Forgotten victims

Have you watched the news recently? 

If so, you will most likely see the crisis in Ukraine. The public fighting riot police. People using diggers, fire hoses, blunt tools, police equipment, petrol bombs, spraying water on officers, waiting for the freeze. Riot police frantically dodging the oncoming attacks. But why ? the public have obviously lost trust in the government. The scenes remind me of the previous riots in the UK. The student riots, G20 and most recently the London riots. Ok…. Wait, the London riots, well no, they weren’t caused by ‘loss of faith’ in the government,but an action taken in a spit second by armed police.

One thing that I can frantically remember is a college visit,
i undertook to the local police training centre. We had the task to help the riot police with their final assessment. To do this we had to re-enact rioting, throwing missiles (blocks of wood) at police officers. Throughout the day we ran around the warehouse, made into a small town. We re-enacted disturbances in pubs, multi storey buildings and custody cells.

During that day I saw normal people, enter the training facility. People with families, children, normal every day people. When we were rioting we could see their eyes, their obvious fear and nerves. I felt almost guilty for throwing things, I understood that they were only doing a job. 

                                                                                        

                                     

 Now i consider real rioting, the fire extinguishers being thrown from buildings during the student riots, PC Keith Blakelock stabbed to death (40 stab wounds) in the tottenham riots (1985), the cars that drove at police during the London summer riots. Police on fire after being petrol bombed in Ukraine, whilst the public use a digger against their lines. Fatigued riot police collapsing on their commutes home to their family during the London riots.

I wonder, are these the forgotten victims of the riots ? 

The victims of poor politics. Protecting laws and people, no matter what their views . Governments and companies can hide behind them. Sometimes taking the brunt of retaliations, for actions of colleagues.  

Food for thought - next time we see police stood in a riot, why don't we spare a thought for the people inside the armour and the families worrying about their loved ones.