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Lucylastic -> Despite Macings, Principle Drives Iraq Vet To Occupy Seattle, Care for Wounded (11/16/2011 12:22:32 PM)
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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/wendy-k-leigh/despite-macings-principle_b_1095906.html
An Iraq War veteran serving as a volunteer media for participants in the Occupy Seattle movement alleges he was maced 23 times in the face by Seattle police while attempting to render aid to protestors during the November 2 protest at a downtown Chase Bank.
Chris Anderson was 18 years old when he joined the military and became a medic serving in Iraq. Following in the footsteps of his grandpa, who served on a PT boat in Vietnam, Anderson was fulfilling his lifelong dream of a career serving his country. Six months into his tour of duty, while helping to evacuate a building in Baghdad, it collapsed, sending Chris soaring through debris and chaos, then crashing to the ground three stories below. When he awoke in a hospital bed, his sergeant was holding discharge papers.
Now 24, with lifelong disabilities including synthetic bones and knee caps, he will never serve his country again on the battlefield. But that hasn't stopped his passion for the 'American Way. He now stands up for his fellow countrymen in a different way, as a medic in the "Occupy Seattle" camp.
He was administering emergency care to dozens of protesters caught in a chaos reminiscent of places far from the streets of urban America, when he was himself assaulted by police attempting to control the situation.
Protesters from Occupy Seattle, had gathered at Chase Bank in Seattle, to continue their stand against corporate greed and its undue influence on American life.
"It was by far the worst day of the Occupy movement in Seattle," said Chris, standing in the drizzle this week near the tents where he and his comrades sleep on the grounds of Seattle Central Community College. His eyes were running, still sore and swollen from being sprayed multiple times with what he maintains was "bear mace" - the kind used to melt the fur of bears in order to penetrate the skin. The area around his mouth still bears chemical burns from direct sprays to his face and torso.
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