Following is a talk given in
a panel titled “Fighting the expanding police state” at the Nov. 13-14, 2010,
National Conference on Socialism sponsored by the Party for Socialism and
Liberation.
Hello
brothers and sisters, my name is Lisa Santillanes. I have been looking forward
to this day ever since I joined the Party for Socialism and Liberation last
summer. This is truly an
amazing event! I have met a lot of new comrades already and I cannot
wait to meet more of you as we experience
this wonderful gathering together.
I
am a candidate member of the Albuquerque
branch in New Mexico. The Albuquerque branch opened its doors in April of this year, 2010.
Since I joined, I have had many wonderful
experiences with the PSL. I would like to tell you all a little about some of
the time I spent volunteering with the PSL to create a revolutionary
movement in this country, while struggling
in fights against police brutality and the expanding police state.
Three
comrades and I went to protest the racist anti-immigrant law in the heart of the police state of Arizona, on July 28 and 29.
From the time we arrived in Phoenix,
Arizona’s downtown, to the time we left the downtown
area, police vehicles lined the streets in front of the State
Capitol and all the way past Sheriff
Arpaio’s County Jail. Along with other PSL comrades
and the community of Arizona, we were hundreds of people
protesting the night before the law SB 1070 went into effect.
On
July 29, the National Day of Non-Compliance against SB 1070, our numbers multiplied
to thousands of people
who were unafraid and willing to fight back against racism. We held
banners and placards as we lined the sidewalks
among other people who held custom homemade
signs and brought altars. In the late afternoon a militant
march went all around the city block, which gained more attention
from cars and passers-by. Bullhorns were
used throughout the event to communicate with the community, loudly and clearly,
workers’ and their families’ discontent.
Government
buses advertised ‘Help Sheriff Joe Arpaio bag illegal immigrants,’
as they blocked off the street to the entrance of Sheriff
Arpaio’s County Jail. The Sheriff’s department was in full force with riot gear
and teams of more than two dozen officers that attempted to disband
the protesters that were taking to the
street. In all, about 50 protesters were arrested at different locations
downtown. Both days our message was heard loud and clear:
“Arpaio, eschucha, estamos en la lucha!”
translated “Arpaio listen, we are in the fight.”
We
are struggling in many fights. On Sept. 18 we joined in a demonstration outside of the Albuquerque Police
Department Headquarters to fight for justice for the murdered young women of the West
Mesa.
In
February of 2009, a local Albuquerque woman walking her dog found a human femur poking from the soil within the property of a real
estate development in Albuquerque’s West Mesa. This thigh bone
was the first of the remains unearthed. In
all, 11 partial to full skeletons of women, one of whom was
four months pregnant, were found and dug up from
the massive grave site of 100 acres. The murdered women were mostly Black
and Latino, and found nude, without any personal belongings, in shallow graves.
One of those women, Victoria Chavez, was my second cousin. When asked about why the women’s disappearances were not
seriously investigated before their bodies
were found, the police spokesperson said: “The bottom line is these women led transient lifestyles and
it was hard for anyone to keep track of them.”
These
women and their families deserved to be treated with respect, instead of like
trash because the belief is that prostitutes and druggies are worth less
than other individuals. These women were part of our working
class, no matter how oppressed and exploited.
These women come from working-class families that were poor, so the media, like
the police, are quick to demonize them by regularly regarding them as
former prostitutes. If these women were white or rich, the police would have stopped
at nothing to resolve this case. Everyone
deserves to be treated with equal protection under the law, regardless of race, gender or any other differences.
Recently,
when the police shot a mentally ill and suicidal person, at close range in broad daylight on Sept. 14 in downtown
Albuquerque, the ANSWER Coalition immediately issued a statement condemning the
shooting. Comrades and friends went
to our next City Council meeting on Monday evening to speak out against the
brutality of the police. It is clear to many
in the community that police officers have no respect for human life. In
response to our mobilization, the cops organized against ANSWER and the people.
APD
Chief Ray Schultz spoke after the “public comments” during the City Council
meeting for what seemed like an endless amount of time. Nothing he said was in
the interest of the community. Chief Schultz only served as a spokesperson for
the police state that terrorizes oppressed communities like the Chicago Police
Department that murdered activist Black Panther Party Fred Hampton. Police
officers packed the hall in massive groups to
ridicule and insult our speakers. In spite of
this, we received an enthusiastic response from those who were there from
the community. The shooting of Todd Barr was the
eleventh officer shooting of a civilian in Albuquerque at that time,
seven of them fatal. Since then there have
been 14 officer-involved shootings, with nine being
fatal. One is unknown because of the fact that it happened on Thursday night, a
few hours before we departed Albuquerque for this conference.
On
Oct. 16, a PSL meeting featuring the film “The Murder of Fred Hampton”
showcased a similar statement made by police officers. We watched the
movie at our film showing and
organizational meeting for the October 22 protest against police brutality.
Fred Hampton was a leader of the Illinois Black Panther
Party and a political target because of his determined struggle for Black liberation, and his belief in socialism. The
murder of Fred Hampton is a reminder that police officers, so-called
keepers of the law, break the law
with the government standing behind them.
The
October 22 National Day Against Police Brutality Protest drew large numbers
of people who all lined the sidewalk in front of the Albuquerque
Police Department Headquarters. Many family members and friends of the victims
in the police shootings were in attendance to tell their loved ones’ story among those who have experienced police brutality
and are demanding justice. ANSWER Coalition signs, placards and banners
lined the street. A march led by drummers marched up and
down Central, a main street in downtown
Albuquerque. Our lead banner stated a simple message: “Stop Police Brutality.”
The media later featured the protest and skewed our message. Our message is clear: We
want police accountability. We want the police oversight commission to have some power to represent the
community.
We
also wanted to show the
collective grief of the families and friends who have lost loved
ones and show regards to the oppressed communities who endure
the brutality. We want to bring to light
the racism involved in police encounters, as well as bring to light how we are
creating ways to keep the cops accountable because the city has
not.
My
cousin Dominic Smith was not counted in the 14 police shootings this year,
which is more than two times the total number of deaths that were accounted for
last year. He was murdered by an APD officer Oct. 1 of last year, 2009. He was
shot at close range twice in his heart and left to die. To my knowledge, the
officer who killed my cousin first noticed him when he walked in front of his
police car after robbing prescription drugs from the nearby Walgreens. Officer
Welsh acknowledged in his police report that my cousin Dominic was not in his
right mind, claimed his belt recorder wasn’t working, and was “unable” to get
through to other officers on his radio. This officer began to pursue my cousin,
then went back to his police car to retrieve his shotgun that was unsecure
after his morning shooting practice. Officer Welsh then went back to pursue my
cousin and killed him.
We,
the Party for Socialism and Liberation, will bring to light all family,
friend and witness testimonies. We will continue to grow and reach out to every community, showing every person that they are not
alone. Together, we will
prove that the police are over stepping their power more often as the
police state grows. We know that the police are part of the state apparatus
that oppresses, through violence, the
working-class and oppressed communities. As long as there is oppression in our
communities, we will still be fighting for the liberation of the people. We will fight against
the police state and racism.
