Michael Pipkin on Police Brutality

by Sarah Olson (solson75 [at] yahoo.com)

Sun, Aug 31, 2003 2:50PM

Michael Pipkin is an activist with the October 22nd Coalition, an educator, a poet, and was himself brutalized by the police, while video taping a police attack on high school students.

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At a press conference in Hunters Point on Friday morning, Michael Pipkin, an educator and an activist with the October 22nd Coalition, discussed his own experience with police brutality, and talked about the experiences of his students.

According to eye witnesses, a police officer put a gun in the face of a 7 year old child, and beat several 14 year-old children with billy clubs, and told a concerned mother to "back off, bitch." This, while other members of the police force beat 23-year old Lee Collins unconscious. No reason was given for their actions.

Community members speaking at the press conference made links between individual instances of police brutality and a larger systemic problem within the police force.

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