For the next four days, from July 18-21, the Republican National Convention is taking over Cleveland, Ohio. There will be around 15,000 credentialed media in attendance, and according to Wired, some of the photographers will be suiting up for the worst possible scenarios.
The Republican Presidential Nominee Donald Trump has been a polarizing candidate on the campaign trail, and some believe that the RNC will be grounds for the biggest clash yet. Freelance Photographer Timothy Fadek told Wired in an article about photographers preparing for the convention, “I’m bringing extra gear that I normally wouldn’t, including my bullet proof vest.” Fadek’s concerns for shooting the event stem from reading up on Ohio’s open carry weapon policy. A Getty Images photographer, Spencer Platt, shares the same sentiments as Fadek. “I’ve been reading about Cleveland for the past few days and it looks pretty rough,” said Platt, who has been a news photographer covering wars and conflicts for 20 years.
In their article, Wired cites the numerous conflicting groups expected to show up at the RNC openly carrying firearms, such as the Hells Angels and Black Panthers, will create a heightened tension during the event. You can check out the full article on the Wired website.
Lead photo by Gage Skidmore and used under Creative Commons.
[via WIRED]
Come on. The chances of shooting in open carry state are the same as in other places(possibly smaller as the shooter would be consciously committing suicide). Another dramatizing in order to gain some attention.
Im not an american citizen so i don't have the entire picture, but i dont think the "open carry" thing is the only issue here. As an european citizen i follow american politics with an interest and i think the antagonizing demeanor of politicians and the divide between the "haves" and the "have nots" combined with the latest mediastorm about black people being shot by the police has people on edge and even, in some cases, outraged. Rightly so or not i leave for others to decide.
When people then have a right to "open carry" and do so, in an already explosive situation trouble is bound to follow.
The chances to shootings happening here in this situation are, for as far as i can see, quite large because people who are treathened and panicking will defend themselves with all means necesarry. When the easy defense is to pull a gun and shoot someone... well...
This is the problem with mass media, they shine and shift issues they want you to see. They prey on their power to feed those that need consuming. The men that killed police officers in Dallas and in New Orleans were troubled souls. Guns had little to no reason behind what they did. Mass media however fueled their illogical and irrational minds to create havoc on the world, mass media is a for profit cycle designed to instill fear into people. Do not believe what you see or read from the giant media outlets.
I think an environment where you have polarized groups all openly carrying weapons is akin to smoking while filling your car with gas. You might pull it off. Then again, you might not.
I think he's going to have a problem getting the gas mask in. They are banned in the event zone. So are large backpacks. NPPA has an article about it: https://nppa.org/node/73501
I love that Fstoppers is using Gage Skidmore's photos. Wasn't everyone all pissed off about that guy working for free? *rotflmao*
The rest --> *eyeroll*
Well, as it turned out the riot gear was needed for the DNC lol.. The RNC was a cake walk compared to the DNC. I know the majority of photographers are liberal so articles like this have a lot of appeal. Just had to say, it turned out to be the opposite.