Thread by @A_J_Christensen

25. Police pepper spraying a medic who is on their way to help injured protesters

https://twitter.com/joshfitz/status/1266873339542470656

26. Police shot a young kid in the face in Arizona.

https://twitter.com/valliedoll/status/1266861608464154627

27. Police shooting journalists with rubber bullets

https://twitter.com/alexwarneke/status/1266915145449521152?s=21

https://t.co/s13Vq8SRrm

For anyone who is wondering why someone running for congress would take the time to document all of these acts of unprovoked police violence, maybe it’s time that you get to know me a little better. Below is a thread of my story:

1. 2 years ago I took my undefeated 13-0 high-school soccer team to their final tournament of the year. It was in Polk County Fl. I drove the Church van down with my team. My favorite group of players I’ve ever coached.

2. As we are warming up we are approached by a man and 2 police officers. That man points to my 18 year old assistant coach (who is Brazilian) and tells the police that he is trespassing and needs to leave.

3. Obviously this must be a mistake, I step forward and try to talk them down and the same man points at me and says I am also trespassing. They tell both of us that we need to go with them. We comply.

4. The man then tells the police to ask for our identification, and my assistants visa, papers, whatever he has to “make sure he’s legal”. At this point we have parents, teams, onlookers surrounding us wanting an explanation.

5. The police begin to get agitated and march us towards the exits. I am joking with the fans, the parents, my players trying to calm them down and let them know it’s a misunderstanding and it’s going to be alright. Having been a college track athlete I can move pretty quickly.

6. As I walked ahead of everyone I kept slowing down for them to keep up. This apparently annoyed the officer in charge, and he became frustrated that I “kept stopping”. He told me I needed to leave the premises, and pointed to the parking lot.

7. So I turned towards the exit with the church van, and the police officer yells at me that I am going the wrong way, I reply that he never told me what exit to take and if he wanted me to comply then he needed to actually tell me what he wanted. He grew more agitated

8. As I was walking out of the facility he yelled “I’m sick of your shit!” And charged me. This is the moment that led to me having complete understanding as to what the people on these videos feel right now.

9. I know what it’s like to be targeted, lied about.

I know what it’s like for a peaceful situation to turn ugly.

I know what it’s like to be thrown against a chain link fence and have someone 3x your size punch you in the groin.

10. I know what it’s like to have your legs kicked out from under you and your face smashed into the pavement.

I know what it’s like to have a knee placed into your back as an officer tells you to “stop resisting” when you weight 130 pounds and couldnt resist even if you wanted

11. I know what it’s like to have handcuffs slapped on your wrist so tight it cuts off circulation

I know what it’s like to have all of this happen while 200 people watch in horror.

I know what it’s like to be threatened with a taser while you are pinned down

12. I know what it’s like to weep in the back of a police car because you see the seniors in HS you mentor and coach crying with their parents.

I know what it’s like to have the same person that targeted you call your boss and try to get you fired

13. I know what it’s like to feel helpless and terrified in a holding cell

I know what it’s like to spend a night in a private prison and get bailed out

I know what it’s like to have police lie on the report to the point that they have to throw out the indictment

14. I know what it’s like.....because I’ve been there.

They tried to say I was trespassing, when I was just coaching a soccer game.

#AmaudArbery was murdered because people thought he was trespassing. And there’s just one difference between him and me, skin color.

15. I know for a fact that if I wasn’t a privileged white guy I wouldn’t be alive right now. I wouldn’t have been threatened with being tased, I would instead have most likely been shot and killed while everyone watched.

16. So to me, posting these videos isn’t about politics. It’s about showing others exactly what goes on everyday when the cameras aren’t rolling. Because for every 1 video of violence caught on tape there are 10s or 100s of others that aren’t.

17. As I sat in that private prison chained to an 82 year old man that shouldn’t have been there either I swore to myself that if I ever got a chance, I would do whatever I could to make sure what happened to me, never happened to another person.

18. To me each video is personal, each story is the life of someone forever changed. And it seems to me that there are many others like me, that have seen this unprovoked violence up close and never want to see it again.

- End thread