JASON RANTZ

Rantz: Seattle activists livid protester arrested for vandalizing City Hall

Aug 12, 2019, 5:48 AM | Updated: 8:50 am

Seattle police arrest a 13-year-old girl for vandalizing Seattle City Hall during a climate change protest. (Jason Rantz, KTTH) Vandalism at Seattle City Hall after a climate change protest Aug. 9, 2019. (Seattle Police Department) A can of chalk paint used to vandalize Seattle City Hall at an August 9, 2019 protest over climate change. (Seattle Police Department) Vandalism at Seattle City Hall after a climate change protest Aug. 9, 2019. (Seattle Police Department)

The Seattle Police Department finds itself in another unwinnable woke controversy, this time for arresting a girl who was allegedly breaking the law. Only for progressive activists, the law isn’t supposed to apply, or they’ll redefine the law to justify their actions.

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Just before the weekend, area youth protested over inaction on climate change. Part of the protest involved spray painting a message on Seattle City Hall, including, “Strike for our future.”

A 13-year-old girl was handcuffed and removed from the protest for the vandalism. This drove the small crowd wild. They harassed the cops, calling them “authoritarian” for arresting such a young girl.

Twitter activists claimed the kid thought the substance used to tag the property was sidewalk chalk, but it turns out it wasn’t. Indeed, one protester on Twitter said, “Only reason I didn’t do it too was my mom is an atmospheric chemist and got suspicious of the smell and asked to look at the can.” This kid was smart to not vandalize the property.

Woke-Twitter came to the girl’s defense, with attorney and local activist Nikkita Oliver bizarrely claiming the girl was arrested for “for exercising her First Amendment Rights.” No, she was arrested for vandalizing City Hall. Just because you like the vandal’s message, doesn’t mean it’s protected from punishment. And her age doesn’t imply an automatic get-out-jail-free card.

Since this girl was filmed crying at the arrest for her alleged crime, activists slammed the cops online.

Actually, since the girl appears white, if she wasn’t arrested, this very same Twitter activists would probably claim she got a pass because of her skin color.

Unfortunately, the cops were in a tough spot. By not intervening, the vandalism could have gotten out of hand. The crowd was angry and needed a disincentive to continue their illegal behavior. And an arrest can have that impact.

I feel bad for the girl. I don’t like to see kids crying, nor do I like to see kids get arrested. I see her more as a victim of an upbringing that tells her the ends justify the means, even though she could have made the exact same impact that Friday without vandalizing property. And besides, we know she won’t be charged. If Seattle won’t send repeat criminals to jail, then it isn’t going to spend much time on a kid with spray paint. So this will be chalked up (pardon the pun) to a life lesson.

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And if you’re outraged by the arrest, instead of going after the cops, remind your kids that when you break the law, you risk going to jail. It’s a simple message that should get your kid to protest lawfully.

Update: According to the Seattle Police Department, two people were arrested in relation to the vandalism incident. A 25-year-old man was booked into jail. The 13-year-old girl was released to her parents.

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Rantz: Seattle activists livid protester arrested for vandalizing City Hall