The guy (shown below) was wearing a yarmulke (skullcap). That made him ‘openly Jewish’, which is evidently a terrible thing. After all, it might upset the Muslims. Mustn’t upset the Muslims.
Posted on 04/21/2024 12:23:36 PM PDT by Leaning Right
London’s police force has been forced to issue two apologies after officers threatened to arrest an “openly Jewish” man if he refused to leave the area around a pro-Palestinian march because his presence risked provoking the demonstrators.
(Excerpt) Read more at nbcnews.com ...
Threatening to arrest him for being Jewish. I remember something like that happening in the late 1930s in Germany.
One post I read indicated that he was just walking home from work; I don’t know if that’s true or not.
London police and politicians deserve a brick sandwich!
So sad to see England creator, and we’re right behind them!
The problem is that "protecting someone" by asking them to leave, instead of "protecting someone" by ensuring that the protest is peaceful is a misplaced understanding of the job.
-PJ
I don’t know how one cop can ensure a peaceful protest. I can see, however, how one cop might warn a person against danger.
They didn’t merely threaten - they forced him to leave, which is effectively arrest and, in America, is sufficient grounds for a false arrest lawsuit.
Most religious Jews are open about their Jewishness faith and wear religious garb in devotion to it. Are Catholics who wear a cross said to be "openly Christian" just because they wore a religious symbol unique to them?
I reject the notion of replacing one's expression of faith as being "Jewishness" or "Christianness" or "Musllimness" or whatever. The police officer and/or the writer of the article were being lazy in their description of the individual. Devotion to a creed or faith is just that; both of them could just as easily said the man was "openly devout" instead of calling him "openly Jewish."
"Openly Jewish" implies that it is something best kept in private.
-PJ
Subjects should understand their place.
(And I’m not talking about the cops.)
How is forcing someone to leave ‘an arrest’?
Cops often ‘force’ people to leave when they’ve been a problem in/near private businesses or public spaces.
> one cop might warn a person against danger <
Nothing wrong with that. But the cop threatened to arrest the Jewish guy if he didn’t leave the area. Warning is one thing. Threatening to arrest is quite another.
This whole mess is just another example of the West accommodating Islam. The sight of a Jewish guy might upset the Muslim protesters. So the Jewish guy has leave.
PJ is correct (post #24). The police are supposed to protect everyone’s rights. Here the cop tried to take the easy way out instead.
Honestly, it reminds me of when I go to a sporting event (or watch on on TV) and see the security guards watching the field instead of watching the stands. Cops at a protest should be watching the protesters before watching the passers-by on the sidewalks.
The question is which group is more likely to act first, the Hamas sympathizers or the street-goers walking by?
-PJ
If the Jewish gentleman wound up being attacked by the protesters, what would have happened to an individual cop who did nothing to try and avoid that situation?
I just stated facts, as the article presented it. I was not giving my position or expressing my agreement.
The only I can say is that, using an Arabic parable, you sometimes can only close the tent door until the sandstorm passes. Afterwords, you can go after the protestors in your leisure.
It was Saturday - Shabbat, when Orthodox Jews don’t work, drive or use mass transit, or even carry anything. He would have been within walking distance of a synagogue or residence.
Am I missing something here? How does one ‘look openly Jewish?’ Did he dress up like an Hassidic Jew or IS one? Did he wrap an Israeli flag around him? Did he make himself look like old Nazi images and pictures of Jews? Didn’t see any pictures, myself so is it like being ‘openly white’ at a Black Panther rally......or being ‘openly black’ at a KKK rally?
These pro-Palestinian protesters wouldn’t last 5 minutes in Gaza , hamas would turn them into sex slaves
I don’t totally disagree with you. The Jewish guy was in a bit of danger. Muslims can be violent. And Muslim mobs even more so.
So, yes. I think the cop had a duty to talk to the Jewish guy, and warn him. But threaten to arrest him? Nope, that’s crossing the line. That’s the cop blaming the possible victim for any possible trouble.
As a rough analogy, consider a guy wearing an expensive watch. And he’s taking a stroll in a bad part of town. A beat cop sees him. Should the cop warn him? Yes. Should the cop threaten to arrest him if he doesn’t turn around? I’d say no.
Better that the cop keep extra alert for criminals while that (maybe stupid) watch guy is on his walk.
The guy (shown below) was wearing a yarmulke (skullcap). That made him ‘openly Jewish’, which is evidently a terrible thing. After all, it might upset the Muslims. Mustn’t upset the Muslims.
Incorrect, loitering is not a crime in England or Wales. The Vagrancy Acts of 1825 and 1898 which made loitering a crime were repealed by a different law on Sexual Assault in 2003.
This gentleman had a right to be in a public place for his own purposes. He is not accused of committing a crime and the fact that other people may not like his presence is not his problem. The policeman was wrong and had no authority to arrest him.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loitering
You can tell by his haircut the yarmulke isn’t just a cap put on for this.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.