Internet users outraged by photo of police officer's actions during protest: '[He] chose the evil side'

The rough treatment of a pro-climate scientist in Denmark by law enforcement during a recent protest is sparking outrage online.

In October, Scientist Rebellion Denmark, a group of scientists and academics dedicated to climate action, staged a protest in Copenhagen.

The government was discussing an impending agreement on a carbon tax. However, Scientist Rebellion Denmark felt the agreement encouraged farmers to continue commercial ties with major agro-industrial corporations rather than independent agro-ecological production. 

During the protest, a photo was captured showing a police officer using force and appearing to drag a protester by their arm. 

"Today, the police applied pain grips to several of us scientists, and charged us all with 'disturbing the peace', even though there were almost no cars in the road, and those few that were there all were fine with turning around," Scientist Rebellion Denmark wrote in a post on X.

Making its way onto Reddit, the photo sparked outrage and shock among internet users.

"The police man chose the evil side," one user wrote. 

"This is what the cops are for, protecting capitalism," wrote another Redditor. "Always has been, always will be."

Denmark did pass its new climate policy in November, which taxes emissions from agriculture sources, pays farmers to reduce their nitrogen pollution, and aims to restore nature, according to the World Resources Institute. Agricultural pollution contributes to a quarter of Denmark's emissions, and the policy aims to reduce that by 70% by 2030. The tax on emissions from agriculture is the first of its kind in the world.

However, Scientist Rebellion Denmark didn't feel that the policy went far enough, spurring the decision to protest before its passage. In a post on X, they wrote that the carbon tax "is so small it honestly feels like a joke. And anyways, it will be 11 years before it is even fully implemented. That's time we don't have."

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