’s Conviction [View all]
On the vast lawn of the plaza near the courthouse in Brooklyn where Peter Liang, a former New York City police officer, was convicted in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black man just over a week ago, a crowd of several thousand people gathered on Saturday.
They chanted, No scapegoat! No scapegoat! and carried signs bearing the same message. Some said they had never had a reason to protest before, while others said they had taken the day off from work or had come by train and bus from across the city or as far as New Jersey and Connecticut to take part in the demonstration at Cadman Plaza Park to show their support for Officer Liang.
Prosecutors had described Officer Liangs behavior as reckless when he fired his gun inside a public housing complex, and argued that after the man, Akai Gurley, had been shot, the officer seemed more concerned about his career than in helping Mr. Gurley, who was 28.
Yet Officer Liangs conviction has gripped many in the citys Chinese-American community, who believe that he had been targeted for prosecution because of his race. They followed the case closely and have been denouncing the jurys verdict, arguing that Officer Liang, 28, was a victim himself. Supporters of Officer Liang noted the strained relationship between the police and African-Americans across the country, after a string of incidents in which unarmed black men were killed by officers, many of whom were never charged.
Officer Liang, in their view, was the one who had to pay the price. One of the printed announcements for the rally read, In the wake of so many unfortunate deaths of unarmed black men, some cops gotta hang. The evidence against Officer Liang, his supporters contend, did not seem as clear-cut compared to the cases of other officers who have not been prosecuted. Some also believed that the gunfire had been an accidental discharge.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/21/nyregion/in-new-york-thousands-protest-officer-liangs-conviction.html?_r=1
Wait.... WHAT?