By REINER LUECK

Some Sundays before and also during spring vacation some local kids gathered for a little sun and spring at the Northwest Woods on Campground Road in Des Plaines. The relatively good weather brought kids from not only Des Plaines, but also from Morton Grove, Elk Grove, and Chicago to the forest preserve. The over­ all atmosphere was good, no fights and no injuries, just a bunch of kids enjoying the long awaited sun.

During the day through the Easter vacation there could be found at least 20 to 30 people playing softball, flying kites, and just taking advantage of what the woods had to offer. At night there could be found at least one campfire and many more people in attendance. Some people chipped in to buy beer and wine; those persons with dope brought little compared to what could otherwise be readily attainable at other gatherings of that size. Under age drinking and dope are illegal but are so prevalent now that it makes it unavoidable.

This went on for about a week without any incidents. (The only people who could have possibly been annoyed were the parkers on Campground Road at night.) This brings us to Easter Sunday. The day went by as the days previous, more softball and good times. Sunday, the eleventh was going to be something special. Someone brought a generator and several local musicians did their best to entertain the many present. This was to be short‑lived. The forest rangers came to observe as they had done every day while people were there, and the people that seemed to them to be in charge were told about a technicality concerning a permit for the amount of people there. The rangers also told them to vacate the park by 7 p.m. or everyone would get arrested.

The music was stopped later on and most people left. By about 7 p.m. many remained, some out of curiosity and some for lack of anything better to do.

At about 7:30 p.m., approximately 15 squad cars pulled up at the parking lot at Northwestern Woods. Some policemen even came out of the forest, thus having most of the kids surrounded. A majority of the police were from the Cook County Sheriff's police.

Most of the kids there were harassed in one way or another by the police. The police addressed the kids with rather rude language and tried to intimidate them with night sticks. One policeman confronted one long‑haired boy and dared him to call him a name so he would have justification in hitting the youth. One 18‑year‑old in particular was beaten by five policemen at once. After they had kicked him in the groin several times, a friend shouted something like "You can't do that" whereupon he too was beaten with a night stick.

These beatings were not called for to say the least. Two policemen telling the kids to leave would have sufficed without any blood. How can these "law officers" or "peace keepers" keep beating a handcuffed youth for doing nothing more than asking what he was being arrested for?

Some adults wonder why police are called pigs. If they had been at Northwestern Woods on Easter Sunday, they would know exactly why.