2003: Police Violence Shocks Activists, Others at Port of Oakland Protest
The protesters took the city to court, and Oakland eventually awarded $2 million to 58 demonstrators for police abuses.
An anti-war demonstration at Port of Oakland turned violent this morning when Oakland Police opened fire with wooden dowels, sting balls, concussion grenades, tear gas and other non-lethal weapons when protesters at the gates of two shipping lines refused an order to disperse. […]
“Our guys were standing in one area waiting to go to work, and then the police started firing on the longshoremen,” said Henry Graham, the president of ILWU Local 10. “Some were hit in the chest with rubber bullets, and seven of our guys went to the hospital. I don’t want to imply that the police deliberately did this, but it doesn’t make sense.”
Left: A protestor, who refused to give her name, bears the wounds after she says was hit by Oakland police weapon during a anti-war protest in Oakland, April 7, 2003. P: Paul Sakuma
Right: Berkeley resident Clay Hinson who was shot once in the chest and twice in the back during an anti-war protest, shows his wounds to an Oakland Police sergeant, April 7, 2003. Oakland police fired rubber bullets and wooden pellets on Monday to disperse hundreds of anti-war protesters in what was believed to be their first such use against U.S. protesters since the American-led war on Iraq began. P: Tim Wimborne
