A peaceful protest was held for The Quakertown 5 on Friday, Feb. 27, in the borough of Doylestown, hosted by the Doylestown Action League.
Many people showed up ready to rally against I.C.E. enforcement abuses, but also to rally in support of the students who had been arrested the previous Friday.
On Feb. 20, about 30 students left school to protest I.C.E. Later, five students were arrested. Outrage erupted after news reports showed Quakertown police chief Scott McElree tackling a young girl and putting her into an apparent chokehold.
Controversy arose because McElree was not in his uniform, so students apparently didn’t know he was a police officer. Others argue that he is doing the opposite of serving and protecting the community.
The Bucks County District Attorney’s office opened an independent investigation into how the police had handled the protest on Feb. 20, though attorneys of the students who were arrested had requested that the district attorney turn the investigation over to an outside agency to investigate.
On Feb. 27, the Bucks County District Attorney’s office did not comment, only that the investigation into the police is underway.
Colin Hancock was at the Quakertown protest and said, “It started with us walking out at 11:30ish, and we went from the school. We cut across two streets, and there were truckers following us around the whole time, shouting slurs and stuff. It was otherwise mostly peaceful up until we got into the corner of Juniper and Front Street, in front of the restaurant, Sundays.”
He added, “Then a cop came over and started talking to a couple of girls. I think one girl was out in the street and that’s why he was coming over, and then that’s when the chief came in and started attacking people. Completely unmarked.”
Resident and member of the Quakertown Community, Lucia Simonelli, said, “It’s really rattling to see that, you know, it hits kind of differently when it’s at the end of my street, in front of a restaurant I go to and you know kids that I see walking by all the time; To feel as though there is law enforcement that is more about violence and safety and is not doing anything to deescalate but is trying to escalate, just doesn’t make us feel safe.”
She added, “I think we are worried also that the kids were in custody for so long. It just doesn’t make sense. And I think people are really searching for answers and I think there’s a lot of healing and that has to happen to restore trust.”
“People need to be out here because these children need justice, and Scott McElree needs to be prosecuted for his egregious, disgusting child abuse,” a student who preferred to remain anonymous said.
Nick Maio, a U.S. Army Veteran and organizer in Doylestown, said, “One of the core principles of democracy is the ability to peacefully gather and protest. It reminds us that we are the people; we have the most power in this country. We elect politicians to represent us, not rule us. We don’t have kings in this country, 250 years ago, we fought against tyranny so that we wouldn’t have a king.”
He added, “Right now, the way the administration is acting, it’s as if we have a king, and that’s not okay with me. I joined the military to fight for democracy, and I see our democracy is under attack right now, so for me it’s important to gather and that we do it peacefully and we remind people that we’re not anti-police, we’re not anti-country, we’re very pro everything that deserves to be protected,” said Maio.
The protest remained peaceful, despite people who drove past yelling at the group. Maio reminds the crowd multiple times that even when people are mocking and saying terrible things, to remain peaceful towards them because they, too, have a right to be here.
McElree is currently out on leave, on workers’ compensation leave.
The five students arrested will not face any criminal charges.