Thread by @TexasTribune

1/ Texas police have used tear gas, rubber bullets and other levels of force on protesters in the past week.

One man is critically injured with a fractured skull.

Another man lost his left eye. bit.ly/2U7s733

2/ As tens of thousands of Texans took to the streets over the past few days to protest police brutality against black people after the death of George Floyd, Texas police departments have responded with varying levels of force. bit.ly/2U7s733

3/ Officials have defended the use of force, pointing to reports of people throwing bottles and rocks at officers, sometimes injuring them, damaging police cars and breaking into stores.

bit.ly/2U7s733

4/ Decades of research on protests have shown that deploying police in riot gear and using methods like tear gas often incites violence instead of preventing it, according to a report by @marshallproj. bit.ly/2U7s733

5/ And organizers say the use of force by police highlights the underlying discord between law enforcement and residents that underpinned the protests in the first place. bit.ly/2U7s733

6/ In Austin, police officers repeatedly fired “less-lethal” ammunition, like bean bag rounds, into crowds of protesters.

The shots critically injured 20-year-old Justin Howell, a political science student at Texas State University. bit.ly/2XwfwZG

7/ In an op-ed for @TheBattOnline, Howell’s brother writes that doctors have told his family that Howell has a fractured skull and brain damage.

"Doctors anticipate that when he wakes up, he will have difficulty telling his left from his right.” bit.ly/2MsrJYN

8/ In Dallas, Brandon Saenz said he was hit with less-lethal ammunition that shattered his left eye.

"I just want my justice," Saenz said Wednesday.

dallasnews.com/news/2020/06/0… via @dallasnews

9/ A study detailed in @KHNews showed that 3% of people hit by less-lethal rubber bullets were killed.

Their use in protests around the world has sparked outrage. khn.org/news/police-us…

10/ Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo instructed officers Friday not to use tear gas or rubber bullets to disperse growing crowds.

But officers used pepper spray and arrested protesters, and video captured a protester trampled by an officer on horseback. bit.ly/2U7s733

11/ Chas Moore, an activist who serves as executive director and founder of the Austin Justice Coalition, said he thought the Austin Police Department could have used different tactics in an attempt to deescalate the violence. bit.ly/2U7s733

12/ Protesters showed up at the Capitol grounds this past Sunday before eventually heading back to the highway.

Moore said he saw protesters trying to talk with officers to no avail. They looked like they were “trying to talk to a wall,” he said. bit.ly/2U7s733

13/13 Read more here. bit.ly/2U7s733

If you have attended a protest in Texas, we want to hear from you: What did you see?

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