Kevin Alfaro was at a Black Lives Matter protest in Nutley, New Jersey, when his ordeal began. The anti-racism demonstration, prompted by the police killing of George Floyd, was met by a group of mostly white counter-protesters, some chanting “all lives matter”, and Alfaro felt the police were treating the rightwing crowd favorably. In a climate where anti-racism protesters have been met with violence from police, Alfaro took a photo of one officer, and posted it to Twitter. “If anyone knows who this bitch is, throw his info under this tweet,” Alfaro wrote. The post, on 26 June, garnered few retweets, and Alfaro, 21, thought nothing more of it – until a month later, when a letter arrived at his home. Alfaro had been charged with cyber-harassment, a fourth-degree felony, and a charge that carries a prison sentence of up to 18 months. It fit a pattern. Since protests against racism and police brutality began protesters across the country have been hit with punitive, felony charges for acts of civil disobedience, in what civil rights experts say is a “suppression tactic” aimed at quashing the anti-racism movement. In New York City, a man was charged after allegedly shouting through a loudspeaker in a police officer’s ear. In Miami, an activist was hit with a strong-arm robbery charge after being accused of stealing pro-Donald Trump flags. Perhaps the most egregious case is in Utah, where a group faces up to life in prison after allegedly throwing paint on a building.“The only thing that’s in your mind is fear,” Alfaro said. “I saw I was facing up to 18 months in jail, thousands of dollars in fines. You don’t know what’s gonna happen. It’s a lot of confusion and a lot of fear.”Four people who retweeted Alfaro were also charged.

All data is taken from the source: https://www.theguardian.com/
Article Link: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/aug/16/felony-charges-blm-protesters-suppression-tactic#img-1


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