{"id":725613,"date":"2022-06-30T12:19:46","date_gmt":"2022-06-30T12:19:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.thecanary.co\/?p=1610088"},"modified":"2022-06-30T12:19:46","modified_gmt":"2022-06-30T12:19:46","slug":"armed-cops-surrounded-two-young-black-boys-in-liverpool","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/2022\/06\/30\/armed-cops-surrounded-two-young-black-boys-in-liverpool\/","title":{"rendered":"Armed cops surrounded two young Black boys in Liverpool"},"content":{"rendered":"<div data-beyondwords-player=\"true\" contenteditable=\"false\"><\/div><p>Armed police stopped two Black boys in Liverpool on Wednesday 28 June while shocked locals looked on. The teens stood calmly as the officers, who were carrying assault weapons, surrounded them in a residential area. The youths were eventually released without charge.<\/p>\n<p>It was later reported that the young boys were stopped in what appears to be a case of mistaken identity. However, the police maintained that the armed stop and search was &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/uk-england-merseyside-61972936\"  rel=\"noopener\">justified and appropriate<\/a>&#8220;.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"H3Wxe7Nvaf5g1T08gbJZBCGlT9hRLL4UaAPveRp26CqZjytNYpIcmdszAU1xzOkw0PSmKYy23VGiIOFsE\"><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Fuck the police <br \/> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/QCPLNy4Ght\">pic.twitter.com\/QCPLNy4Ght<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; S C A L L Y M A G (@ScallyMagazine) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ScallyMagazine\/status\/1541876616946655234?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">June 28, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/span><\/p>\n<p>A man had been reported earlier as being in the area with a gun in the waistband of his trousers.<\/p>\n<h2>Racism<\/h2>\n<p>A local Labour MP said there was a history of racist policing in Liverpool. Kim Johnson <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/uk-england-merseyside-61972936\">told the BBC<\/a>:<\/p>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-uf6wea-RichTextComponentWrapper e1xue1i86\" data-component=\"text-block\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-7uxr49-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph eq5iqo00\">I do believe that Merseyside Police is institutionally racist.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>She said that the local force had cultural problems:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-uf6wea-RichTextComponentWrapper e1xue1i86\" data-component=\"text-block\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-7uxr49-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph eq5iqo00\">It&#8217;s not just about the one or two bad apples, it&#8217;s about the culture of the organisation and the culture of the organisation has to change. <span style=\"font-size: inherit;\">I understand that [Merseyside Police] have a job to do, but it has to be proportionate.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Local community groups also shared their thoughts on Twitter.<\/p>\n<p>Granby Somali Women&#8217;s Group said the police were typically aggressive:<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"iASp62sNZjkMWuzh10G5boUyDmC4YgdEqvBPHLQcIt\"><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Two unarmed black boys, traumatised by armed Merseyside Police stopping them with guns, it was a case of &#39;mistaken identity&#39;. Thank god they kept their cool and were calm, the Police on the other hand aggressive as usual <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MerseysidePCC?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@MerseysidePCC<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MerseyPolice?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@MerseyPolice<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/merpolchiefcon?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@merpolchiefcon<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/YPSeIDSaqo\">pic.twitter.com\/YPSeIDSaqo<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Granby Somali Women&#39;s Group (@GSWG_charity) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/GSWG_charity\/status\/1541757677596037123?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">June 28, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2>Unapologetic<\/h2>\n<p>A local reporter noted the lack of an apology from Merseyside police;<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"T3KFJZauY4OCcBVRiHj2NmWeG0f679nL\"><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Considering these two men were innocent of any crime, it&#39;s unfortunate that there is nothing even bordering on an apology in the police response<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/9W0rtNhPgH\">https:\/\/t.co\/9W0rtNhPgH<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Liam Thorp (@LiamThorpECHO) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/LiamThorpECHO\/status\/1541845612773122050?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">June 28, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/span><\/p>\n<p>Another commenter suggested that Liverpool police should be put on special measures like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.itv.com\/news\/london\/2022-06-28\/met-police-in-special-measures-over-string-of-high-profile-scandals\">the Metropolitan force<\/a> was this week. That decision followed a long series of failures and controversies:<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"RlE4HQ95LaNe0kFmrdqSY68tiZycgD3WvhXfG\"><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Merseyside Police need to be put on special measures next. This was them yesterday. They later admitted they got the wrong Black boys. It\u2019s time we <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/withdrawconsent?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#withdrawconsent<\/a>. My blood is boiling\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/bA5z0HGkNZ\">pic.twitter.com\/bA5z0HGkNZ<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Michael Morgan (@mikewhoatv) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/mikewhoatv\/status\/1541818707567075328?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">June 28, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/span><\/p>\n<p>For some, this raised fears that the situation could easily have become violent and led to a tragedy:<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"S94yiTlw5WeLskhbzaKf\"><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">It\u2019s indisputable that black people are disproportionately stopped by the Police, and cases of \u2018mistaken identity\u2019 such as this raise real concerns of racism. Thankfully Police firearms were not discharged, but once again we see the spectre of near tragedy <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/1XAinyKKg0\">https:\/\/t.co\/1XAinyKKg0<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Iain Gould (@IainGould) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/IainGould\/status\/1542405975776305154?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">June 30, 2022<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/span><\/p>\n<h2>Wild West<\/h2>\n<p>A spokeswoman for the Granby Somali Women&#8217;s Group <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/uk-england-merseyside-61972936\">told the <em>BBC<\/em><\/a>:<\/p>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-uf6wea-RichTextComponentWrapper e1xue1i86\" data-component=\"text-block\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-7uxr49-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<blockquote>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph eq5iqo00\">This is not a rare occurrence, as Merseyside Police are driving around stopping individuals like it&#8217;s the Wild West in the L8 area.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-uf6wea-RichTextComponentWrapper e1xue1i86\" data-component=\"text-block\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-7uxr49-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph eq5iqo00\">She added that police behaviour scarred young men and led to mistrust for the police. The police said they had <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/uk-england-merseyside-61972936\">viewed body camera footage<\/a> and decided they had acted properly &#8211; though how well positioned the police are to mark their own homework is likely to be a point of contention once again.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><em>Featured image <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Armed_Police_(34317140495).jpg\">via Wikimedia Commons\/Tony Hisgett, cropped to 770 x 403, licenced under CC BY 2.0.\u00a0<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>By <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thecanary.co\/author\/joeglenton\/\">Joe Glenton<\/a><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"syndicated-attribution\">This post was originally published on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecanary.co\/trending\/2022\/06\/30\/armed-cops-surrounded-two-young-black-boys-in-liverpool\/\">The Canary<\/a>. <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Armed police stopped two Black boys in Liverpool on Wednesday 28 June while shocked locals looked on. The teens stood calmly as the officers, \u2026 <\/p>\n<div class=\"read-more-wrap\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecanary.co\/trending\/2022\/06\/30\/armed-cops-surrounded-two-young-black-boys-in-liverpool\/\" class=\"more-link\">Read more<\/a><\/div>\n<p>By <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.thecanary.co\/author\/joeglenton\/\">Joe Glenton<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1547,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39656,9747,18960,784,50654,5594,1395],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/725613"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1547"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=725613"}],"version-history":[{"count":209,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/725613\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":760536,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/725613\/revisions\/760536"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=725613"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=725613"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=725613"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}