Always Watching

It has been suggested to me on a few occasions, that if you were to follow anyone around doing any job with a video camera, you would almost certainly find something over the course of a day that could be seen as objectionable by your average viewer. How we treat the people behind the counter at the 7-11. The way we drive in a crowded parking lot. That little scratch to the side of your nose that might inadvertently have slid up your left nostril.
And then there are some really bad days. How you treat the people around you, especially if you are in a position of trust and authority: law enforcement officers, judges, teachers, security guards. You really can't have a bad day in an age of cell phone cameras.
Some days, of course, are worse than others. Oakland High School security guard Marchell Mitchell was dismissed by the school May 19 after he was caught on video beating seventeen year old student Francisco Martinez. after the student argued with the guard, slapped the guard's hand and spit on him. It should be noted at this point that Francisco has cerebral palsy. And he was in a wheelchair at the time of the beating. Firing him, from the start, seemed like the least harsh of penalties for such abuse. But now there is a petition being circulated by students at Oakland High who see Mister Martinez as a "troublemaker," and they want Mister Mitchel reinstated. Some students claim Martinez provoked the attack by spitting on the guard and that the student often runs over people’s toes with his wheelchair. It might also be worth pointing out at this point that Mitchell is only six years older than Martinez. All that wisdom that might come with a few more years of seasoning are lost in this case. Still, it takes a very interesting point of view to come up with dumping a kid with cerebral palsy out of his wheelchair as any sort of supportable action. Ah, youth. I'm just glad this isn't a video blog.