On January 1, 2016 after an amazing show from Pitbull and
other performers in Pitbull’s New Year’s Revolution 2016, things went from a
happy festivity to a terrible situation. After the showed had ended, the police
shoved an older man off stage, giving him multiple injuries in the head.
After the show, a lot people in an orderly line went on
stage to take photos, one by one. An older man that seemed to be intoxicated,
but non-aggressive tried to go on stage and go to the instruments sections of
the stage, where the production technicians were already packing up the
equipment.
The people off stage who watched him, cheered for him in
form of humor. The man is short, non-threatening, and was not aggressive; but
he kept insisting to go to that section of the stage by asking the production
crew to let him pass.
A police officer went on stage within seconds, and
handcuffed the older man. The man could not walk straight because of his
intoxication, and the police officer kept pushing him to walk.
As the officer and the man approached the stairs, the crowd
started to yell to be careful, because of the danger of the stairs. The older
man couldn’t walk properly, and the police officer ended up shoving him to the
stairs making him fall. The man first hit his head on one of the steps, and
then fell to the grown hitting his head on the side.
The man was bleeding in his forehead and on the side of the
head. As the crowd starting yelling to the police officer, she didn’t seemed to
care, and just kept grabbing him on the ground.
We have all heard and seen footage of police brutality, but
I got to say it’s extremely shocking to see this situation in person. This case
is excessive force, and it is not as strong as someone getting shot, but it is
still disgusting to see a police officer have no sense of care for a human
being. This man was not a criminal, and he wasn’t trying to hurt anyone.
The man was
intoxicated, and he shouldn’t have, but he wasn’t aggressive or causing chaos.
It was New Year’s Eve, a time where is common for people go a bit over board
with alcohol, and it’s the officers duty to ensure safety for those people and
the rest of the community. The police officer should had proper care for this
man, knowing that he couldn’t walk properly, and in such a big event, she could
had called for back up to help him get down the stairs, not to push him.
Police officers take the oath to protect and serve the
community, not to harm and harass innocent people. They have the obligation to
care for the community and find the safety of everyone.
After the man fell to the ground, other law enforcements
came on scene, and the man was taken for proper medical attention.
This is an opinion
article based on events from January 1, 2016 in Bayfront Park, Miami, Fl.
By
Christian Gabriel
