The brutality of America's police forces is a mark on the character of its government, which has only gotten worse since November 30, 1999, when it was on full display for the whole world to see. What happened ten years ago in Seattle will happen again on even greater scales in this next decade. There will be more battles between the people and the police in other US cities, regardless of the occasion.
Although it's true that a few officers have re-familiarized themselves with the US Constitution and the democratic rights held by every individual, including the former police chief of Seattle, Norm Stamper, the vast majority have not learned any lessons from the events of that infamous day, other than how to better contain disobedient crowds in American cities. Stamper admitted responsibility for his authoritarian tactics, but I doubt his comments have had any significant impact in his old quarters. The fact remains that the culture of abuse of democratic rights is still prevalent in the Seattle police force, and in every other company across the country.
The decade that's about to pass has been so different from that day, when the intense nature of the protests marked a new stage in the American people's struggle against their governmental elite. Maybe mainstream Americans just weren't ready to take up what the protesters had started ten years ago, or maybe they were unable to express their rage in a public way. But things are picking up pace as we head into the second decade of this so far dark century. On the heels of a major troop escalation in Afghanistan, a looming war with Iran, and a collapsing economy, Americans are no longer so resistant to sweeping change. In fact, a number of them have prepared for the worst, and are expecting a dictatorial crackdown should they decide to go against government orders.
In these past ten years a generation defiant of Washington politics has come of age. At the same time there is rising inflation, millions are losing their jobs, personal and social debt have risen to historical levels, home foreclosures are putting families on the streets, and the truth about 9/11 is becoming more widespread, all of which lead to one conclusion: a second American revolution, triggering a wider, global revolution against the financial-corporate establishment at the core of world politics. And Seattle 1999 will be remembered as this generation's Lexington 1775.
