22 — Black Lives Matter

We talk about Australia's Black Lives Matter protests against indigenous deaths in custody, and the responses of Australia's media and police.

Black lives matter

• Tens of thousands of Australians came out in solidarity with Black Lives Matter and to protest Indigenous deaths in custody
• There have been 432 indigenous deaths since 1990. Not a single police officer has been convicted.
• On the friday before people marched, another man died in prison in WA.

Cooked cops

• Sydney police kettled and pepper sprayed peaceful protesters trying to get home.
• NSW Police Minister David Elliot called protestors “certifiably insane”. This is a man who thinks he would be okay with police stripsearching his own childen, and assaulted a 17 year old who clipped his Lexus.
• Police Commissioner Mick Fuller thinks crime will increase if young people don’t fear the police.
• During the week leading up to the protests, a Sydney cop kicked an Indigenous teenager without cause.
• Victorian Police were very interested in protecting their police station.

Channel 7 is a cop

• Channel 7 in an interview with Black Lives Matter said that Australia doesn’t have a history of police violence.
• Sunrise have repeatedly platformed Pauline Hanson, congratulated a mixed-race twin on looking white, and green-screened out a protest of their racism outside of their studio.
• Two Channel 7 journalists were attacked by police at a Washington DC protest, which has gotten Scott Morrison the closest he’s ever gotten to saying police violence is bad.
• Ketan Joshi has a great thread on twitter enumerating Channel 7’s many racist moments.
• ABC is getting in on the action too, talking about riots as non-political action.

Spinning tales of spitting threats

• In a now-edited article, the Age parroted an anonymous “government source” saying that that activists threatened police with spitting and other forms of physical confrontation.
• The article was eventually edited to focus on COVID risks, and the Age issued an apology.
• Noel Towell from the Age publishes an quoting the Liberal Party leader pre-blaming protestors for any spike in COVID rates.

Constant bootlinking

• The Conversation asks “Why do protests turn violent”, that bends itself backwards to avoid saying “because police”.
• The Sydney Black Lives Matter protest was declared legal 15 minutes before it started.
• The Herald Sun wrings their hands in article calling protestors COVIDIOTS, while their jounalist reporting on site wears no PPE.
• Channel 9 gets owned for Copaganda.
• Natalie Wolf from news.com.au declares that police were “forced” to spay protestors.
• Jounalist use this passive voice to erase accountability from the police. Retired editor Paul Wiggins called out ABC Insiders host David Speers for his use of this language.
• Guggenheim museum released a Black Lives Matter statement while their first black curator called them out for institutional racism.

Actions

• WAR have asked for donations towards families seeking justice for loved ones that have died in custody.
• Pay the rent.
• Donate to Sisters Inside and Aboriginal Legal Services (VIC / NSW / WA / SA / NT).