+- MacResource (https://forums.macresource.com)
+-- Forum: My Category (https://forums.macresource.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=1)
+--- Forum: Tips and Deals (https://forums.macresource.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=3)
+--- Thread: Brief rant.. Library Police ? (/showthread.php?tid=144445)
Pages:
1
2
Brief rant.. Library Police ? - cbelt3 - 11-13-2012
Our guest is working at an Inner ring suburb school which closes up shop at 2:30. So he spends the time until 5 PM when I can pick him up at the local city library, which happens to be right next to the school. And the library is used by 'latchkey' children as a spot to assmble and theoretically 'study' while waiting for their parents to come home from work or pick them up.
And because there have been gang issues, the library is staffed with three city police officers. Full uniform, fully armed. Who, according to our guest, take great delight in chasing little children out into the rain and snow becuause they are 'making noise'. In most cases the cop yells at the kids, and totally disturbs everyone in the library. The children are just being kids, talking in whispers and giggling the way children do.
He's gotten very frustrated at this turn of events. I'm contemplating equipping him with a video/sound recording device and offering the evidence to some of our local TV news stations. I don't want him to get in trouble, but... this behavior is damaging to the reputation of the local community in which I work.
I speculate there is some innate racism at work.. the police are uniformly young Caucasian men, and the children are the 'new community', predominantly African/American descent. The community is 'turning' from a middle/eastern European community to a mostly African/American community. And I think these young men, who probably grew up there, are angry about it. Which is just so wrong... children ? In a Library ? Actually reading books and studying (Most of the time) ? Applause !
Chasing them out ? Boo !
Has anyone else experienced this in a inner city neighborhood library ? Until I picked him up last week, I had never, ever seen an armed police officer stationed in a library in my life. Even in the downtown city libraries.
Re: Brief rant.. Library Police ? - macphanatic - 11-13-2012
Why not contact a local news station and let them do the undercover work?
Re: Brief rant.. Library Police ? - Zoidberg - 11-13-2012
macphanatic wrote:
Why not contact a local news station and let them do the undercover work?
:agree:
Re: Brief rant.. Library Police ? - mrthuse - 11-13-2012
"I got a flash for you, Joy Boy."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zePQavforA
Re: Brief rant.. Library Police ? - freeradical - 11-13-2012
We've had armed police/guards in our downtown Sacramento library ever since this.
http://articles.latimes.com/1993-04-19/news/mn-24772_1_library-patrons
Re: Brief rant.. Library Police ? - gabester - 11-13-2012
cbelt3 wrote:
Has anyone else experienced this in a inner city neighborhood library ? Until I picked him up last week, I had never, ever seen an armed police officer stationed in a library in my life. Even in the downtown city libraries.
Some of the bigger libraries here have security guards, but smaller neighborhood ones do not. A couple of the rougher neighborhoods might even have police stationed there periodically. So the *presence* doesn't strike me as that unusual. However, scaring out kids who are making noise without some more systematic warning does strike me as repressive. I'm trying to imagine how much noise they'd have to make around here to get the same kind of response.
I agree, let your local investigative journalist know about the practice and let them do the footwork legitimately.
g=
Re: Brief rant.. Library Police ? - BillMac - 11-13-2012
mrthuse wrote:
"I got a flash for you, Joy Boy."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zePQavforA
LOVE me some Bookman!!!!
Re: Brief rant.. Library Police ? - Dennis S - 11-13-2012
Mr. Bookman - my very favorite scene.
Re: Brief rant.. Library Police ? - IronMac - 11-13-2012
Have your guest be the one to "usher" them out.
Re: Brief rant.. Library Police ? - mattkime - 11-13-2012
