Buffalo PD scandal: Did 75-year-old Martin Gugino come to protest for ‘fun’, what happened before he was pushed?
In the wake of George Floyd's death, there have been massive protests and unrest all across the nation. Amid all the ruckus, a protester suffered a severe injury on the head as Buffalo Police were in charge of clearing the crowd in Niagara Square after the curfew. The incident could be seen in a viral graphic video that surfaced on Twitter after WBFO tweeted, "Just about an hour ago, police officers shove man in Niagara Square to the ground."
The incident led to major national shame, following which two officers were suspended immediately. Fifty-seven members of the Buffalo Police Department resigned from a special squad on Friday, June 5, to protest the suspension of those two officers.
Meanwhile, the protester was identified as a 75-year-old named Martin Gugino. He later released a statement, according to which he was described as a "longtime peaceful protester and human rights advocate." As per The Washington Post report released by attorney Kelly V Zarcone, Gugino is a member of two nonprofits: PUSH Buffalo, which focuses on affordable housing, and the Western New York Peace Center, a human rights organization. He is also part of the Catholic Worker Movement.
A close friend of Gugino told WKBW that the 75-year old is "an older white man in America and knows the privileges that come along with that." However, a number of conspiracy theories are floating around on the Internet. US President Donald Trump tweeted, "Buffalo protester shoved by Police could be an ANTIFA provocateur. 75-year old Martin Gugino was pushed away after appearing to scan police communications in order to blackout the equipment. @OANN I watched, he fell harder than was pushed. Was aiming scanner. Could be a set up?"
Now, a new video has emerged showing what really happened right before the man was shoved by Buffalo PD officers. Michael Rapaport posted a one-minute seven-second clip on Instagram and wrote: "The 75-year-old guy in BUFFALO before he got pushed. Not sure exactly what to make of this, but this was before the incident went down in Buffalo." In the video, a group of people can be seen talking to Gugino.
The video then zooms into a man, who explains that a discussion was going where Gugino allegedly said he came down to the protest "for fun" and asks, "What the f**k is fun about this whole s**t?" The man capturing the video confessed, "Yes, I was crying over there, it is a moment of silence," to which the other one said, pointing to the 75-year-old man, "And now he is looking to get punched in the face."
The clip has piqued interest among viewers and has left them divided. "I don’t know how to feel about it either.. I mean, if he was negating and antagonizing them, I think he lowkey deserved it, from that aspect. However, from the aspect of how the police handled it, they were still in the wrong. Just my opinion," one comment read and another said, "And they say old people are wise. The youngsters knew what his game was and let him know. Old dude was looking for that smoke."
Many came to his defense. "This video doesn’t aid the officers’ rationale for assaulting him," one said and another posted, "Regardless of this video, the guy did not deserve to be pushed and head cracked on concrete. That is assault and is unacceptable." Another comment read, "This is gonna complicate the dialogue. But regardless. The fact remains the same. The police are brutal and oppressive in their tactics. We wouldn’t need them if everybody had what they needed to live. Education, food, etc. This old guy’s personality and past have nothing to do with the issue at hand and George Floyd."
As a wise man once said: "There are three sides to every story, your side, the other person's side, and what actually happened." The video still doesn't justify or highlight why the Buffalo PD officers shoved him and the reason behind that insensitive act remains a mystery.