What began as a routine band performance of Talkin’ Out the Side of Your Neck by Cameo at an Alabama high school football game ended in a troubling confrontation when a police officer tased the marching band director for refusing to stop the music.
The altercation occurred Thursday around 9 p.m. local time after a game at Jackson-Olin High School in Birmingham, Ala.
Minor High School band director Johnny Mims, 39, and his ensemble of 145 students were about a minute away from being done with their final song when a police officer approached the podium. According to both Mims and the Birmingham Police Department, officers asked Mims to stop the performance so they could clear out the stadium. Mims responded that the song was about to end and the performance was agreed on by both schools.
“Nothing we were doing at the time was being a danger to the community, fans or the school,” Mims told NPR on Monday. “Everyone was enjoying themselves. That’s the part I’m having a hard time grappling with.”
As the students finished their performance, officers attempted to arrest Mims for not complying. Police said the band director “refused” to place his hands behind his back and allegedly pushed an arresting officer.
Since posting that, I thought about it myself. Over here in Germany, we have similar laws, but it’s specifically securities, not police. The massive difference being that those securities don’t have guns.
And yeah, that was basically my thinking. Why would you send people with guns to such an event? It just causes everyone to feel uneasy. And unarmed securities can break apart brawls much more aggressively.
…but yeah, I forgot that everyone and their mother has a gun in the US. Unarmed securities would be on a suicide mission. So, yeah, I do understand now, why police is present…
It’s not really about guns. They are already illegal on school property and large event venues. Unarmed security is also common in the US, but it’s growing to require police specifically.