I've been to a lot of protests but I think the worst one I've ever seen was summer 2020 chicago. They declared an immediate curfew and simultaneously raised the bridges to downtown and shut down transit.

The police were so incredibly violent after that, they had total control and very little restraint. And there was local news or police media team ready to catch every act of desperation from the protestors. But very little of the state violence made it to the news. They were singling out people filming, smashing phones, arresting anyone nearby. I remember stumbling into a corner and falling to the street and seeing it already covered in blood and mucus and teeth, and thinking "that's more teeth than one person has in their head wtf happened here."

And then having to come on the internet every day since and hear about the "rioters" and looters and lawlessness and shit.