Justin King

October 10, 2014

(TheAntiMedia) Beavercreek Police officer Sean Williams killed John Crawford in Wal-Mart, and weeks of peaceful protest achieved nothing. The police won’t even be reviewing the policies that led to two innocent people being killed.

While Anonymous affiliated activists have been involved with the various protests, the collective seems to have been waiting to see what, if anything, was going to be done before launching full-scale operations. The wait is apparently over. Anonymous has launched #OpJohnCrawford, and is threatening multiple forms of action unless three demands are met. Image credit: Justin King

The full attention of the collective is cause to worry for the police department that has simply ignored all demands for reform and justice. Anonymous has gained a reputation in law enforcement circles for their willingness to take the fight beyond traditional protest and place departments that believe they are above the law on the defensive through cyber attacks and the leaking of personal information about officers.

The operation was kicked off with a simple video:

The demands are simple:

Fire or permanently disarm officer Sean Williams.

Bring criminal charges against 911 caller Ronald Ritchie.

Publicly apologize for the murder to John Crawford’s family.

Anti-Media spoke with an Anonymous-affiliated activist known as “ghost.”

He or she (you never know with Anonymous) said the collective,

“will not stop and will go to any length for justice for John Crawford.”

Later, the Anon added,

“We will occupy, we will take out any web based assets, and make personal informational viral until demands are met.”

These are typical opening shots in an Anonymous cyber war. In the past, if actions similar to the above fail to achieve the set goals, Anonymous raised the stakes by attacking the local economy, campaign donors, and any organization supporting the offending government agency.

The department successfully ignored the wishes of the community when separate protests tried to bring about reform. Ignoring the weight of the collective will probably prove to be significantly more difficult, and the new support is likely to reinvigorate organizations that have been fighting for more accountability such as the Ohio Students Association, Columbus Cop Block, and Ohio Open Carry.

More on John Crawford from The Anti-Media:

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