Jan. 29, 1990: 34 years ago, January 29 1990, Berkeley Copwatch held its first community [...]

34 years ago, January 29 1990, Berkeley Copwatch held its first community meeting. Formed to directly observe and document police abuses of the homeless community in the Telegraph area, Copwatch later developed into an international network of activist police monitors

Copwatch was founded by Susanne Pegas, Danielle Storer, & Andrea Prichett, who was inspired by community police patrols she had seen in South Africa. They were unaware of East Bay Black Power activists’, like Black Panthers, use of the tactic in the 1960s https://t.co/0Ir8JhI7Cu

Early Copwatch campaigns focused on police harassment of the homeless in People’s Park, fighting against destruction of the park’s free box, and organizing a series of protests to defend longtime homeless rights activist Osha Neumann after he was beaten by police in the park

Follow Berkeley Copwatch @Copwatch411

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