Anti-War Protesters Hit With Pepper Spray

Associated Press

Police fired pepper spray as about 150 anti-war protesters tried to enter the Port of Olympia as part of ongoing demonstrations against the shipment of Army equipment to Iraq.

Protesters chanted "Out of Olympia, Out of Iraq" as they rocked a chain-link gate to the port late Monday, and at least three tried to use wooden boards to pry the gate open, The Olympian newspaper reported. A 50-ton piece of equipment was moved to reinforce the gate on the other side.

Police and sheriff's deputies clad in riot gear fired at least four rounds of pepper spray in an hour after asking the demonstrators several times to stop, authorities said. No one was arrested, but paramedics were dispatched to treat some activists.

Dozens of demonstrators crouched in the port plaza, dousing each other's eyes with water and offering slices of onion to soothe their throats.

Sixteen people were arrested in three days last week, mostly for pedestrian interference. The vessel arrived in Budd Inlet at the south end of Puget Sound about 7:30 p.m. Monday, accompanied by Coast Guard vessels with large guns to secure the waterway.

"The majority were very peaceful, nonviolent, just exercising their constitutional rights," sheriff's Capt. Bradley Watkins said.

You want to Exercise Your Constitutional Right?

You want to Exercise the Freedom of Speech?

Well not anymore.

The Rising Police State will not TOLERATE any outbreaks of this "anti-war crowd"!

"The majority were very peaceful, nonviolent, just exercising their constitutional rights," sheriff's Capt. Bradley Watkins said.


That's your dead giveaway right there. No longer will protesters be tolerated in this police state.

Yeah, and the pepper spray was only used on thos who were trying to break into the compound, and even asked to stop repeatedly. On top of that, no one was arrested. So... I think you're blowing this one out of proportion, just a bit.

Originally posted by cmdrkeenkid
Yeah, and the pepper spray was only used on thos who were trying to break into the compound, and even asked to stop repeatedly. On top of that, no one was arrested. So... I think you're blowing this one out of proportion, just a bit.

So what does the Police State do?

A.) Remove the Problematic Individuals?

B.) Fire Pepper Spray on ALL of them?

Well I must say, effective tactics - nobody protested after that anymore.

They were getting out of hand, and the problem could have escalated to something more. Do you think that when there are riots and looting going on it's wrong of the police to use firehoses, pepper spray, or tear gas to keep people in line?

And it didn't say the protesters broke up anywhere in the article. It only said that they stopped trying to break into the port. Also, the fact that no one was arrested after the firing of pepper spray into the crowd doesn't lend any support to your police state hypothesis... I would think if they had all been arrested, then maybe you would have been on the right track.

I bet those 150 protesters are gone shopping for protective masks.
Once pepper spray is no longer effective what will be used against them, bullets?

Originally posted by Umbrax
Once pepper spray is no longer effective what will be used against them, bullets?

Probably, yeah. Though the rubber variety. It's been done before, it'll happen again.

How dare those fascist pigs enforce laws?! How dare they?! These people just wanted to peacefully break into a port, not break any..um...not break any...oh...

So, souljah, where in the article, pray tell, does it say they police fired pepper spray at all of them? The first line, maybe? Only if you want to read it that way. Let's take a look:

Police fired pepper spray as about 150 anti-war protesters tried to enter the Port of Olympia as part of ongoing demonstrations against the shipment of Army equipment to Iraq.

What does this sentence tell us? Two things. First, the police fired pepper spray. It doesn't say what their target was, but it does tell us that at the same time 150 protesters were trying to break into a port. Naturally, we would assume it was this crowd that was fired upon, but there's no indication they fired on the entire crowd whom, as the sergeant had said, was mostly peaceful.

What's also interesting is this sentence from the story:

Dozens of demonstrators crouched in the port plaza, dousing each other's eyes with water and offering slices of onion to soothe their throats.

Is it normal to bring onions to protests, or did these people plan to get hit by pepper spray as a result of breaking into a port?

So the protestors wanted to stop our military from receiving need supplies. That is their right, but it is abhorrent.

The majority were peaceful. But the majority were not peppered.

A minority were attempting to break down a fence. They were stopped.

So, Souljah, is this what you are upset about? Are you advocating that Vandals and Lawbreakers be allowed to go unchecked?

Bcause that is What you Are Saying, isn't it.

I like the practice of Randomly Capitalizing words in my Post, as you do, Souljah. It is a trick to Insert Apparent Headlines Into the Story.

I'm not as Good At It as you are, but then, you've been Doing It for Much Longer than I have.

There have been protests going on for about two years there in Olympia. They have been peaceful for the most part, with a few arrests thrown in for things like trying to lock the main gates with a bicycle lock or blocking traffic.

What happened when they forcefully tried to break in the compound was beyond just plain civil disobedience. They were asked to stop, did not, and they had to be dispersed in a manner that would cause the least risk to law enforcement officials. As the poster above me stated, you don't normally bring onions with you to a protest just for the food.

Normal peaceful protests has been allowed to take place there, for about two years with relatively few problems. Dangerous or illegal types of protest have not been allowed to take place there. Nothing really new here.

Yes, you are Laughing now.

Wait a little bit and I don't think you won't be laughing anymore.

By all means, protect the people currently in power in United States.

Forget about the People.

They just Work and Live and Pay the Taxes.

Just one more sign, of the Rise of the Police State.

Oh I am sorry - I forgot; Freedom is Slavery...

Originally posted by Souljah
Yes, you are Laughing now.

Wait a little bit and I don't think you won't be laughing anymore.

Double negative. So we will be laughing? Yeah, I think you're right. Why don't you comment on people pointing out your obvious spin on this article?

The Freedom of Speech and peoples right to protest have never allowed people to break into a port or trespass. Thats against the law and if you break the law and dont follow police orders theres a chance you will get a taste of peppered spray.

I find it ridiclus people think they have the right to break into the compound or building if they are protesting.

Originally posted by cmdrkeenkid
Double negative. So we will be laughing? Yeah, I think you're right. Why don't you comment on people pointing out your obvious spin on this article?

Spin? I think the word torque is appropriate here. You have the right to assemble and to protest, that isn't in doubt here. It is when they tried to break down the fence that the pepper spray was used. As soon as they tried to break the fence they were no longer protesters and their freedoms in that reguard went out the window. If you want lessons on how to protest you can take them from the immigration protests at the beginning of May. I don't agree with their views on immigration but I have to admire the peaceful ways that they protested.

I have a real problem with these people who present themselves as peaceful protesters, when their intent is to provoke a confrontation with the authorities. I don't know about you but I don't walk around with an onion in my pocket all of the time, just in case I encounter some pepper spray. To me this shows that they planned to provoke this confrontation with the Police. What is sad about this is that some of the people were there for a legitimate protest. The idiots who tried to break down the fence, did more damage to the right to protest than the Police did, but you won't see that addressed anywhere.

Funny how you omitted this quote:

“There was a group that was trying to damage port property. We asked them several times to stop, we warned them that if they did not stop, we would deploy pepper spray.”

Funny how that is Soul...


I can say anything I want to anybody I want. And I will always have that right as an American.

But if I break the law while trying to exercise my right, then it’s a different story. But Souljah you hardly see it that way. But then again your agenda is always very clear…

It’s funny how a story that includes “peaceful” protestors using boards to pry open gates, an hour of warnings and attempts to secure the gate turns into a police state repressing its peoples right to speak out.

You are so predictable I could set my watch by you.

Souljah, in the US (ill enlighten you because you really have no clue about what’s allowed and not here), you have the right to say anything you want, but that doesn’t mean you have the right to say it anywhere you want, or by any means you want.

You can go stand on a sidewalk and scream the USA sucks and that’s OK. But you try and scream USA sucks on my lawn and you’re going to get shot. And that’s not an infringement on freedom of speech. It’s not the speech that got you shot, it’s the trespassing.

Those people should consider themselves lucky they weren’t arrested or killed while the laid siege to that private property, because the owners would have been perfectly in the right to have done so.


But I do have good news for you Souljah! I have promoted you from a lowly “Souljah”, to “Captain”!!! yes, you are now Captain Spin. Grats


[edit on 30-5-2006 by skippytjc]

Originally posted by Souljah
The Rising Police State will not TOLERATE any outbreaks of this "anti-war crowd"!

What are you talking about? The police asked them to leave several times, they did not obey the police; so one hour later they sprayed them with pepper spray.

Get a life. Skippy is right we can set our watches by your posts

Originally posted by Souljah
Yes, you are Laughing now.

We're laughing at you and your pathetic attempts to blow things out of proportion


I'm positive there have been thousands of incidents where pepper spray has been used since...I don't know, 1912 or something like that...whenever it was first discovered then used by the police. If pepper spray is a sure sign of the coming apocolyptic US police state, what's taking so long?

By all means, protect the people currently in power in United States.

What about the 1000s of times pepper spray has been used before this administration?

So this is the latest evidence of a police state? Pepper spray? Yeah man, I mean god, this is 10x worse than Kent State! I better start using Alex Jones ISP or "they'll" win.

Police break up Stryker protest

“I’m basically just glad that it was peaceful, nonviolent civil disobedience. ... I didn’t see it as being disrespectful to the soldiers,” said Stegman, a political activist and conscientious objector during the Vietnam War.

“I think these arrests are a little overkill,” said Joshua Elliot, 25, one of the protesters arrested and booked Tuesday for pedestrian interference, a misdemeanor. “The people being arrested are doing everything they can to have their voices heard.”

Elliot called the protesters’ activity at the port the “last avenue” of the people because Congress and the Bush administration have not acted to stop the war.

Port protesters yell at police, get arrested

For the third consecutive day, police arrested protesters today for disrupting the arrival of military vehicles at the Port of Olympia for shipment to Iraq.

Seven war protesters arrested as Strykers roll toward port

“This is my port and my city,” said Brendan Dunn, 21, whom police arrested at the port Monday. “I don’t think military vehicles should be shipped through our city, especially when we know where it’s going: Iraq.”

Another report on pepper spray use

When i got down there, a pretty sizeable crowd had gathered, but were in disarray because the cops PEPPER SPRAYED them because they were banging on the gate. #ing pepper sprayed them. We reorganized and went to the other gate and started shaking it. I dont think this would have happened were the cops not to have used extremely excessive force against the protesters in the first place, but, regardless, the very fact that our port, in our town is being used for such a reprehensible war and the shipping of weapons designed to KILL PEOPLE, we had every right to make our extreme displeasure known.

Well, lots of different reports ey?

Bang the Gates and you get Pepper Sprayed?

Anyway, I am glad there are some People living in America that are prepared to do anything that they can to stop the illegal occupation in Iraq to continue.

Even if that means Civil Disobeience - how else exactly are they going to be Heard?

Even if they will be arrested and beaten up by the Robo-Cops.

And I do belive that Robo-Cops are getting Itchy too ey?

But hey - what do I know!

Originally posted by Souljah

Police break up Stryker protest

When i got down there, a pretty sizeable crowd had gathered, but were in disarray because the cops PEPPER SPRAYED them because they were banging on the gate. #ing pepper sprayed them. We reorganized and went to the other gate and started shaking it. I dont think this would have happened were the cops not to have used extremely excessive force against the protesters in the first place, but, regardless, the very fact that our port, in our town is being used for such a reprehensible war and the shipping of weapons designed to KILL PEOPLE, we had every right to make our extreme displeasure known.

Wow, see what happens when pot, and hippies mix? Pepper spray is extremely excessive force? Some kids with hackey sacks get pepper sprayed and it's excessive force, then what would you call a black man with a screw driver being shot multiple times by cops?

They asked for whatever they got when they started banging on crap, bang on my house like that and you'll be introduced to 230grs of lead. The point of protesting is being peaceful, if they would have just sat there, not banged on someone elses property, and not screamed like a bunch of teenagers I highly doubt the cops would have used pepper spray, and if they had, your side would have alot more ammo against them, but instead, we're here.

I'm no fan of cops, but jesus, you people are just a little too paranoid. When they start mounting ma deuces on top of cop cars I'll worry. Come on, in the 1960's they attacked people with dogs, and rifles, now they use pepper spray and that's worse?

Talk about a country of cowards.