Orange County Activist Jailed on July 4, at Costa

Mesa Nike Town Protest

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — On July 4, 2002,

approximately thirty protesters convened upon Nike

Town in Costa Mesa, to protest against corporate

abuse and sweatshop labor. The protest was

peaceful, fun, and colorful, from 12:00 until 3:00PM.

Around 3:30, three young white males waving an

American flag approached the protestors, shouting and making obscene gestures toward them, and

began kicking their signs. A crowd gathered, and one

of the men threw an apple, which hit one of the

protesters in the face. At that point, one of the

white males began grabbing his genitals, and shouted “suck my dick, bitch" to one of the female protestors. He then proceeded to shout at her, and another demonstrator, Naui Huitzilopochtli, telling them to “Go back to Mexico, you fucking wetbacks.” All three were telling them, “Let’s go, come on motherfuckers, I’ll kick your ass.” They began throwing pennies at the protestors, taunting and spitting at them.

All of a sudden, a masked person ran up, and

squirted the men with red paint. The unknown

assailant fled the scene, and the Costa Mesa police

(who had been present the whole time) intervened on

behalf of the three white males. One of them told an

officer that he had been assaulted with paint, and

when the police asked him who did it, he pointed to

Naui. Without question, the officer grabbed Naui, and

handcuffed him. Numerous protestors who witnessed the event told the officers that Naui was innocent. But

the police told them to "shut up," or they would all

be arrested. The police then declared the demonstration to be an unlawful assembly, and they

gave the protestors two minutes to disperse. The

police allowed the three white males to fill out crime

victim reports at the scene of the incident, but would

not allow any of the protestors to fill out reports

against them. In fact, the police told the protestors

that if they did not leave, everyone would be

arrested.

The protestors then went to the Costa Mesa

police station, where the clerk at the front desk

asked, “Why didn’t you fill out a report at the crime

scene?” They informed her that police officers would

not allow them to do so. Approximately twenty

protesters arrived at the station to file complaints,

but the police threatened to arrest them. They had to

fill out the reports in the parking lot.

It is very disturbing how Naui and the

protestors were treated by Costa Mesa police officers.

The police refused to listen to witness testimony at

the scene. Naui’s family had to post bail, for a

crime he did not commit. Despite the fact these three

white males shouted racial slurs, threw objects, spit at,

and sexually harassed the protestors, somehow, THEY were the crime victims.

This is serious police repression, and the worst

case of police abuse, racism, and misogyny that we

have ever seen. We plan to go to the Orange County Human Relations Committee, the Costa Mesa City Council, and pursue whatever legal methods we can use to ensure that justice is served. This case has placed financial hardship on Naui and his family. He is in great need of legal defense funds, and court

solidarity. He will not plead guilty to a crime he

did not commit. If you can send legal defense funds,

and/or support our case against the Costa Mesa Police Department, please call (714) 303-0004, or e-mail atlachinolli_front@yahoo.com.