by Tim Hardy

The livestreams and photographs coming from the May 12th Occupy London action outside The Royal Exchange are deeply distressing. The police are acting with impunity, seemingly unconcerned by the fact that their behavior is being witnessed. There are many images to review and videos to watch but the sequence in this video from 8.52-9.22 stood out immediately.

As the policeman in the front pulls back at 8:52 you can see one of his colleagues in the background has his gloved hand clamped over the mouth of a woman who is seated. As the video continues, you can see quite clearly how distressed she is by police behavior.

Whatever you think of Occupy, whatever you think of protest, whatever your politics – this is unacceptable behavior and the police officer in question should be suspended from duty immediately. There needs to be an urgent review into policing of peaceful protest like this.

With the police behaving with such open aggression towards peaceful protesters, how long will it be before they kill another innocent?

There were further reports of excessive force being used against women on May 12 including this tweet from @jjarichardson:

And this video from @wyrdsisterz:

The above video was upload by YouTube user yetanotherwyrdo who writes:

May 12th 2012 peaceful protest against global economic injustice outside Bank Of England, women targeted, pulled from peaceful assembly, arrested and being man-handled by 8 x City Of London Police, arms handcuffed behind back, 4 on top of her, Police kneel on her neck and then neck braced by 4 x City Of London Police, she unsurprisingly has an anxiety attack.

Another video, below (via occupylondon.org), includes an interview with a woman who was threatened by the police with having her children put into the custody of social services because she was a protester.

If you were involved in or witnessed any of these incidents please contact the Green and Black Cross legal team at gbclegal@riseup.net.

Tim Hardy is a software engineer, activist and writer from London with a particular interest in the role of technology in driving social and political change. He is the founder and editor of beyondclicktivism.com and can be found on twitter at @bc_tmh.

by Daniel Robert Epstein

Steve Martin is a god, not the G-d, but a god nonetheless. When I try to remember my childhood, I mostly come up with images of The Man with Two Brains and The Jerk. But in recent years, his work has turned to the more complex with such theater plays as Picasso at the Lapin Agile and the novella Shopgirl.

Next month Touchstone Pictures will release the film adaptation of Shopgirl with Martin writing, producing and starring. It tells the story of Mirabelle [played by Claire Danes] who oversees the rarely frequented glove counter at Saks Fifth Avenue in Beverly Hills. She is an artist struggling to keep up with even the minimum payment on her credit card and student loans. She keeps to herself until a rich, handsome fifty something named Ray Porter [Steve Martin] sweeps her off her feet. Simultaneously, Mirabelle is being pursued by Jeremy [Jason Schwartzman], a basic bachelor who’s not quite as cultured and successful as Ray.

Read our exclusive interview with Steve Martin on SuicideGirls.com.

Oogie Suicide in Pale Blue Eyes

• INTO: Body mods, boys, the Planet Earth series, hot weather, good food, cosmetology, photography, any movie with Will Smith in it, and video games.
• NOT INTO: People that talk behind my back.
• MAKES ME HAPPY: Painting, photography, movies, cleaning.
• MAKES ME SAD: Being alone and bored at the same time.
• HOBBIES: Painting, cosmetology, photography.
• 5 THINGS I CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT: Internet, my kitty, my phone, my Xbox 360, and clothes.
• I SPEND MOST OF MY FREE TIME: On SG or with friends. :].

Get to know Oogie better over at SuicideGirls.com!

by SG’s Team Agony feat. Smythe

Let us answer life’s questions – because great advice is even better when it comes from SuicideGirls.

Q: My boyfriend is great! We have an adventurous sex life. We’re open and young and love each other very much. We have a 3-month old son, but that hasn’t changed our sex life much. Recently though, my boyfriend’s been avoiding sex. It doesn’t matter if I play hard to get or if I’m throwing myself at him or anything in between, he’s just not into it. Why could this be?

A: There have been A LOT of changes in you and your boyfriend’s life. You were pregnant, and had a kid. Whoa. Huge deal. Is it possibly stress related? There’s a big shift in responsibility, both personal and financial. He could be freaking out a little.

You mentioned that you have an adventurous sex life with your boyfriend. Great! But, do you both feel that way? What might make things amazing for you in the sack, might not be what lights his fire.

The thing is, it could be almost anything under the sun causing him to have an aversion to sex. But no matter what you think it might be that is causing a lack of umph in bedroom, you’re never going to know until you talk to him. Sit him down and have an open and honest conversation, without judgment.

Smythe

Got Problems? Let SuicideGirls’ team of Agony Aunts provide solutions. Email questions to: gotproblems@suicidegirls.com

by Tita Suicide

Hell City Tattoo Festival celebrated “A Decade of Sin” last week, in it’s hometown of Killumbus, OH. The three day festival attracted thousands of fans, collectors, artists, and of course, a strong contingent of Suicide Girls.

Each year, more and more girls make the trek from all over North America, and this year was no exception! Anathesia, Wit, Yesnesnia, Chrysis, Sunshine, Rourke, Patton, Luscious, Essence, Glitch, King, Gallows, Damone, Amarena, Damsel, Tovi, Vellin, Cupie, Michaelangela helped man the SuicideGirls booth, greet fans, pose for photos, and hand out the coveted Hell City Tattoo awards each night.

Seeing that SuicideGirls celebrated its ten year anniversary at the end of 2011, it isn’t hard to see why we’ve become such a big part of the show. Hell City, much like SuicideGirls, celebrates art, culture, and alternative lifestyle, while providing a place for like-minded people to convene, share, and get to know one another.

Ten years in, both are bigger, better, and sexier than ever.

Until next year Hellions…

Yay!
XOXO
Tita

Ps. For a trip down memory lane, check out the video below that Shotgun Suicide put together featuring pics from the past decade of Hell City.

Music: “Mirror” by Tokyo Pinsalocks courtesy of ConspiracyMFX