Democratic NY state Senate candidate held anti-cop sign at BLM protest, claims he wasn't aware it read 'ACAB' — an acronym for 'All Cops Are Bastards'



A Democratic New York state Senate candidate held an anti-cop sign at a Black Lives Matter protest in 2020, and Christian Amato now claims he wasn't aware the sign read "ACAB" — an acronym for "All Cops Are Bastards," the New York Post reported.

What are the details?

Amato — a Bronx strategist and community organizer — held the sign during the BLM demonstration at the Loreto Playground in Morris Park, the paper said, citing a recently surfaced photo. The BLM protest was a counter-demonstration against a "Back the Blue" rally, the Post added.

St Senate candidate Christian Amato hold up a sign says ( A C A B) in street slang that translate into All Cops Are Bastards....\nThis was an BLM anarchist Anti police protest of Back the Blue rally held in Morris Park..pic.twitter.com/T8LU3vi8hA
— James B. Gisondi, Esq. (@James B. Gisondi, Esq.) 1649431460

Calling Amato a "weasel beyond belief,” Bronx resident Wayne Gurman — who took the photo of Amato at the protest — told the paper "it’s laughable that Amato is running for [state] Senate …"

Gurman — who runs the Facebook group BRONX STRONG — added to the Post that BLM protesters blasted infamous '80s rap song “F*** tha Police” during the hastily organized counter-demonstration.

A demonstrator standing next to Amato carried a sign that read “Blue Lives Don’t Matter," the paper said.

James Gisondi — a lawyer running in the Democratic primary for NY Senate District 36, the Post said — earlier this month tweeted the photo of Amato carrying the sign. On Sunday he tweeted a challenge to "all candidates for NY [state] senate 36th to join with me in demanding ... Christian Amato resign from community planning [board] #11 or be removed by the board or [borough] president."

What did Amato have to say?

Amato admitted to the paper that he held the “ACAB” sign but claimed he wasn't aware of what was on the sign when it was handed to him.

“Someone passed me the sign, and I didn’t know it said, ‘ACAB.’ I had no clue,” he noted to the Post. “I totally grabbed the sign in haste.”

Amato added to the paper that he joined the counter-protest because he believed it was "tone-deaf" to hold a pro-cop rally just days after George Floyd died in police custody in Minneapolis — a turn of events that ignited a summer of rioting, violence, and property destruction around the country.

“The officers deserve our respect. But we need our officers to be culturally cognitive,” Amato also told the Post. “When there is social unrest, it is not the best moment to hold an event. You have to read the room.”

Amato also told the paper that the "Back the Blue" demonstrators were unruly and angrily confronted and taunted the smaller number of Black Lives Matter protesters.

Here's a campaign video from Amato:

Christian Amato for State Senate youtu.be

The Post said the controversy over the “ACAB” sign follows the paper's recent report about a candidate for Democratic district leader in Brooklyn — rapper Noah Weston — who posted hateful messages on Twitter about police.

'All Cops Are Bast**ds' acronym at North Carolina RV park results in big-time backlash, alleged death threats



Those of you familiar with leftist militant-speak and shenanigans know the acronym "ACAB" stands for the phrase, "All Cops Are Bastards."

And of course we've all been used to seeing those letters plastered on protesters' signs and spray-painted on federal buildings, particularly since nationwide rioting began nearly a year ago with the police-involved death of George Floyd.

But this time the "ACAB" acronym ended up on a roadside sign for a motel and RV park, which may not seem terribly unusual — except for the fact that the sign isn't a beacon in a woke metropolis like Portland or Seattle.

No, this time the "All Cops Are Bastards" sentiment was on full display on a sign in Maggie Valley, North Carolina — a town boasting fewer than 1,800 residents and nestled in the Great Smoky Mountains.

As you can imagine, there was just a little bit of backlash.

Here's what Our Place Inn posted Saturday on Facebook:

"EXCELLENT!!! ACAB got everyone's attention just like we knew it would," the message read, accompanied by an image of the sign with a scenic backdrop. "Posts are spreading like wild fire and a discussion has started. So now let's talk about police reform."

The post then delved into the beliefs of Our Place Inn regarding police reform and what the RV park wants to see happen, including better training, education, and resources for officers, along with better transparency, more mental health professionals, social workers, and other specialists to help cops, and a "national database of misconduct."

Our Place Inn then asks readers to "share with us your thoughts on police reform!"

Oh boy, did they ever. The post attracted more than 7,000 comments — three times the number of residents of the town. Here are few of them:

  • "I hope the next thing we see on that sign is 'UNDER NEW MANAGEMENT' or 'SORRY BUT WE ARE CLOSED BECAUSE OF SOME DUMBASS WE HIRED....FOR SALE,'" one commenter wrote.
  • "I hope this goes viral... not in a way that furthers your message, but in a way that closes your doors," another commenter said.
  • "Disgusting and ignorant," another commenter opined. "Your sign below says, 'be kind to all' yet the acronym on the sign above is calling "all" cops bastards. The duplicity shows ignorance and simple-mindedness. NOT the virtue of kindness you are pretending to stand for. MY cop is NOT a bastard. #backtheblue"
  • "Thanks for narrowing down where I will stay when going to Maggie Valley," another commenter declared. "BTW call Al Sharpton the next time you are in an emergency."

More repercussions

Amid the furor, the RV park posted a follow-up message Sunday saying a group called "Feeding the Multitudes" cut ties with Our Place Inn after the donors for Feeding the Multitudes — "prioritizing their hurt feelings over feeding their neighbors in need" — pulled their donations.

"In the past, we have worked together with [Feeding the Multitudes] on multiple projects, volunteered to help pass out food for/with them, helped clear their warehouse when it was infested with mice by taking multiple trips of supplies to the dump, and we even provided them with their new magnet logos that are currently on their trucks," according to Our Place Inn, which added phones are not being answered "due to death threats over ACAB."

Feeding the Multitudes on Sunday offered its own version of things on Facebook:

Our purpose is to be a light to anyone without questions, judgment, or prejudice. No one should have to choose between food or their beliefs. We only partner and work with Haywood Outdoor Pantries. We are NOT a partner of Our Place Inn, and their views are not ours. We are proud supporters of our Law Enforcement Officers and Firemen and First Responders. We just happen to have been at an event that they were at as well as two other vendors. We will continue our journey but have from this point on severed ties with the Inn but not with Haywood Outdoor Pantries because like us they have been caught in the crossfire. We look forward to continuing our journey. At the end of the day it's all about getting food into the hands of those that need it.

(H/T: Todd Starnes)