The woman in the video is Michelle Manhart. A student informed her that a protest was occurring where the protestors were standing on an American flag. She went to the scene of that protest on the campus of Valdosta State University in Georgia. A few African American young people were demonstrating (media reports suggest the protest regarded racism). When she saw them standing on an American flag, which they owned, in a symbolic act of protest, she took the opportunity to steal their flag and attempted to leave.
The video above begins when Ms. Manhart a military veteran is confronted by one of the protestors asking for their flag back. Campus police arrive shortly thereafter and Ms. Manhart attempts to leave with the flag. The police show remarkable restraint as Ms. Manghart refuses to hand back the flag. She struggles with the officers, refusing to give the flag back. After the protestors point out she is resisting the police eventually wrestle her to the ground and handcuff her. No tasers, batons or other means of excessive force (firearms, choke holds, etc.) are employed by the campus police. Here's how the local newspaper described the incident:
Manhart said she was taken into custody by VSU police officers who then returned the flag to the demonstrators. She admitted to The Valdosta Daily Times that she resisted arrest after seeing the flag being returned.
One member of the group who declined to speak with The Valdosta Daily Times or identify himself told a VSU student that putting the American flag on the ground and walking on it was “a symbol of our protest. When a slave understands his situation and understands he doesn’t want to be in slavery, he does not respect or revere anything his slavemaster has put in front of him.”
I can understand a military veteran being upset about this protest. I can understand that in the passion of the moment she got carried away and decided to "defend the flag." I certainly respect the professionalism the police displayed in attempting to calm her and the demonstrators down and have her return the flag to its rightful owners. I do wonder, though, what would have happened had she not been a middle-aged white woman, but someone of color who behaved in this fashion. Theft is a crime. And, clearly she resisted arrest. Yet in the end, she is nor prosecuted or charged with those crimes.
By the way, the right wing media are going crazy over this story. Here is one example from a site called Freedom Outpost (find the link yourself if you wish):i am slightly in conflict you know i too am a vet Vietnam, but i see all kinds of civil rights being trampled on by the one trying to "save" the flag, she committed theft, resistance to police and refusal to return the property owned by protesters. i know this country is split IMO largely do to republican propaganda and misinformation. was it Black people doing it that triggered or just that it was being done by Whites as well?
it's good for her that she feels an obligation to what the flag represents, speaking for Blacks if i may though it's changed but still flown in certain states it only represents the subjugation of centuries by those who waved it proudly while trampling on others not of their persuasion. we fought in all their wars only to return to being spat upon and segregated against. one thing that has stayed with me for years is Muhammed Ali was jailed for refusing induction he said," I got nothing against no Viet Cong, no Vietnamese ever called me a nigger".
http://aavw.org/protest/homepage_ali.html
at the end of that year i found myself on the way to Vietnam, i volunteered. don't remember hearing it before going and as much sense as it make to me now i don't know what i would have thought. i joined to get away from a overbearing mother not because of patriotism. i experienced my first real confrontation with bigotry and racism in boot camp words i was unfamiliar with bur didn't like i was 6'4" 195 lbs and i could fight so much so that i entered boot camp with company 55 graduated with 96 do mostly to fighting and UA smoking. now i have a brain tumor, lung cancer, asthma, sleep apnea, degenerated disc in lower back and really over weight. i thank God for directing me back then because i have VA that takes care of me free and a monthly pension..
we have republicans trying to kill that while lying about caring for us Vets and healthcare for the rest of America and the long list of things they have done, do and will do that is where i find myself at odds with this country's half that think and vote for them. i think i can imagine what this country is like for those not as Blessed and all they are confronted with and i see the relevance of denying that which represents their plight the flag of broken promises and thecontrolling guys not trying to correct that in 2015. i respect the flag and the gov't but only as far as they are now the symbol of America not the reality of America.
as to the police IMO she appeared as obviously White, not destitute, and even though resisting not presenting a "concern for my safety" by police like most all of the murdered ones of late, but none the less in violation of others rights to property and freedom of speech. i think she deliberately directed the altercation to the ground but no knees in the back or feet on heads nor was there any profanity, there was a young Black guy taken off camera we don't know what for or what happened after being off camera. i'm going to leave it there but you know that the question is in everyones mind would it have been different if.......?
long but a good read on flag desecration
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flag_Desecration_Amendment
http://atheism.about.com/od/flagburningdesecration/a/DesecrationBans.htm
