Direct Action Monterey Network responds to Police Shooting in Salinas

On Tuesday, May 20 two members of the Salinas Police Department murdered a man. No excuses from the SPD can justify their actions. Anyone who has watched the video can clearly see two armed thugs approach a man carrying garden shears and a bag. The two thugs proceed to follow and surround the man, then shoot and kill him. Why is the reality of the situation not obvious to everyone? Because the two armed thugs wore badges and uniforms. In some people’s eyes, the position of “Police Officer” allows these murderers to act with impunity. To many others, this only reinforces what we’ve already known: that cops exist in our community to harass, intimidate, and control us. And this string of police shootings in Salinas is nothing new, nor isolated. It is part of a growing trend of police violence that exists around the United States.

What’s more, if the two armed thugs had been young Latino men without badges, the Law and Order elements who defend the cop-murderers would cry out for the need for more snitching, surveillance, and policing. This is not to simply expose the hypocrisy of the cops and their allies, but to show that calls for increasing “public safety” actually put many of us at more risk. More cameras, more police on the streets, more powerful weapons and vehicles. These things only increase the chances of violent encounters between police and civilians. And the militarization of police goes hand-in-hand with an expanding prison system. Jails, prisons, and immigrant detention centers are built more frequently or they are expanded. This violence and incarceration disproportionately targets the homeless, people of color, and immigrants.

All of these processes are happening right here in the Salinas valley. From the King City car thefts, to the Monterey County Jail expansion, to these recent police murders.

We stand with the victims’ friends and families. We stand with the communities that experience police intimidation and violence on a daily basis. We stand with anyone who is willing to speak up and act to truly make our communities safer. We must start by recognizing who the real threats are: the police.

-Direct Action Monterey Network
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