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Police Shooting Wisconsin
AMERICANA
Kenosha Sheriff’s Racist Rant Follows Pattern of Fraternizing with White
Supremacists
In 2018, Sheriff David Beth went on a bizarre eugenics rant, claiming that the
police’s job should be to stop “these males” from “getting ten other women
pregnant and having small children,” among other troubling comments he made on
video.
by Alan Macleod
August 28th, 2020
By Alan Macleod
The Kenosha Police Department has come under heavy scrutiny in recent days
after one of its officers shot Jacob Blake multiple times in the back at close
range. Later, after protests erupted, its officers stood shoulder-to-shoulder
with local militia, one of whom — a 17-year-old boy — would go on to shoot
three people, returning to police lines, where they did not arrest him,
allowing him to continue unabated.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has called for the resignation of the
city’s police chief, Daniel Miskinis, and the county’s sheriff, David Beth.
“Sheriff David Beth’s deputies not only fraternized with white supremacist
counter-protesters on Tuesday, but allowed the shooter to leave as people
yelled that he was the shooter,” they wrote in their statement. The ACLU also
drew attention to an obscene rant Beth went on in 2018, in reaction to a
shoplifting incident.
“I’m to the point where I think society has to come to a threshold where there
are some people that aren’t worth saving,” Beth said, from his podium, in front
of the press. “We need to build warehouses to put these people into it and lock
them away for the rest of their lives,” with “no recreational time” whatsoever,
he added. This was in response to the arrest of five black people for
shoplifting. He then went on a bizarre eugenics rant, claiming that the
police’s job should be to stop “these males” from “getting ten other women
pregnant and having small children.” “Let’s put them away,” he said, “at some
point, we have to stop being politically correct.” Beth attempted to justify
his opinion, stating that the five black suspects, “drove through a red light,
they stole thousands of dollars worth of clothing, and they don’t care.”
The ACLU also condemned Miskinis for his response to the Blake shooting and
subsequent murders, noting that he blamed the unidentified victims in Tuesday
night’s shooting for their own deaths, saying they should not have broken
curfew. “Their actions uphold and defend white supremacy, while demonizing
people who were murdered for exercising their First Amendment rights and
speaking out against police violence,” said Chris Ott, Executive Director of
the ACLU of Wisconsin. “The only way to rectify these actions is for both
Sheriff Beth and Police Chief Daniel Miskinis to immediately tender their
resignations.”
“Paid Vacation” for Kenosha Cops Who Shot Unarmed Jacob Blake in the Back
Being in the midst a summer of unprecedented racial and political unrest was
apparently not enough to stop Kenosha police from emptying seven rounds into
the back of yet another unarmed black man., Jacob Blake, Kenosha, Police,
Protests, Wisconsin,
MintPress News | Alan Macleod | Aug 24
On Sunday afternoon, Kenosha police officer Rusten Sheske shot Jacob Blake, a
local 29-year-old black multiple times in the back from point blank range.
While Blake was left paralyzed and fighting for his life, video of the incident
was going viral, sparking nationwide protests. Sheskey was placed on
administrative leave, little more than paid vacation in some commentators’
eyes. Officers claim that Blake had a knife on his person.
Rusten Sheske
Rusten Sheske, the officer who shot Jacob Blake. Wisconsin DOJ via AP
Protests engulfed Keshona, with Governor Tony Evers declaring a state of
emergency. Right-wing militias also converged on the small Wisconsin city.
Among them was 17-year-old Kyle Rittenhouse, who got his mother to drive him
across state lines with an illegal firearm. Rittenhouse was filmed shooting
three people, killing two, before rushing back to police lines, where he was
protected from the protestors. Despite killing two people in front of dozens of
police officers, he was not arrested until the next day. Indeed, video emerged
showing police fraternizing with the militias before the shooting, telling
Rittenhouse and his crew that “we appreciate you guys, we really do,” just
before the shootings.
Police Told Right-Wing Kenosha Killer “We Appreciate You” Just Before Deadly
Shootings
Kenosha police told right-wing shooter Kyle Rittenhouse that they appreciated
his armed presence not long before he opened fire on activists.
MintPress News | Alan Macleod | Aug 27
The overlap between law enforcement and racist militias has been well studied.
Far-right groups are infiltrating police departments nationwide, something the
government has known about and monitored for years. Facing a recruitment
crisis, the military has also been recruiting Neo-Nazis to join its ranks.
During the racial justice protests occurring nationwide throughout the summer,
police have been caught coordinating with far-right groups and making white
power gestures.
Trying to gauge the exact level of crossover between police and the far-right
is not easy, although a recent study by the group Injustice Watch makes for
worrying reading. The study found that 20 percent of police officers post
openly racist content or share content glorifying police violence against
protesters on their public Facebook pages. This figure rises to 40 percent of
retired cops. And the two most common professions of readers of right-wing
conspiracy website InfoWars are police officer and soldier. Thus, while Sheriff
Beth’s remarks might shock the public, those who closely follow the issue are
likely less surprised.
Feature photo | Police in riot gear line up against protesters during clashes
outside the Kenosha County Courthouse, Aug. 25, 2020, in Kenosha, Wis. David
Goldman | AP