Bicycle Cops Everywhere

There were dozens and dozens of bike cops at the march Saturday. I wonder if other cities use bike cops. It seems like a good idea for crowd situations, allowing a closer view of what’s going on and more maneuverability. Horses are popular for this too, but no doubt are prohibitively expensive in large numbers (though I saw a group of five horse cops at one point). But another advantage of bikes is that they don’t poop. Ever.

A crowd less prone to violence than this you wouldn’t find. These are the people who walk on eggshells on a daily basis, careful not to do anything at all to call attention to themselves for fear of getting busted for being here. As for the potential for violence from the anti-immigrant front, I saw only one heckler all day, a woman who gestured with thumbs down and a snarly face.

A densely packed crowd about six blocks long filled the street for the duration of the march, in protest of the Sensenbrenner Bill that has passed in the Senate and has yet to pass in the House. The bill criminalizes the very existence of most of the population, when you think about it. As an ESL teacher and social worker, I could be charged with a felony if I were found to be teaching or working with an undocumented worker. An undocumented person who called the police about a burglar breaking into their house could be carted off to jail in advance of, possibly instead of, the burglar. An accident victim could be refused medical attention if status could not be determined at the scene. Any human being could be asked for proof of documentation by almost any public entity.

Heaven help you if you look anything but Nordic.

The list of consequences of passing such a bill goes on and on. I will add to this later, and post photos from the march that show the bike cops.