US Man Protesting Putin-Style Georgia Law Left Injured by Police [Video]

An American citizen arrested in Georgia amid fierce protests in the South Caucasus nation has told Newsweek that he and others are marching to prevent the country’s Russia-aligned government from “opening the door to authoritarianism.”

Patrick Hernandez-Ball, a 29-year-old from Los Angeles, who has been living in Georgia for several years and considers the country a “second home,” recounted his violent arrest by state security forces earlier this week.

“As an American, I believe in freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of the press,” Hernandez-Ball said, shortly after being released from a two-day detention in the capital Tbilisi. “I thought I have to play my part in history, you could say, and peacefully protest while we have a chance.”

Mass demonstrationshave been roiling in Georgia for several weeks, with protesters marching against legislation that would require all organizations receiving more than 20 percent of their funding from abroad to register as …