Even police have rights to free speech

“Even police have rights to free speech”, Carmel Pine Cone, unpublished, submitted July 16, 2021

It is disturbing to hear that a person of color, a Hispanic police officer in Pacific Grove, was harassed and finally fired for expressing his opinions off-duty. Michael Gonzalez has every right to express himself, especially towards Black Lives Matter, a violent organization that has advocated the “killing of police officers.” The worst part is that BLM surrogates and the woke mob falsely accused Gonzalez of being a “white supremacist.” This is crazy, considering that a high portion of BLM and Antifa members are lily white.

These racist accusations against Gonzalez are also ironic because these ever-changing political chameleons are likely Democratic Party loyalists. Historically, and until recently, Democrat politicians were the ones advocating segregation, voter suppression, racial violence, and blatant racism.

I hope Gonzalez wins his civil rights case. He deserves to enjoy the right to free speech, just like everyone else.

—L.K. Samuels, Carmel