Critical Mass Cycling Events Turn Violent in NYC and Seattle
Last week, a tourist in NYC videotaped a police office body slamming a cyclist during Critical Mass, the monthly event where bicyclists take over city streets. On Friday, violence also erupted during Critical Mass in Seattle between a driver and bikers, after riders practiced “corking,” in which they block cars while the mass of cyclists pass by.
Love the mass rides but corking just makes enemies instead of friends. We bikers don’t have the right to hinder others who are operating their vehicle safely unless we have a permit to close the street. It’s bad practice to practicing blocking or corking.
WTF was that? It almost seemed like he singled out that one dude. I mean it looks like the guy on the bike was trying to avoid the cop, doesn’t it?
Tim, I know! I wonder if something was said between the two of them. George, yes, it would seem that corking would be antagonistic, but that doesn’t explain the police brutality in NYC, just the incident in Seattle.
Unbelievable. Can anyone provide follow-up as to whether the policeman was sued, fired and punched in the face? The bicyclist could have hit one of those poles on the sidewalk and been critically injured.
Shane, Democracy Now did a segment on it; that’s where I learned about it. I am not sure if they have any follow up info posted or not.
I just read that he was stripped of his badge.
i would just like to say that corking is an absolutely necessary practice to keep critical mass rides together. drivers do have to occasionally wait through one or two rotations of the light but any driver (myself included) has been subjected to worse because of sports events, accidents, or pedestrian street protests. personally i think that drivers should just get over it, and practice some patience for the five or so minutes that it takes for critical mass to pass them by.