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Cellphone video of a young black teenager being aggressively restrained on Monday has sparked outrage on social media.
A video that went viral on Twitter appears to show Jason Goolsby, an 18-year-old freshman at Howard University, being brutally beaten and detained by police officers Monday night.
The video, which went viral on Twitter, shows 18 year old Goolsby being manhandled by two officers. Goolsby can be heard yelling and screaming as officers twist his arms behind his back. “I’m not resisting”, he said, as officers begin to handcuff him.
Goolsby’s friend, who was filming the incident, can be heard repeatedly telling the police, “He didn’t do nothing.” A third officer, than approaches the cameraman and threatens him with arrest before a scuffle breaks out and the video ends.
Today we we’re harassed and assaulted because ” someone felt uncomfortable around us ” in a bank . RETWEET ‼️ pic.twitter.com/E2XZaOgJgM
— #justiceforjason (@darealbighomiee) October 13, 2015
After posting the video, the friend posted the following tweet:
We where approached because a white couple felt uncomfortable around me and my friend in the bank , this is how the police responded …
— #justiceforjason (@darealbighomiee) October 13, 2015
The video quickly went viral with the hashtag #JusticeForJason. Many on social media expressed outrage over the incident.
So now it’s #BankingWhileBlack? Y’all need to look at #JusticeForJason hashtag. If you want to know why Black folks are pissed, THIS IS WHY.
— rolandsmartin (@rolandsmartin) October 13, 2015
We get arrested for making people feel uncomfortable now?! That’s not a damn crime. #justiceforjason
— Rachel (@_deardiaryyy) October 13, 2015
How is he “resisting arrest” when you have him on the ground, knee in back, arms twisted like paper? How? #justiceforjason
— Petti Brooks (@amERIKAnpoet) October 13, 2015
So it’s a crime to make someone feel “uncomfortable” … Or is that just a white vs. black luxury? #justiceforjason
— J (@Youngg_White) October 13, 2015
Officer Sean Hickman, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Police Department, stated in an interview with Huffington Post:
“The initial call was for a suspicious person, three subjects may be trying to rob people at the ATM,” Hickman said in an email. “The location for the call was 6th St and Pennsylvania Ave SE. Officers in the area responded to the assignment. One individual fled on foot from the police, was chased, and then taken down. The individual resisted, and was handcuffed while resisting after he refused to stop. The person making the video was interfering with police, and was also detained while the incident was investigated. Neither individual was arrested.”
Yet, later DC police confirmed their original story not to be true.
DC police finally confirmed Jason Goolsby was not committing any crime, say they’ll internally review his detention https://t.co/Ba6CSscJQO
— Jon Swaine (@jonswaine) October 13, 2015
On Tuesday afternoon, after organizing over social media, activists held a #JusticeForJason rally. Dozens chanted and blocked traffic in protest of the aggressive detainment.
CALL TO ACTION TODAY #JusticeForJason 1:30pm @ Navy Yard 8th & M SE, across from Blue Castle. #ShutItDown to Citibank where assault happened
— Erika Totten (@2LiveUnchained) October 13, 2015
Youth shutting it down for their classmate #JusticeForJasonDC #justiceforJason pic.twitter.com/fn1tyFyoFe
— Noor Mir (@thedronalisa) October 13, 2015
#justiceforJason protesters block all lanes of Pennsylvania Ave SE @wusa9 pic.twitter.com/YkjHASgE5G
— Bruce Leshan (@BruceLeshan) October 13, 2015
#justiceforJason youth marching in solidarity with their classmate arrested yesterday for looking suspicious pic.twitter.com/IrLG8cmuca
— sushma sheth (@sushmachete) October 13, 2015
