VIDEO: Police Arrest #OccupyBoston Protesters, Including Veterans, in Late-Night Clash

Get your news from a source that’s not owned and controlled by oligarchs. Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily.

In the early morning hours on Tuesday, Boston police officers clashed with Occupy Boston protesters demonstrating in the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway. Police had surrounded the park and demanded that the protesters leave, but after they did not, law enforcement arrested nearly 100 people.

Among those protesting was a contingent from Vets for Peace, an anti-war organization made up of US veterans. The following video shows police dragging protesters to the ground and hand-cuffing them with plastic flexi-cuffs. You can see an American flag knocked to the ground during the scuffle, and Boston police also collected crumpled tents, signs, and other materials and tossed them into nearby garbage trucks.

Here’s the video:

Boston wasn’t the only site of conflict in recent days. In Des Moines, activists defying an 11 p.m. curfew to continue their own Occupy protest were pepper-sprayed and arrested by police. Read more about that confrontation, including video of the arrests, here.

A key point to bear in mind: As Nate Silver points out, police clashes like those in Boston and Des Moines result in more press coverage, and so more momentum, for the Occupy movement. In the case of Occupy Wall Street specifically, Silver found, news coverage jumped after clashes between protesters and New York cops, including the use of pepper-spray and mass arrests of protesters on the Brooklyn Bridge. Given widespread coverage of the Boston arrests, it’s likely the same effect will play out in that city as well.

BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things they don’t like—which is most things that are true.

No one gets to tell Mother Jones what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

payment methods

BEFORE YOU CLICK AWAY!

“Lying.” “Disgusting.” “Scum.” “Slime.” “Corrupt.” “Enemy of the people.” Donald Trump has always made clear what he thinks of journalists. And it’s plain now that his administration intends to do everything it can to stop journalists from reporting things they don’t like—which is most things that are true.

No one gets to tell Mother Jones what to publish or not publish, because no one owns our fiercely independent newsroom. But that also means we need to directly raise the resources it takes to keep our journalism alive. There’s only one way for that to happen, and it’s readers like you stepping up. Please help with a donation today if you can—even a few bucks will make a real difference. A monthly gift would be incredible.

payment methods

We Recommend

Latest

Sign up for our free newsletter

Subscribe to the Mother Jones Daily to have our top stories delivered directly to your inbox.

Get our award-winning magazine

Save big on a full year of investigations, ideas, and insights.

Subscribe

Support our journalism

Help Mother Jones' reporters dig deep with a tax-deductible donation.

Donate