Racial Tensions and Questionable Killings by Police in
Anaheim: 9 Things You Should Know

	It's best-known as "happiest place on Earth."
	But just four miles away from Disneyland, a cloud of
	tear gas and public outrage has swept over Anaheim.

By Kristen Gwynne
AlterNet
July 26, 2012

http://www.alternet.org/civil-liberties/racial-tensions-and-questionable-killings-police-anaheim-9-things-you-should-know

The city of Anaheim, California  may be best-known as home to
the "happiest place on Earth." But on Tuesday, just four
miles away from Disneyland, a cloud of tear gas swept over
Anaheim. Angry residents smashed business windows, hurled
rocks, and started trash-can fires as the police shot bean bag
bullets, pepper balls, and tear gas at them.

The majority-Latino town appears to have imploded, as
residents demand answers for a police killing they say is
proof of racial biases.

Saturday afternoon was the last time twenty-five-year-old
Manuel Diaz saw daylight. Residents say Diaz was unarmed and
running when police shot him from behind. That afternoon,
angry neighbors gathered near the incident in protest. Video
shows Anaheim police firing bean bags and pepper spray into a
crowd full of families. By Sunday, about 50 demonstrators
marched to the Anaheim Police Department's headquarters, but
the Anaheim PD had already killed again. This time, the dead
was "documented gang member" Joel Acevedo, who allegedly fired
at police pursuing his stolen vehicle. Demonstrations
continued into Tuesday, when tensions erupted in a near-
warzone just miles away from Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck.

The people of Anaheim are demanding justice. What will happen
next is uncertain, and anger rages on. Here are nine things
you need to know about Anaheim's past four days, and the
building tension erupting in Southern California.

1)The Shot That Started It All

Residents first were in a uproar about the nature of Diaz's
killing, which appears to be an overt abuse of force.
According to witness accounts, police first shot Diaz in the
leg, bringing him down to his knees, before firing again at
his head.  Mayor Tom Tait called reports that Diaz was shot in
the head and leg "unsettling." On Tuesday, Diaz's family filed
a civil rights lawsuit for $50 million in damages from the
city of Anaheim and the Anaheim police department. They say
Diaz was not threatening, but was shot while running away.

In some reports, police claim they approached Diaz for
"suspicious" behavior --  hurling something they "believe" to
have been heroin onto nearby roofs. Still, drug allegations
have not been substantiated, with no recovery of the alleged
heroin.

2. Child Victims of Police Brutality

Children were present at Saturday's demonstration when police
unleashed attack dogs and rubber bullets into the crowd.
According to this heartbreaking video, some of Anaheim's youth
were not spared the police department's force. Police dogs
knocked over a stroller and a bit a young boy. One little girl
said, "They're saying they let the dog go out by accident but
it was on purpose."

A child as young as five -- shot in the eye with a police
projectile -- is among the youngest reportedly struck. Amber
Stephens at Orange County Weekly reports interviewing five
children of the more than one dozen residents struck by
beanbag rounds. "One minor said she was hit by a teargas
bullet in her mouth," Stephens wrote.

Anaheim Police Sargeant Bob Dunn told OC Weekly, "If children
were hit, they have not made their presence known to us," but
footage of the rally makes it clear that children were
everywhere -- their presence was obvious.

3. Why the Weapons?

The reason for police force on Saturday is unclear. Police
have told the media they used weapons on the crowd in response
to "gang-members" throwing bottles. Footage of the alleged
instigation is not available; still, a bystander told OC
Weekly "a few water bottles were tossed in the street" as
demonstrators demanded answers from police, who "just started
shooting everyone."

4. 600 Demonstrators vs 250 Riot Police

Tensions escalated Tuesday at City Hall after demonstrators
urging the City Council to investigate Diaz's death were not
allowed to enter. Police issued a dispersal order to hundreds
of demonstrators at around 9pm. According to the
Guardian,"within minutes," demonstrators were fleeing after
police shot pepper balls at their feet. The 250 riot police
called to the scene also released bean bag balls and tear gas
on the 600 demonstrators. Twenty-four were arrested in the
chaos, which some say included some struggles between angry
rioters and demonstrators committed to peace.

The number of injuries stemming from Tuesday's action is
unclear, but if you don't think bean bag bullets hurt, take a
look at these photos.

5. Journalists Struck by Police Projectiles

Two Orange County Register reporters were injured on
Tuesday -- one by a rock, another by a police projectile. The
extent of their injuries is unclear, but at least five other
journalists were shot while covering the action, including
independent livestreamer Tim Pool,  he emmy-award winning
investigator Amber Lyon, and three KFI News staffers. Video
of Pool and Lyon being shot at is disturbing: They don't seem
to be amid a violent crowd in which they were caught in the
crossfire, but are standing peacefully on the sidewalk. Pool
says his press badge was clearly displayed the second time
police fired projectiles at him.

6. The Race Problem

Locals say the Anaheim police's killing of Diaz and violence
against protesters represents Anaheim PD's disrespect for the
Latino community. The zipcode where Diaz was shot -- and where
demonstrators communed Saturday -- is 90% Latino. Still, the
riots may be more than a response to the police department's
harsh racial profiling. Anaheim's victims may have no outlet
to air their grievances and work for change. Even though
Anaheim is more than 50% Latino, none of its city council
members are. The representational disparity is so lopsided the
ACLU and local activists recently filed a lawsuit claiming it
violates the 2001 Voting Rights Act, and demanding a new
system whereby residents vote for their district's
representative only.

7. Death Represents Sixth Person Shot by Police

This weekend's killings make for six  shootings -- five of
which have been fatal -- at the hands of Orange County police
so far this year. In all of last year, the total was four.

8. Escalating Tensions

Protests against killings by police have been ongoing over the
past couple of years. Every week, the mother of 35-year-old
Caesar Cruz, shot by Anaheim police in 2009, joins her
supporters at the police headquarters to demand answers.
Ongoing demonstrations led officials last month to look into
hiring a private investigator to probe "major police
incidents." Local activists are calling for a citizen review
commission to oversee the police department, a federal
investigation, and new training for police.

Fatal police force may be a growing problem not just in
Anaheim, but Southern California. The Los Angeles Times
reports that killings by cops in LA County increased 70% last
year compared to 2010, even though homicide dipped to a
historic low. And let's not forget nearby Fullerton, where
police brutally beat and killed a mentally ill man.

9.  Investigations and Punishment

The Orange County District Attorney's Office is investigating
the shooting death of Manuel Diaz -- and whether to file
criminal charges -- independently of the police. City
officials voted unanimously Tuesday to ask the U.S. attorney's
office to investigate recent police shootings. The Federal
Bureau of Investigation has agreed to review the evidence. Two
police officers  involved in the fatal shooting of Diaz have
been placed on paid leave.

[Kristen Gwynne covers drugs at AlterNet. She graduated from
New York University with a degree in journalism and
psychology.]

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