Postgame Haka dancers in Utah pepper sprayed by police

Disclaimer: I used search, did not find anything posted, so I decided to.

Controversy has erupted in Utah after police reacted aggressively to a traditional Maori dance being performed by men and high school students after a small town football game on Thursday night.

According to the Associated Press, Deseret News and Salt Lake Tribune, among other sources, a group of relatives of a player for the Roosevelt (Utah) Union High football team was attacked with pepper spray by police officers in Roosevelt, Utah, while performing the dance shortly after Uintah's 17-14 victory. The group performing the Haka reportedly blocked the exit from the field, and while their dance was destined to be a quick one -- as practically all Hakas performed by sports teams are -- police insisted that they move from the area to allow players and others to leave the field.

When they began dancing instead, Roosevelt police began using pepper spray to displace the crowd.

"I've never seen anything like it," Union fan Jason Kelly told the Deseret News. "It was totally unprovoked."

. . .

Source

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And from another source:

ROOSEVELT— A small town football game ended in chaos when police used pepper spray on fans and players to break up a post-game celebration.

The game took place Thursday night in Roosevelt on the Union High Cougars' home turf. It was the final game of the season for two winless teams —Uintah High and Union High. The schools are 30 miles apart and are longtime rivals.

Union lost the game, and as the players left the field a group of Polynesian fans tried to boost the team's morale by performing the Haka, a fierce traditional war chant often performed at football and rugby games around the state.

The group of about 15 men and boys were blocking the exit from the field, though, so two officers ordered them to move.

A Roosevelt resident who asked to be identified only as Breana, said her husband was among the performers.

"The cops were yelling, 'Make a hole! Make a hole!' But the coaches, the players, family members were saying, 'It's OK. It's OK, Let them do it,'" she said.

Witnesses say police didn't listen. Instead they began spraying the crowd of performers, players and fans with pepper spray.

"It was continual spraying and spraying," Breana said.

She said her husband was hit in the face with a police baton and sprayed with the pepper spray. Her 4-year-old son was also exposed to the spray, Breana said.

Shawn Mitchell said his young son and daughter and his mother-in-law were affected by the pepper spray as well. He called the police response to the Haka an overreaction.

"I didn't see anything that looked like there could be a threat," he said.

. . .

Roosevelt police declined a request for an interview Friday, but did say that the incident is under investigation. They also want to hear from anyone who saw what happened after the game.

The people who performed the Haka are mostly from the Wasatch Front. They traveled to Roosevelt to watch a relative play his final high school game at Union.

Union fan Jason Kelly said the way police treated the visitors was an embarrassment to the community of Roosevelt.

"I've never seen anything like it," Kelly said. "It was totally unprovoked."

Source

And video, of course:




Thoughts?

As for my thoughts,

Cops clearly overreacted.

Their reasoning is false. The exits were not blocked. You can clearly see people walking back and forth between the group before the dance starts, and there is more than enough room between the dancers during the dance.

Furthermore, I am more than positive that there is more than one exit.

If that is an exit being blocked, I would hate to see them at a HS football game down here.

Not to mention that there was absolutely no imminent danger that would require the officer to move into that phase of the use of force continuum.

Last, the cop is a party-pooper who does not understand the intricacies and mentality of sports and their respective fans.

First of all lets ask this question. Why would an English team do an Sioux war dance, Why would some from Tonga do an African dance.

Why then, does an American team see the need to do something from natives of another country in the first place. It's makes Americans look stupid trying to do a Maori challenge. (thats apart from the fact that 'Kamate' is actually written by a coward who hid from a fight and then wrote the haka to make himself feel like a champion again).

reply to post by daggyz


there is a HUGE tongan and fijian population in that state , it is part of there culture and almost has religious significance , It is done after most sports events and as a welcome .

reply to post by daggyz


Because they can. That has no bearing on the issue.

Well, if these cops have never seen the Haka, or had no idea what it was, it couldve come across as "WTF!" But only if these kids did the Haka to the tee, of course

Nonetheless they reacted like idiots by using pepper spray.

reply to post by daggyz


they were Tongan..

I used to live out in Wendover UT ad let me tell you the only fun I had was going into Salt lake and hanging out with the Tongans that where at the only InNOut near me,huge community there no doubt, and being from CA and all I love it... however the fun came in eating these guys under the table with 4x4 challenges...so cool... as too this overreaction by the cops...sheesh, they are morons out there I have never met a cool Utah cop all of hopped and ready to beat you down all the time... funny thing a lot of these cops used to play on those football teams...hmmmmm. nah couldnt be jealousy.

I think the cops overreacted. There must have been another exit and people seemed to be moving through the performers. 30 seconds the Haka would have been all over.
The Haka is not meant to be a violent thing.

Cops are way to liberal with their misuse of pepper spray and tazers. I think it's about time we took those items away from them.

Originally posted by qonone
Well, if these cops have never seen the Haka, or had no idea what it was, it couldve come across as "WTF!"

. . .

I doubt it.

from the article:

. . .boost the team's morale by performing the Haka, a fierce traditional war chant often performed at football and rugby games around the state. . . .