Brooklyn, NY — On May 25, 2020, otherwise known as Memorial Day, millions of Americans — many of whom were still under strict social distancing lockdowns — took to their yards to barbecue. The overwhelming majority of those people did so without incident. However, 20-year-old Tyreik Bowers was not in the majority and his decision to barbecue with his family that day has left him with permanent, police-inflicted burn scars.
On Monday — after two weeks of mass protests — the NYPD announced that it was disbanding its plainclothes ‘Anti-crime’ units because they are involved in a disproportionate number of fatal shootings, violence, and civilian complaints. Unfortunately for Bowers, the move to disband this violent gang of cops came too late as it was officers from the anti-crime unit who showed up at his home that day.
As Bowers hung out with his family, like millions of other families did that day, plainclothes officers from the 71st Precinct’s anti-crime unit decided to terrorize him over New York’s social distancing guidelines. They were told to shut down the barbecue and go inside because of social distancing guidelines during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a recent claim filed by attorney Sanford Rubenstein and civil rights leader Reverend Kevin McCall.
According to Bowers’ attorney, Bowers listened to the cops and was doing exactly what they asked. However, it was apparently too slow for these authoritarians.
“They told them that they will—just give us a chance to clean up and get the people inside the house,” McCall. “They didn’t have patience.”
Instead of allowing them to pick up the barbecue, the cops cracked down and escalated to violence..........read more.........
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