RiseUpOctober couldn't have asked for more publicity. On Oct. 24, director Quentin Tarantino flew from Los Angeles to New York to participate in a march by the group to protest police brutality, especially toward young black men. "I'm a human being with a conscience," he said during the march. "And if you believe there's murder going on then you need to rise up and stand up against it. I'm here to say I'm on the side of the murdered." The New York Police Department took umbrage, with its main union urging a boycott of Tarantino films. The Los Angeles Police Department's union joined the boycott on Tuesday, and the Philadelphia police signed on Wednesday.
Tarantino is a "cop-hater" who makes a living "glorifying crime and violence," said New York City Patrolman's Benevolent Association president Patrick J. Lynch. On Monday, New York City Police Commissioner William Bratton criticized the director for verbally attacking the police at a "time when we are grieving the murder of a New York City police officer," Randolph Holder. "There are no words to describe the contempt I have for him and his comments at this particular time," Bratton added.
RiseUpOctober said the police boycott and "cop-hater" rhetoric are an attempt to intimidate the group, Tarantino, and anyone else protesting police violence. The clear message, RiseUpOctober organizer Carl Dix said in a statement, is: "If you speak out, we will come after you, threaten your livelihood, and attempt to scare you back into silence." Social media tended to side with Tarantino:
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Don't be surprised if Tarantino's next project involves some sort of police brutality of the silver-screen variety.
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