There’s a New Teacher in Town

Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has ruffled some big feathers on the right, but an angry AOC-hater—who also happen to be cop—went too far recently for posting a death threat against her on Facebook.

Charles Rispoli, a police officer in the town of Gretna, Louisiana, said AOC was a “vile idiot” who needed a “round” in response to a satirical fake news article claiming AOC thought US troops were overpaid.

Horrible to see what sort of damage satire seems to inflict.

Gretna’s police chief Arthur Lawson said Rispoli and another officer who “liked” the post, Angelo Varisco, had both been fired for unprofessional conduct and breaking the department’s social media rules. Apparently you can’t just shoot likes at anything you please.

Perhaps this is just another unfortunate case of boys being boys and letting their emotions get the better of them, yes?

But this is no exception. It turns out the Gretna Police Department is a real gem and has a history of credible accusations of racism—and not just the kind where you say mean things, either.

It’s almost like if you scratch one millimeter under the surface of any of these recent controversies you turn up something that makes you want to post a gif of someone hitting their head on a desk repeatedly.

Gretna, a town of around 17,000 close to New Orleans, drew heavy criticism in August, 2005 after its police tried to block desperate refugees escaping Hurricane Katrina over the Crescent City Connection Bridge. Gretna police officers—mainly white—forced the escapees to turn around at gunpoint and witnesses said some officers were threatening to kill people running away from New Orleans—many of them black—even firing shots overhead.

See, walls are completely unnecessary if you want to implement a Republican border policy.

Witnesses said they had been ordered by New Orleans police to cross the bridge to get to buses on the other side. Some had been camped out on the side of the bridge for some time and also had their food and water taken.

According to Larry Bradshaw, one of those running away, police kept repeating that “we don’t want another Superdome” and “this isn’t New Orleans.”

This could be ‘racist white cop-speak’ for: we don’t want any more n-words around here.

According to an eyewitness who was in the group of New Orleans folks, a Gretna police vehicle “sped down in his cruiser and over the loudspeaker he just continuously said, ‘Get the fuck off the bridge, and would point his gun at some people.’ This was followed by a helicopter which created high winds and forced them off the bridge – which shows that what you lack in diplomacy, you can make up for with creativity.

Not only are refugees from around the world apparently not welcome in Gretna, refugees from across the river in New Orleans also are not wanted.

The events of closing off the bridge in 2005 were confirmed by … none other than Mr. Horrified by Racist, Politically Violent Facebook Posts, Arthur Lawson himself.

What does anybody want to bet that there might be a slightly toxic, unhealthy atmosphere brewed up at the Gretna Police Department or were these anti-AOC gentlemen just two bad apples?

Were her politics and Green New Deal just a bit too far left for Varisco and Rispoli and her skin just a bit too brown? Did she bring the threat on herself by appearing in a satirical article or wearing too short a political skirt?