Orlando police drop charges against PSL candidates

The Orlando, Fla., police has dropped all charges against the Party for Socialism and Liberation candidates arrested at the March 30 Puerto Rican Day Parade.

PSL candidate for Congress Michael Prysner was gratuitously threatened with a taser, March 30.

On the day of the arrests, PSL members had been leading militant chants and passing out statements in support of Puerto Rico’s struggle against colonialism. Although the message resonated with the majority of Puerto Ricans at the event, the police did not share their enthusiasm.

A motorcycle officer drove into the PSL contingent and demanded that participants leave the parade. As PSL members walked to the sidewalk, the officer arrested Marylou Cabral, PSL candidate for Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, District 4. When backup police arrived, Michael Prysner, the PSL candidate for Congress in Florida’s 22nd District, was also arrested.

The officer aggressively twisted Cabral’s arm without cause. The same officer pointed a taser gun at Prysner’s chest before he was arrested. Cabral was charged with public assembly interference and resisting arrest without violence; Prysner was charged with interference. The PSL contingent was registered to participate in the parade. Central Florida is the home of the second largest Puerto Rican population in the United States.

The police dropped the preposterous charges a week before Prysner and Cabral were expected to appear in court. This victory exposes the gross violation of free speech, even more significant since Prysner and Cabral are running active campaigns for office.

The arrests point to the extreme tactics used by the police to suppress organizations that stand with the Puerto Rican struggle against colonialism and for true independence. The Party for Socialism and Liberation stands unequivocally with the Puerto Rican people in their struggle to break free from U.S. colonialism.