
Police were forced to descend on Keene, New Hampshire Saturday night after students and outside agitators turned the city's 24th annual Pumpkin Festival into "a destination for destructive and raucous behavior."
Those words -- spoken by Keene State College President Anne Huot to CNN -- only begin to describe the scene, which led to dozens of arrests and hospitalizations.
One rioter, Steven French, told the Keene Sentinel that he traveled from Haverhill, Massachusetts to attend the festival because he knew it would be "f*cking wicked."
"It’s just like a rush. You’re revolting from the cops," he continued. "It’s a blast to do things that you’re not supposed to do."
The police viewed the behavior of French and his cohorts less favorably, barricading streets and firing tear gas into crowds in an effort to disperse them.
Meanwhile, on Twitter, users marveled at how different the police response to these unruly young adults was to another recent event:
They then mocked the conservative response both to the Michael Brown shooting and the protests that occurred in its wake:
"Why are they tearing up their own community?" #keenepumpkinfest— Shay Stewart Bouley (@Shay Stewart Bouley) 1413691994.0
These are no angels. RT @raywert: Look at these thug gang-bangers in Keene, NH. #pumpkinfest http://t.co/4kCJau0mlY— Isaiah (@Isaiah) 1413691412.0
Where are the leaders in the white community? They need to speak out #pumpkinfest— 💜on the run💛🖤 (@💜on the run💛🖤) 1413692363.0
The pumpkin-consuming community needs to be loud and clear with their condemnation of this behavior. Trust me, I'm an expert.— Imraan Siddiqi (@Imraan Siddiqi) 1413693699.0
How many of the defiant white youth causing mayhem & destruction come from fatherless families? #PumpkinRiot— Kevin Gosztola (@Kevin Gosztola) 1413694320.0
#AreThoseGangSigns? “@johnvmoore: The the Great #PumpkinRiot of 2014 is a real thing. #fb http://t.co/5ZuIT0Wk3u”— Chinua AcheBae (@Chinua AcheBae) 1413694520.0
Of course, some good could come from this:
I think if nothing else, this will start a much needed dialogue on pumpkin relations in America. #pumpkinfest— Jessica Jordan-Nicolaides (@Jessica Jordan-Nicolaides) 1413695793.0
BREAKING: Don Lemon to host CNN town forum, "Pumpkin In America." #notintendedasafactualstory #keenepumpkinfest— Arturo R. Garcia (@Arturo R. Garcia) 1413698211.0
The hope is that, one day, the following could be true of everyone:
"I don't see gourd, ok?" #keenepumpkinfest— Arturo R. Garcia (@Arturo R. Garcia) 1413696510.0
Watch video of the mayhem via the Keene Sentinel below.