If you’re among the millions of US citizens against power-hungry data centers going up in your town, you may want to be careful about how you exercise your First Amendment right to protest.
Last week, high school physics teacher Lux Claridge was hauled out of a public meeting by four police officers for the baffling crime of clapping in support of an anti-data center speaker. During the public comment portion of the meeting, held by the Emporia City Commission in Lyon County, Kansas, residents who showed up to voice opposition to a 1,000-acre data center project were warned against “clapping” and “snapping” in support of speakers.
“It was very clear at the beginning that each person is given their two minutes, and we’re trying to be respectful of that,” Emporia commissioner Monica Duncan warned those in attendance, footage of the meeting shared on social media shows. “Snapping, clapping, any other rude comments or anything — we will ask you to leave.”
As one speaker later wrapped up her two-minute comment period, stating “we are the people, and the table belongs to us,” Claridge was filmed clapping his hands together a total of six times.
“Chief, will you take the next person out that claps or anything?” an unidentified commissioner, likely Duncan, then asked Emporia police chief Ed Owens.
At the commissioners’ request, four police officers then swarmed Claridge, who challenged them to “drag me out,” which they did after placing the physics teacher in handcuffs.
Speaking to local channel KWCH after their arrest, an undeterred Claridge said they are “glad to be out,” but that it was just an “inconvenience, really.”
“It’s not really deterring me from speaking out or I guess, clapping,” Claridge continued.
Other attendees were understandably shaken after witnessing the brazen escalation against a citizen expressing themselves at a public hearing. Interviewed by KWCH, Claridge’s brother David said he’s “looking at avenues to get these people recalled,” calling the level of force used “insane.”
“We are citizens of this community; we have a right to do our constitutionally protected activities, which is exactly what they’re violating at this time,” another anonymous local told the outlet. “I think we’re all in a state of fear because of what this government’s doing to us.”
The data center in question, known as the “Flint Hills Digital Campus,” is a…
Source link
Disclaimer
We strive to uphold the highest ethical standards in all of our reporting and coverage. We blogs.grocliq.com want to be transparent with our readers about any potential conflicts of interest that may arise in our work. It’s possible that some of the investors we feature may have connections to other businesses, including competitors or companies we write about. However, we want to assure our readers that this will not have any impact on the integrity or impartiality of our reporting. We are committed to delivering accurate, unbiased news and information to our audience, and we will continue to uphold our ethics and principles in all of our work. Thank you for your trust and support.
Website Upgradation is going on for any glitch kindly connect at [email protected]
