‘Do Not Resist’ documentary delves into police militarization


Article by Troy Reminik

When metro Detroit natives Craig Atkinson and Laura Hartrick began working on a film about police militarization in 2013, they thought they had the subject to themselves.

Then, 11 months after their research and filming began, clashes between police and protesters in Ferguson, Mo., following the fatal shooting of Michael Brown captured the nation’s attention and confirmed the urgency of the project that would become the award-winning documentary “Do Not Resist.”

“Prior to the events of Ferguson when I was pitching the idea, people were accusing me of being a conspiracy theorist or fringe thinker,” Atkinson told the Free Press. “We watched this topic that we thought we were going to be breaking news on all of a sudden become the national conversation.”

Two years later, “Do Not Resist,” a sobering look at military-style policing in the U.S., won best documentary feature after its premiere at the prestigious Tribeca Film Festival in New York and has received Academy Award buzz. It plays Friday through Sunday at the Detroit Film Theatre at the Detroit Institute of Arts, and is being presented as part of Freep Film Festival’s monthly screening series. Atkinson will be present for post-film discussions following the Friday and Saturday showings.

The film is the feature debut from Atkinson, who was a producer and cinematographer for the acclaimed 2012 documentary “Detropia.” During that project, he met Hartrick, who was a production assistant. The couple formed a company, Vanish Films, in 2013. After moving from Detroit to New York City, they collaborated on some small projects and began exploring options for a feature-length collaboration.

The idea for “Do Not Resist” dates to the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombing in April 2013. Atkinson, whose father was a police officer in Oak Park for nearly 30 years, said he was alarmed by tactics shown in the bombing’s aftermath that he thought more resembled the work of an occupying force than the community-focused policing he grew up with.

Without straying from its focus on militarized policing, “Do Not Resist” alludes to many of the issues Ferguson brought to the forefront, such as race, segregation, asset forfeiture, drug enforcement and mass surveillance. “Do Not Resist” is similar to “Detropia” in that its images — rather than narration or talking-head commentary — do most of the work.

While the film does not highlight Atkinson’s family connection to law enforcement, it examines the issue from a variety of angles, beginning with scenes from the front lines of clashes between police and protesters in Ferguson, then visiting contentious city council meetings and U.S. Senate hearings on the subject and training seminars in which young officers are schooled in battlefield tactics.

Hartrick, who did field research for “Do Not Resist” and edited the film with Atkinson, said their heavily visual storytelling approach makes the material more impactful than a traditional documentary format would have. “That style is really crucial to understand and digest the story,” she said. “It’s more effective seeing something unfold and letting the audience experience it and decide for themselves, rather than telling them how to think.”

The film does connect police militarization to post-9/11 Departments of Defense and Homeland Security programs that have enabled municipal departments to acquire billions of dollars worth of decommissioned military equipment. One scene takes viewers to the Red River Army Depot in Texas, where used vehicles return from the Middle East and await use by U.S. cities after being “purged of human anatomy” from overseas warfare. “Like any other investment,” Atkinson said, “you get returns.”

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President Barack Obama’s 21st Century Policing task force in “Do Not Resist.” (Photo: Vanish Films)

Atkinson and Hartrick filmed in 19 states and visited 18 police departments. They accompanied police on 20 ride-alongs and a half-dozen SWAT team raids. One shows a SWAT raid on a suspected drug house in South Carolina, where officers smash a window and enter with guns drawn but only find a tiny amount of marijuana.

“The type of raids that are portrayed in the film happen on such a frequent basis that they’re a routine part of police work,” Atkinson said. “We were just showing another day on the job, and although it may be shocking to audiences, I think it just speaks to how normal this kind of policing has become, where a SWAT, once reserved for the most severe and most violent situations, has become a routine part of police work.”

Atkinson said his father, Steven, found the film “disheartening.” Craig Atkinson said his father spent 13 years on his department’s SWAT team, from its formation in 1989 to his retirement as a lieutenant and SWAT commander in 2002. In that time his team executed 29 search warrants, where, by comparison, the comparably sized South Carolina department shown in the film does about 200 SWAT raids per year, according to an officer in the film.

“It was, I think, pretty difficult for my father to watch. He was shocked to see the frequency with which SWAT was being used,” Atkinson said. “He dedicated his life to the profession and approached the profession with a great deal of integrity. And in his era of policing they were always trying to build ties within the community. It helped with investigative work and was safer for the officers.”

The filmmakers said the response to the film from law enforcement mostly has been positive. Active and retired police officers have attended screenings across and shared similar concerns during Q&A sessions.

“As we’re going around and showing it and seeing the level of engagement and the level of compassion even from people who have directly experienced this type of thing, that’s incredibly encouraging,” Hartrick said. “The film sparks so much dialogue, and people just really want to talk.”

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A protester holds a sign at Concord, New Hampshire city council meeting in “Do Not Resist.” (Photo: Vanish Films)

The film screens throughout the U.S. through the beginning of December. Amazon has acquired “Do Not Resist” for streaming on its Prime service beginning in January. It goes on pre-sale through services such as iTunes, Google Play and Amazon download Nov. 14 and will be available for download Dec. 14. It also will be broadcast next September on PBS’s “POV” documentary series.

‘Do Not Resist’

7 p.m. Fri., 7 p.m. Sat., 2 p.m. Sun.

Detroit Film Theatre at the Detroit Institute of Arts

$9.50

The film is being presented as part of Freep Film Festival‘s monthly screening series. There will be Q&A discussions after the Fri. and Sat. showings.

Friday: Panel includes “Do Not Resist” director Craig Atkinson, commander Elvin Barren of the Detroit Police Department and Carl Taylor, a sociology professor at Michigan State University who focuses on isolated and distressed communities and reducing violence among American youth. The moderator will be Christina Hall, a Free Press staffer who has reported extensively on the distribution of military equipment to police forces.

Saturday: Atkinson will be interviewed by Matthew Dolan, a Free Press business reporter who covered the unrest in Ferguson, Mo., for the Wall Street Journal for several weeks in the summer and fall of 2014 after the death of Michael Brown.

Read more at: freep.com

 



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