An abuse of power
Last Tuesday the country voted to elect Senator Barack Obama the 44th President of the United States. The massive turnout of youth is an undeniable testament to the power of young people across the nation to effect change.
The enthusiasm among students for Barack Obama was evidenced by the spontaneous mob that congregated on St Paul and 34th Street to celebrate the Senator's victory. The mob, joyous and peaceful in character, appeared around 12:15 a.m., when a small crowd gathered to rejoice. The crowd rapidly expanded into a mob of hundreds in a mere 20 minutes, and within an hour, it mushroomed into several hundred who flowed into the streets in celebration. After years of being labeled an apathetic campus, we are relieved to have some evidence to the contrary. At least for the time being, this stereotype has been erased.
Yet, due to an unfortunate series of bad decisions, mostly by the Baltimore Police Department, the celebratory atmosphere was extinguished. As the crowd expanded, Carrie Bennett, the student-community liaison, and Hopkins Security arrived on the scene to ensure the community's safety. While they performed the job adequately, they should have in retrospect convinced students to reestablish their celebrations on campus in order to prevent any potential conflicts with residents or the police.
The Baltimore Police arrived shortly thereafter to monitor the scene and mediate between the large crowd and automobile traffic. The police were initially quite gracious to the mob, blocking traffic to allow students to celebrate in the streets. While the police were legally not obligated to do so, as the mob did not have a permit to rally, they were cognizant of the exceptional nature of the night and allowed the festivities to carry on.
This deferential goodwill did not last very long. By 1:30 a.m. the mob reached a peak upward of five hundred people, which was comprised of both students and local residents. At approximately 1:45 a.m., many more police arrived, in greater numbers and with less patience, and began to tell people to get off the streets and onto the sidewalks. At this late hour in the night, it was a reasonable measure for the police to take. Almost immediately, though, they began to order the mob to disperse. We feel that that while the police had the legal jurisdiction to make this order, it was not the appropriate call given the context of the evening. Massive street mobs have not been an endemic problem in the past and will not be one in the future, and thus the police should have treaded on the side of leniency in monitoring this spontaneous and peaceful mob.
The enthusiasm among students for Barack Obama was evidenced by the spontaneous mob that congregated on St Paul and 34th Street to celebrate the Senator's victory. The mob, joyous and peaceful in character, appeared around 12:15 a.m., when a small crowd gathered to rejoice. The crowd rapidly expanded into a mob of hundreds in a mere 20 minutes, and within an hour, it mushroomed into several hundred who flowed into the streets in celebration. After years of being labeled an apathetic campus, we are relieved to have some evidence to the contrary. At least for the time being, this stereotype has been erased.
Yet, due to an unfortunate series of bad decisions, mostly by the Baltimore Police Department, the celebratory atmosphere was extinguished. As the crowd expanded, Carrie Bennett, the student-community liaison, and Hopkins Security arrived on the scene to ensure the community's safety. While they performed the job adequately, they should have in retrospect convinced students to reestablish their celebrations on campus in order to prevent any potential conflicts with residents or the police.
The Baltimore Police arrived shortly thereafter to monitor the scene and mediate between the large crowd and automobile traffic. The police were initially quite gracious to the mob, blocking traffic to allow students to celebrate in the streets. While the police were legally not obligated to do so, as the mob did not have a permit to rally, they were cognizant of the exceptional nature of the night and allowed the festivities to carry on.
This deferential goodwill did not last very long. By 1:30 a.m. the mob reached a peak upward of five hundred people, which was comprised of both students and local residents. At approximately 1:45 a.m., many more police arrived, in greater numbers and with less patience, and began to tell people to get off the streets and onto the sidewalks. At this late hour in the night, it was a reasonable measure for the police to take. Almost immediately, though, they began to order the mob to disperse. We feel that that while the police had the legal jurisdiction to make this order, it was not the appropriate call given the context of the evening. Massive street mobs have not been an endemic problem in the past and will not be one in the future, and thus the police should have treaded on the side of leniency in monitoring this spontaneous and peaceful mob.
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