In the aftermath of a riot at a dead prez concert at Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington, the Hip Hop Congress will host a forum on the incident tomorrow (Feb. 29) and also pay for some of the damages.
HHC will sell an album of various artists’ works—including dead prez—to raise the money.
“I’m hoping it’s more of a dialogue,” said Shamako Noble, Hip Hop Congress’ president. “I’d be interested to know some direction we can take as a community.”
According to The Olympian, the Hip Hop Congress also plans to release their analysis of the events in question and law enforcement’s response.
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In the early morning hours of Feb. 15, a crowd of approximately 800 people attended a concert headlined by dead prez. During the event, one concert attendee was arrested after an alleged physical altercation.
After the man was escorted out of the building, it was originally reported that dead prez led the crowd in a chant of “fuck the police,” escalating the situation. Video footage of the concert shows that M1 did indeed say “fuck the police,” but also encouraged the crowd to check on the situation and make sure the young man was ok.
When the crowd exited the venue, an estimated 150-200 people surrounded the police car, shouting “let him go” in reference to the man that was detained.
One of the officers present called for backup.
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According to a police report obtained by DX from the Olympia Police Department, the reporting officer described the crowd as “very dangerous” and said “it was becoming a life threatening situation.” The officer also used his flashlight to strike individuals “above the waist and below the shoulders.”
When efforts to control the crowd via verbal commands failed, the officers—who had objects thrown at them—used pepper spray to gain control.
One police car was turned over—and completely totaled—and also had equipment inside stolen.
With both sides having issued statements concerning the incident, more extensive video has turned up.
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Judge for yourself:
