With the recent announcement that LAPD Police Chief Charlie Beck is “retiring”, a coalition of organizers from across LA, including Pete White from the Los Angeles Community Action Network, turned out to the Police Commission meeting Tuesday morning to let him know what they thought of his so called legacy.
Here’s what Pete said when he delivered his public comment (published here with his promission):
“Remember: This day has not come easy with dozens of arrests, surveillance, and oppressive tactics used against families and organizers simply trying to stop the murder of our people. Also, this represents the second time we’ve successfully ridded our city of a police chief paraded as a hero for gentrification, banishment, and cleansing. First your predecessor, Bill “Bull Conner” Bratton! Now, Charlie “Bye Bye” Beck.
The Gates Effect:
Bye bye, Beck. No longer can you carry on the work of your openly stated hero, racist ass Darryl Gates! And, you suffer the same fate of leaving your post with your head hung low. Garbage in, garbage out. #LetsGetFree
Bye bye, Beck, and the idea of suspending a drunk officer who drove drunk after calling a Black man dancing with his wife, “a nigger and monkey,” draws his gun, and whose confession is recorded by the sheriff. Even this pathetic board wanted him fired, but not you — he was simply doing what he did daily, the Gates effect.
Bye bye, Beck, for promoting Captain Todd Chamberlain to Commander, in charge of homelessness, after his involvement with White Central Division officers giving Earl Wright, a Black officer a birthday cake topped with chicken and watermelon slices. Again, the Gates Effect
Bye bye, Beck. You can no longer sit by idly while the arrest of houseless and people with mental illness increase by 49% in 2017, while all other arrest go down, and say, “we’re just counting more accurately. Dumb in, dumb out.
Bye bye, Beck, for supporting the deployment of SWAT , not a SMART team against, Carlos Ocana, a harmless, shirtless, elderly immigrant known for his mental illness, who is shot from a roof and plunges to his death.
Bye bye, Beck, and your attempt to mislead the public in the murder of Brother Africa, showing the LA TIMES, and only the LA TIMES, video and planting a story that you’d hope would make people forget the video of state sanctioned murder that had already gone viral. Also, can you release the rest of the body-cam footage, all of it, before you head out of the door?
Bye bye, Beck. You can no longer disrespect families of people killed by your officers while simultaneously being paraded as the finest chief and department in the nation. You lead the nation in state violence and murder.
Bye bye, Beck. So much for you turning a blind-eye to the destruction of recording equipment by your officers who are hell-bent on not being held accountable for their violence against communities of color and you refusing to investigate and move for prosecution.
Bye bye, Beck, for sitting up in police commission and laughing as we called for this resignation — I guess you finally got the message.
Bye bye, Beck. Rest assure that we know you are nothing more than a pilot for an institution rooted in a culture of violence and racism but your departure provides strategic opportunities for the people.”
Footage of Pete’s comment can be found below. I encourage everyone to watch until the end.
Pete White of @LACANetwork delivers an epic speech on #LAPD Chief #CharlieBeck‘s legacy of corruption @BLMLA @DocMellyMel @WP4RJ @stoplapdspying @Jasmyne @YouthJusticeLA @JusticeLANow @Occupy_Yourself @MattMcGorry @my2cnz @LifeIsFunnyLA @RisePDX @GlobalRevLive @buell003 pic.twitter.com/NfVdu7lWgU
— PMbeers (@PMbeers) January 25, 2018