Journalist Arrested During 'Occupy Wall Street' Protest
Protestors question excessive police force
The NYPD has garnered more public scrutiny following the arrest of a journalist at the “Occupy Wall Street” protest Saturday.
John Farley, a journalist for news magazine MetroFocus, was handcuffed with sharp plastic ties and arrested for civil disobedience.
He was taken to the 1st precinct and remained there for nine hours, along 35 other male protestors. He repeatedly told officers he was a journalist. He fruitlessly showed them his employee identification card and tape recorder.
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“Journalists come to the scene just like medical professionals would come to any scene,” Laura Van Straaten, editor-in-chief at MetroFocus, told FishbowlNY.
“They’re trained to kind of do what they do. It’s a big risk that John personally assumes,” she added.
Sam Queary, a citizen journalist also arrested, was judo flipped by a police officer when he ran out of a building to take pictures.
“'I followed a young, black male as he was being accosted by five cops. As I tried to take a picture I was pushed away. I asked why I was pushed away and then the next thing you know I was being judo flipped,” Queary told MailOnline.
Protesters are questioning the use of excessive police force after a video clip of an NYPD officer macing a group of women protesters went viral on the Internet.
Another video documenting one officer using his knee to pin a protester’s neck to the ground has also receiving attention on YouTube.
"We condemn the actions of unprofessional police who used excessive force in subduing a peaceful march. But we are foremost here to oppose the growing power of the ruling class," declared the Occupy Wall Street official website.
The protest seeks to convince President Barack Obama to pass legislation closing the gap between the poor, “the 99 percent,” and the rich, “the one percent.”
Protestors are continuing their anthem of peace into their 14th day Friday.
Friday morning opened with group yoga and seminars on how to have a successful peaceful protest.
“The last couple of days the police have behaved very well and they have allowed us to express ourselves,” Adam Aguglia of Rochester, NY previously told The Christian Post.
