Police harass ShutDownDC public meeting on Black Lives Matter Plaza

On the first of November, ShutDown DC set up chairs, a table, and a tent on Black Lives Matter Plaza for a public meeting and spokescouncil. Within minutes, MPD cops starting hassling them about DCRA, vending regulation, and Mayor Bowser's proclaimation used during the summer to harass Black Lives Matter activists on BLM Plaza.

Now as then, this enforcement is intended simply to throw sand in the gears of organizing, by any means. While vending fines and DRCA citations are probably impossible to collect from those with no DC business licenses, these laws have been used in the past to authorize MPD to directly assault activists.

A bunch of cops showed up before this tent could even be fully opened up.

These two cops did a lot of the talking (and threatening)

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