25th August, 2020
By Reuters/NAN
Two trigger-happy policemen in Wisconsin, have shot another unarmed African American, Jacob Blake causing violent protests.
Three sons of the 29 year-old Blake witnessed the shooting in Kenosha on Sunday.
After being rushed to a hospital, Blake was out of surgery and in stable condition, his father told news media on Monday.
The shooting has triggered another round of Black Lives Matter protest, since the Floyd George killing in Minneapolis by a policeman.
Wisconsin’s governor on Monday deployed his state’s National Guard to Kenosha following a night of sometimes-violent unrest that came after police in the lakeside city shot a Black man multiple times in the back.
Governor Tony Evers also called a special legislative session to take up a package of bills aimed at addressing problems with law enforcement following the shooting of 29-year-old Jacob Blake late Sunday afternoon.
In a video taken by a bystander across the street from the shooting, Blake can be seen walking toward the driver’s side of a gray SUV followed by two officers with their guns drawn at his back. Seven gunshot sounds can be heard as Blake, who appears to be unarmed, opens the car door, and a woman nearby jumps up and down in disbelief.
It was unknown whether the officers saw something inside the vehicle that caused them to fire on Blake. It was also not clear whether one or both officers fired their weapons.
Crowds gathered at the scene, and some protesters set fires and threw bricks and Molotov cocktails at police, prompting authorities to close public buildings. Activists said they were organizing another night of demonstrations for Monday night.
Evers, a Democrat, condemned what he called the “excessive use of force and immediate escalation when engaging with Black Wisconsinites.”
He announced the special session next Monday for legislators to consider legislation introduced months ago to improve police accountability and eliminate dangerous practices.
“We must rise to this movement and this moment and meet it with our empathy, our humanity and a fierce commitment to disrupt the cycle of systemic racism and bias that devastates Black families and communities,” Evers said in a public address.
Pete Deates, president of the city’s police union, the Kenosha Professional Police Association, said Evers was “wholly irresponsible” for rushing to judgment, and asked the public to wait until all facts are known.
The shooting occurred three months after the death of George Floyd, a Black man, in Minneapolis police custody sparked nationwide protests against police brutality and structural racism in the United States.