Letters from the Front Lines: Vancouver Riot

Man up and face the consequences: a police officer’s perspective

Dustin Anderson taunting and assaulting a fire fighter at the scene.

This message is specifically intended for Dustin Anderson, but I suppose it is also a general letter to other idiots like him.

I read in the news that you intent to turn yourself in for your stupidity, for taunting police officers on the line and for trying to assault a fire firefighter. I hope there are some people who are impressed by your decision to turn yourself in. I hope for your sake, there are people who accept your pitiful attempt to minimize your actions on the now infamous nite of the riots. You see, your attempts to minimize your actions are part of the problem.

“It’s not like I was lighting cars on fire or smashing in windows.” Perhaps you didn’t damage property or smash windows, but your decision to remain in the area as part of the collective mob makes you just as guilty as the rest of the idiots in the violent mob.

You see, Dustin… it is the mob mentality that causes the riot situation to escalate. Everyone in the riot plays a role. Some people are the instigators, some are the followers, others are the supporters, but each of the people in that violent mob of idiots work together to create a situation that puts the safety of others in jeopardy.

Dustin, you and the rest of your loser cohorts were given ample opportunity to leave the area when the riot started. The warning to leave was repeated many times to the people that remained when the riot continued. You made a decision to stay and keep the riot going. I don’t doubt that you were caught up in the “excitement” of the situation… mob mentality will do that.

As a police officer, I stood the line with men and women who were required to show restraint when attempting to get the situation under control. We had bricks, glass bottles (full and empty), cans, road barricades, etc thrown at us while we stood the line and tried to protect the city. Those objects were thrown by people like you, with the intent of causing physical harm to us.

I will admit that I would have loved to have had the opportunity to kick the shit out of you and many others, but as a professional police officer working in Canada, I don’t have that right. Ironically, people like you seem to think that you have the legal right to damage property, endanger lives and bring shame to a world-class city.

Dustin (and the other idiots like you), you make it seem like you are a victim in this because you got pepper sprayed. Perhaps you were also tear gassed in the riot. Boo hoo hoo. Your being pepper sprayed was a direct result of YOUR OWN behaviour. If you weren’t acting like a moron, you wouldn’t have been sprayed.

And then to justify your actions of assaulting a fire fighter because you didn’t get the attention that you think you deserved is ludicrious. You’re the idiot who participated in a riot. You’re the idiot who taunted police as they tried to restore order to a city under seige. You have to now live with the consequences to your idiotic behaviour.

What I often find myself asking in the aftermath of this shameful day is, if it weren’t for the media images and the amazing effects of social media, how many of you morons would truly be apologetic for your actions on June 15, 2011? How many of you stupid people would continue to brag and pat yourselves on the back because you actively participated in the riot?

You can apologize all you want, Dustin. You can minimize your actions all you want. You can try to claim you were a victim in this incident, Dustin, but you were in fact an active participant who now has to face the consequences to his actions.

I’m sure you are probably a nice guy in general. You would help your friends in a heartbeat if they asked. You probably are, in general, a person who is law abiding. Unfortunately, you are also a criminal now.

Time to man up and face the consequences. I, for one, hope those consequences are harsh… even more so than the effects of the social shaming that you are now subjected to.

— a police officer, and a proud Vancouverite.