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Santa Cruz Indymedia | Education & Student Activism | Environment & Forest Defense | Police State and PrisonsPolice Officers Pepper Spray People on Science Hill
On January 12th, two University of California police officers used pepper spray to disperse about 15 people gathered below an occupied redwood tree on Science Hill at UC Santa Cruz. The officers got out of their car, which was parked in the parking lot, and then followed the people dressed in black and wearing bandannas across their faces. One of the officers proclaimed that the group was trespassing and then both officers began pepper spraying people in their faces.  tapestry_1-12-08.jpg Shortly after the pepper spraying, three treesitters came down to the lower branches of the redwood and discussed some of their motivations with a group of inquisitive supporters. One the treesitters spoke of how he grew up in Santa Cruz and developed a deep passion for the trees at UCSC. Since being in the tree, he has come to more fully appreciate the relationship other animals have with the redwoods.
A student stood below the tree and told people in and below the tree that the reason he was there was because he received an email from UCSC telling him to avoid the treesit. The treesitters thanked their inquisitive supporters for the good conversation and encouraged people to stop by anytime with food or for conversation. A few final suggestions from a treesitter were that people should be more casual and come during the day in smaller groups when the police are not around. For more information about the treesit on Science Hill against UCSC expansion and the increased police repression, see: Eyewitness Report of Police Attacking Two People at UCSC http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/01/10/18471576.php Winter Break at the UCSC Tree-sit http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/12/19/18467787.php Santa Cruz Community Supports Tree-sitters http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/11/16/18461591.php Standoff with Police as Activists Occupy Redwoods to Oppose UCSC Expansion http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/11/08/18458938.php LRDP Resistance http://lrdpresistance.org  enclose_1-12-08.jpg  spray_1-12-08.jpg  spray-close_1-12-08.jpg a close up from the photo above
 pepper1_1-12-08.jpg  pepper1-close_1-12-08.jpg a close up from the photo above
 pepper2_1-12-08.jpg  pepper3_1-12-08.jpg  pepper4_1-12-08.jpg  food-grab_1-12-08.jpg  confiscated_1-12-08.jpg  backseat_1-12-08.jpg  m-larsom_1-12-08.jpg * I think I read the name correctly, but I could be wrong.
 comfort-bubble_1-12-08.jpg A slightly humorous point of the day came when Officer Brian Hughes said to me, just before this photo was taken, "Bradley, I will arrest you if you get in my comfort bubble."
Of course this was only humorous because Officer Hughes quoted funny words from the eyewitness account posted on SC-IMC about his unjustified violence on the night of January 9th. Eyewitness Report of Police Attacking Two People at UCSC http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/01/10/18471576.php  more-security_1-12-08.jpg The guy on the left might have been involved with the security hired to keep watch on Science Hill, however Officer Tony Contreras was pointing out which trees were occupied.
 police_1-12-08.jpg  treesitters_1-12-08.jpg  sitters-tree4_1-12-08.jpg * I am calling this tree, "Tree 4" only because I heard the other three occupied trees called "Tree 1," "Tree 2," and "Tree 3."
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