zlacker

>>epista+(OP)
I feel like some upfront setting of expectations would really, really be helpful here. If you're planning to arrest people after curfew, explain that in clear terms: "Our curfew is at 8pm, so we will start asking groups to disperse at 7:30. At 8pm, no large assemblies will be permitted, and police will begin arresting people in large groups at that time. We understand some people will engage in civil disobedience, and if they are cooperative with the police, they will be arrested peacefully. If any protesters start taking action that endangers police (e.g. throwing bricks or running at police unexpectedly), they will be met with force and arrested. Because it can be difficult for police to determine the perpetrator of violence, additional crowd control tactics such as tear gas may be used, so we strongly encourage you to self-police and prevent any violence towards police. After 8pm there will be a 30 minute grace period for those who are not gathered in groups but are in the process of heading home. At 8:30pm, anyone who remains on the street will be detained."

I think it would really help both in terms of outcomes as well as the perception of police if they gave this kind of clear description of what's going to happen. As it stands now, the curfews aren't enforced with any kind of regularity, so they just cause confusion.

>>awille+t8
Curfews cannot be enforced as you're suggesting. There are people who need to be out past curfews (e.g., hospital workers, delivery drivers, doormen, etc.) So police already cannot indiscriminately arrest anyone on the streets past curfew. So the whole notion of curfew is inherently unclear and hard to enforce.

Additionally, the essential workers who work overnight hours also tend to be disproportionately minorities—the same people police disproportionately arrest and brutalize.

Curfews are another really misguided attempt to quell otherwise peaceful protests, and only serve to escalate tensions.

>>the_ga+ka
Do people on their way to work not avoid protests? I know I would. I know protests can turn on a dime at any moment. Police can get you, protesters can misidentify you, etc.

>>mc32+Qa
Living in the center of a mid-sized city - this isn't always possible. When doing volunteer health assessments at the local homeless shelter, I came across several situations where there isn't a clear path to get to my destination that doesn't involve people protesting (literally surrounded at times).