The once-peaceful streets of Athens have turned in to a literal battleground in the past two weeks. The skirmish started when fifteen-year-old Alexandros Grigoropoulos was killed by a Greek policeman's bullet during a skirmish.
The incident was too much for the already unstable city to handle. Hoards of people, mostly students, started large public demonstrations in protest of Alexandros' death. The anger and outrage of the teenager's death was amplified by the city's unrest over the current economic crisis to create a perfect storm of trouble until the city was soon overwhelmed by violence.
The riots have since spread to many other major European cities such as Berlin, Rome, London, and Paris. The anger has only gotten worse since the publication of the police forces' investigation which blamed Alexandros for his own death.
It is clear that the situation is a very difficult one. Obviously Alexandros' death is a great tragedy, and the situation needs to be investigated further to determine if his killers should be brought to justice. The students were not wrong to protest this young boy's death, but it seems that the situation grew quickly out of their control. What started as a peaceful protest soon became an angry, uncontrollable mob- to the point where it is impossible to determine right from wrong in the situation. For no matter how just a protest is in its beginnings, once it becomes a mob everyone is at fault.
Both the civilians and the guards have committed atrocities, yet everyone is a victim as well. From the heartbroken students who are mourning the loss of their friend, to the uninvolved civilians who have had their shops and cars vandalized by protesters, to the policeman who is being forced to fight the very people he swore to protect, nobody benefits from a mob.
While there is certainly bitterness and anger in Greece right now, revolution is a hundred times more powerful when achieved by peaceable means. After all, "The first man to use abusive language instead of his fists was the founder of civilization" -Sigmund Freud.
Think of how the world was moved when the monks of Myanmar peaceably protested against their war-centered government. How will the world remember the actions of the Greeks- as the upholders of justice, or as a pack of misguided, violent teenagers?
At this point, its out of anyone's control. It seems to be simply a matter of time before the mobs burn themselves out.
For more beautiful pictures of the Greek Riots, click here.
