Spring Break
Losing my faith
Alexia Lang
Issue date: 10/12/09 Section: Forum
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Definition according to Dictionary.com: "false outward show, façade, pretense; activity, existence, etc., under false pretenses; to go about under false pretenses or a false character; assume the character of; give oneself out to be."
Generally speaking, I have always abided by the rule of trusting just about everyone until they give me a reason not to.
Despite the fact my job is to keep an eye open for dishonesty, I always look for the best in people.
I believe in heroes, I believe the good guy always wins, I believe in our country.
So, this week, when I was faced with the earth-shattering truth that we can't always trust those whom we look to for protection, I did not want to believe it.
In fact, I all but spit in the eyes of the person who put the evidence in my hands.
I put the information in a drawer and left it for a few days, trying to ignore the big, multicolored elephant in the room.
Eventually, I took the files out of the drawer and scattered them across my desk.
I spent hours pouring over videos and official documents and articles printed in the New York Times and other major news organizations.
It was a mass of evidence proving instances of police officers spying on ordinary citizens, dressing up like protesters and instigating riots which ended in people getting hurt and even turning neighborhoods into police states as they marched up and down streets with guns and batons.
The more I researched, the more I wanted to believe these things were only happening in other countries, or perhaps, they were instances from a long time ago.
But that's not the case.
One of the most recent cases happened on Sept. 24, when the G20 Summit, a gathering of the top 20 financial leaders in the world, was held in Pittsburgh, Penn.
Generally, a number of protesters show up at these meetings. It was no different this time.
However, this summit was held near the University of Pittsburgh at the Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens.
As a result, innocent students were stuck in the crossfire as police used tear gas, batons and sound weapons to corral the protesters on the city streets.
If you watch the video posted at www.youtube.com/watch?v=etv8YEqaWgA, you will see the horrible scene unfold.
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