The Caribbean Peace & Justice Project, el Grito de las Excluidas y Excluidos de Puerto Rico (The Cry of the Excluded of Puerto Rico), and the Pro-Haitian/Dominican Childhood Committee issued a press release yesterday denouncing and demanding an investigation into inappropriate touching (or toqueteo/feeling up) of women by the riot police in Puerto Rico who have been arresting those UPR students engaged in civil disobedience.
A video on Indymedia Puerto Rico shows an officer, on two clear occasions, touching the breasts of a young woman he is arresting and restraining in a police van. No doubt the police and Gov. will defend the actions saying the officers were merely restraining the protester and that they may have had accidental contact. From my perspective it looks like the officer took an opportunity to “cop a feel” (pun intended) not once but twice.
As we think of what is happening in Egypt, Tunisia, Puerto Rico and globally really wherever young people are gathered, especially those that identify as women, we have to wonder and know that once incident caught on video likely represents countless more incidents not documented.
