(The Hill) — Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) on Wednesday night said he is “ashamed” of the Oakland Police Department’s crackdown on protestors on the Occupy movement on Tuesday, and called on police across the country to act with restraint when dealing with those protestors.
“A betrayal of American values occurred last night in Oakland, California, when police fired tear gas on those peaceful demonstrators,” Rush said on the House floor.
According to press reports, police raided an Occupy camp in Oakland, citing reports of violence and unsanitary conditions caused by the protestors. Police also said protestors were throwing rocks at police, but protestors said the attack was unprovoked.
Rush took the side of the Occupy movement, and claimed that they were all demonstrating peacefully. He also said Americans should not condemn the movement given that Americans tend to support similar movements overseas when they happen.
“Is this not the very thing that we condemn around the world?” Rush asked. “How dare we denounce an action when committed abroad, but yet remain silent when it happens in our own backyard?”
Rush also praised the Occupy movement as the next great American protest movement, on par with those in history that sought redress on issues related to slavery, labor, civil rights and the environment.
“Members of the Occupy movement now emerge as yet another generation of courageous Americans, voicing our frustration that many citizens feel with the money-driven elite that mismanage the American economy,” he said. Rush also said police need to show more restraint.