Day 13 of mass arrests for singing at the Wisconsin Capitol
http://www.bluecheddar.net/?p=34989
Today was day number 13 of mass arrests of singers at the Wisconsin Capitol building putting the number of citations issued since July 24th somewhere around the 260 mark. I dont have an exact number of arrests from today but I estimate 15 20 with around 300 people either singing or observing.
We experienced the usual requisite warning by ear-pounding LRAD that we were unlawfully assembled in the rotunda and must disperse immediately or risk arrest and we then saw officers coming into the rotunda in groups, tapping the shoulder of an unsuspecting singer, applying cuffs, and walking their targets back to elevators. We saw citizens hoisting cameras aloft maybe 10 or 15 citizen photographers for each mainstream press camera.
And we saw some unusual things: No arrests of raging grannies. (Yes. Ive been learning to expect this.) There were 3 arrests last Thursday and there have been arrests of grannies before then on the regular.
*Brian Austin of Cops For Labor was there. He told Wisconsin State Journal New participants, many of them from local police and firefighter unions, said last Thursdays arrest of a journalist, a Madison City Council member and a 14-year-old girl encouraged them to join the more than 2-year-old Solidarity Singalong. That to me was the last straw, said Brian Austin, a Madison Police officer. It just seemed absolutely absurd to me that this is happening in Wisconsin.