St. Pete for Peace

First Person account
October 22, 2005 - Palm Harbor, FL

The protest on Saturday, October 22, at Curlew Road
and U.S. 19, started off like any other, we received
the usual harassment from people. The middle finger
was raised often, scowling faces often called us
terrorists, and the occasional “Fuck Off!” was heard.
We are used to this kind of treatment. What we are not
used to, however, is our right to say what we want
being taken away. The St. Petersburg Police Department
tried to silence our protests in the past, and they
failed. On Saturday, the Pinellas County Sheriffs
Department tried to shut us down.
    I was holding a sign that carried a simple
declarative statement: FUCK BUSH. I know it’s an over
simplification of the message I want to spread, but I
feel that using the same language towards Bush’s
supporters that they use with us might help them
understand what we have to say.
    About half way through the protest, I was approached
by two officers of the Pinellas County Sheriff’s
Department who looked like they wanted trouble. The
first words out of Officer Atkins mouth were “You will
put that sign down where I cannot see it or you will
be arrested”. I asked if there was an ordinance saying
that I had to, and he told me I was breaching the
peace. I didn't want to be arrested again for
protesting, so I immediately dropped it faced down on
the ground. He then demanded to see my ID, I asked him
if I had to, and he said that I was going to be under
arrest.
    Despite the claims made in the St. Petersburg Times
article that ran the next day, I never stepped into
the street, forced traffic to move around me, nor did
I ever use any profanity with the Sheriffs. This is a
deliberate lie made by the Sheriffs department, and a
failure on behalf of the St. Petersburg Times for not
attempting to check these claims. There are video and
audio tapes proving this.
    Even though I obeyed when the Sheriff told me to put
my sign away, I was still arrested. No warning, just
an arrest. I was sent to the Juvenile Assessment
Center, photographed, finger printed, and released
without bail. I never got a copy of the arrest report,
or any notice to appear, so right now I’m waiting to
hear what happens next.

brendan@stpeteforpeace.org

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