JUSTICE
Fact-Checking Police Supt. David Brown on August 15
How accurate were the CPD superintendent’s assertions about the downtown protest? BY JIM DALEY AND JASON SCHUMER
O
n August 15—days after announcing a new and more aggressive tactical posture toward protesters downtown—Chicago police in riot gear faced off with demonstrators who wanted to defund CPD and abolish ICE at the intersection of Michigan and Wacker. The bells of the DuSable Bridge rang out nonstop. Raised bridges prevented the march, which had originated near the Bean in Millenium Park, from making its way farther north toward the Magnificent Mile; a line of riot police blocked the demonstration from turning east toward Lake Shore Drive.
At some point, the demonstrators assumed a defensive stance toward police, shielding themselves with umbrellas and standing behind a line of bicycles. It’s unclear what, precisely, precipitated the skirmish that followed. Protesters and independent journalists shared videos in real time on social media that showed police grabbing umbrellas and bikes from protesters, and later on, chasing them down Michigan Ave., blocking their ability to leave (a practice commonly referred to as “kettling”) and beating demonstrators in alleys.
The following Monday, CPD released an edited video on social media that included captions describing the police’s version of the events. In press conferences held the evening of August 15 and again on August 17, Superintendent David Brown presented the department’s view of the confrontation. Brown blamed the violence on “agitators” who “hijacked” the otherwise peaceful protest by opening umbrellas and hurling “projectiles” at officers. While defending the police’s actions, Brown made several statements that
strayed from the facts. The Weekly reviewed dozens of videos and photographs, some never before published, and collected eyewitness accounts from demonstrators. We compared the evidence we collected as well as CPD’s own video to what Brown said at the two press conferences and factchecked his statements, providing context and explanation. ¬ Jim Daley is the Weekly’s politics editor and Jason Schumer is managing director.
BY MADISON MULLER
12 SOUTH SIDE WEEKLY
¬ SEPTEMBER 2, 2020
