Amnesty International Inserts Itself Into America's Political Process

So it would seem we’re pretty much a banana republic now, and we’re one step away from seeing all the click bait headlines of conspiracy theory hotbed sites become eerily prophetic.

Advertisement

According to a CNN report, Amnesty International will be sending human rights observers to both the GOP convention in Cleveland, Ohio, and the DNC convention in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. This will be the first time in its history (55 years) that the organization has felt the need to monitor the American political process.

“There’s a potentially toxic mix here of very heated rhetoric and an increase in law enforcement preventing people from protesting lawfully, and that combination is deeply concerning to us,” Eric Ferrero, Amnesty International USA’s deputy executive director for strategic communications and digital initiatives, told CNN on Thursday.

The multinational human rights organization typically sends monitors to document elections, transitions of power and public unrest in countries around the globe riven by civil war or ruled by autocrats. In recent years, its independent observers have been deployed to anti-government protests in Turkey and Arab Spring demonstrations in Egypt.

The move has been prompted by the Black Lives Matters protests and the belief that any action by the police to contain the protests is too much.

There will be 10 monitors at each event, there for the purpose of documenting any “human rights abuses” by the police.

Note, they won’t be there to stop the police from being shot. They’re not going to stop protestors from looting, turning over cars, or dropping cinder blocks on the heads of officers.

Advertisement

They’ll be there to make sure the police are kept in check, and will be sending out reports on social media, as well as sending reports to local, state, and federal authorities for review.

“The world will be watching Cleveland and Philadelphia,” Ferrero said, “and we’ll be on the scene as well documenting any human rights abuses.”

How much of an impact this move will have in the long run, and who this may open the door to, as far as “monitoring” elections and other events in our nation remains to be seen, but the fact that they feel it necessary now is just further evidence of the damage that has been done over the last few years under Obama’s regime.

“We’ve seen over the last couple of years, but especially over the last couple of months, cases in this country of law enforcement really inhibiting people’s basic human right to take to the streets and voice their opinion,” Ferrero said. “So given the climate we’re in, we felt it was really necessary for us to send independent, trained observers to document violations and help protect people’s right to assemble.”

Except, nobody’s right to assemble has been violated. They haven’t been stopped from assembling, but their assemblies aren’t always peaceful, and that’s not because of any actions by the police. There are no hoses being turned on them. The dogs haven’t been released. In some of the cases where the crowds have become dangerous to citizens and the officers, action has been taken to regain order, but as far as human rights abuses – I’d say that was a stretch.

Advertisement

On Wednesday, Amnesty USA Executive Director Margaret Huang sent open letters and “a summary of best practices on the policing of demonstrations under international standards” to the heads of the police forces in Cleveland and Philadelphia. The cities’ mayors, along with Republican National Committee chair Reince Priebus and his Democratic counterpart, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, were also copied.

This is disturbing.

I don’t think it’s very productive, nor can any good come out of a leftist, international organization that inserts itself into our political process and the surrounding circumstances, already with a preconceived notion about our law enforcement officers and the job they do.

Recommended

Join the conversation as a VIP Member

Trending on RedState Videos