Maybe when the Ft. Worth Police and the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission teamed up to to crack down on bars “overserving customers,” they really didn’t mean to reenact Stonewall exactly 40 years later to the day. Because that would’ve been theater! But what they certainly didn’t expect was this: A young man ending up in the hospital with a brain injury thanks to their alleged excessive use of force. And what they certainly couldn’t have imagined would take place afterward? That same young man, 26-year-old Chad Gibson, to suddenly becoming a very vocal critic of the police — and start calling for their heads.
“I was at the bar buying drinks for my friends and I,” says Gibson. “The next thing I remember is waking up in the ICU. I’m just appalled that they took it to the level that they did. … It shouldn’t have happened to me and it shouldn’t happen to anyone else.”
Indeed, it may be impossible for Gibson to offer an accurate portrayal of the night’s events, beyond “the police obviously went batshit crazy, ’cause I don’t remember anything after ordering drinks.” But he, like so many others, wants answers. “You know what, they need to accept responsibility of what they did to me and to everyone. That’s all I want – I want the truth.”
And by the truth, he means having officers face criminal charges. The response so far, Gibson says, amounts to a cover up.
How about we take this to the next level?
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We’ll see how long it takes Gibson to get answers, though it may take a while. For now, the Ft. Worth Police and the TABC are trading blame with each other. The local community, meanwhile, is rallying around the gays; last night there was a public demonstration.
There, Chuck Potter, who says he was at the bar that night, reports, “I saw eight to nine officers run to the back and pin [Gibson] down. I was so mad. They put him in a neck hold. I was so mad that I got out my camera and took pictures. … When they released that young man from a neck hold and he stumbled, they took him to the ground. I saw it with my own two eyes and I was sober.”
And you’re aware the officers insist Gibson was the one who grabbed their groins, right?
(Screengrabs via WFAA)
Dabq
Yet another travesty in the works and after hearing the homophobic, bigoted Sheriff’s remarks on the bashing, it comes as no surprise, but, I hope Mr. Gibson and the gay community of Ft Worth hold their feet to the fire for this hate crime, and, yep, its a hate crime when the police do what thugs in the streets do.
Jake the libertarian
This makes me so fucking mad. “Oh no!!! The nasty little faggot tried to grab my dick! I had no choice but to bludgeon him half to death with several of my friends who I do NOT sneak peaks at in the shower, so stop sayin that!”
I hope they fucking swing for this shit. It is high time that people stand up and demand that police and other civil servants treat the public with the respect that they are due. If you are not in the process of committing a VIOLENT crime, then the police should not use violence against you. Gay, straight, black, white or fucking green.
How many of us have been pushed around by some fucking asshole cop just because he thinks he has the right to push us around. How often do we see Sheriff John Bunnell on TV commending some asshole cop for beating up someone who did nothing wrong? Fuck them. And for all of you out there who defend them… just remember, one day you will find them coming for you. Who will you turn to then?
Joanaroo
Thank goodness Chuck Potter got pictures and that the local community is on the side of gay patrons! It’s just another case of the ignorant gay-bashing, god-fearing, church-going, wife-beating Texas good-ol-boy network doing its dirty work. I hope Mr. Gibson sues the hell out of these bastards and WINS!
Phoenix (You Know Which One)
Keep their feet to the fire, folks.
http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2009/07/01/fort-worth-contact-the-city-council