One of my neighbors has their flag upside down.

[conuly]

They weren't out, so I didn't ask if they were sending a message about police brutality, or something else, or if they were just remarkably careless.

I have a number of links from marshallprojectemail_feed, and rather than linking to each one individually I thought it was easier to link to their lists. If you're at all interested in the subject of prison reform in America, or the related subjects of policing, police brutality, immigration and ICE, or occasionally poverty then you should either subscribe to the feed or sign up to get the same things sent to your email.

https://mailchi.mp/themarshallproject/pp5byt7jqr

https://mailchi.mp/themarshallproject/vhoiqeia1q

Additionally, minoanmiss has a specific letter writing suggestion which I will copy in full:

To a professional who teaches police to be violent, specifically. One of the major proponents of training police to 'shoot first and ask questions later/never' is William J. Lewinski, whose Force Science Institute conducts trainings all over the US in justifying police violence. Perhaps people should point out to him and his organization their part in the deaths of countless people, including George Floyd and Brianna Taylor.

https://www.forcescience.org/contact/

NYT article https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/02/us/training-officers-to-shoot-first-and-he-will-answer-questions-later.html

If you're already sending one such note, you may as well copy it and send it to your local police department. Police officers in the US have actually been fired for successfully de-escalating situations involving unarmed people rather than going in guns blazing.

Finally, from Teen Vogue, which continues to knock it out of the park, How to Safely and Ethically Film Police Misconduct. (Safety tips include social distancing!)

Comments

[conuly]

Yeah, but they're all unenforceable, trumped by the first amendment. That's very very settled case law.

[lilysea]

Yeah, but they're all unenforceable, trumped by the first amendment. That's very very settled case law.

Oh, good.

I always thought people should have the right to eg burn the flag in protest, as long as they didn't start any building fires or bushfires by doing so...

[osewalrus]

The flag upside is the sign of a ship in distress. It is not illegal, but it has meaning. It seems to have taken on a colloquial meaning for "country in distress."

I confess on seeing it in time of Covid I might knock on the door to check that everything is alright.

[conuly]

I heard them inside their house playing loud music, so I assumed they were.

[conuly]

Despite what some of the more jingoistic brand of flag-humpers will tell you, the Constitution is still the law of the land over here. (Funnily, they all remember that when it comes to their guns....)