Over 400 people took to the streets of New York to protest the recent police killing of Walter Scott and the deaths of many others that have taken place at the hands of law enforcement this year, the New York Daily News reports.
Operated in accordance with the Stop Mass Incarceration Network, protests took place in 30 cities in 18 states Tuesday afternoon. In New York, protesters went from Union Square to the Brooklyn Bridge shortly after 4 p.m. and were met by police officers.
As many chanted “We are the people and we’re angry,” “Shut It Down,” and the common chant, “No Justice, No Peace,” over a dozen protesters were arrested. Reports claim many of the people were relatively young, including one who allegedly punched an officer in the face. Another officer was hit by a bottle as demonstrators passed Flatbush Ave.
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio called the outbursts unacceptable.
A witness says the arrests didn’t happen until the protesters crossed over into Brooklyn and headed into East New York.
“All we’re asking for is information,” Warren Bryant, 33, said after a man was cuffed outside the 75th station-house. “The guy got arrested for nothing. They were pushing him and then all grabbed him, a whole bunch of cops and pushed him on the car.”
The march, dubbed #ShutItDownA14, included protesters engaging in die-ins in Oakland, Atlanta, San Francisco, Chicago and other cities.
RT @irl The march against police murder makes its way down Broadway. @CornelWest in center #ShutDownA14 pic.twitter.com/lsdaGifQJn #ICantBreathe
— Jason Lamarche (@Lamarche) April 14, 2015
Not only have the NYPD arrested several protesters, they also stopped a car and told passengers to put hands where they could see them
— Alexey Yaroshevsky (@Yaro_RT) April 14, 2015
Protesters are shutting down Brooklyn Bridge #ShutDownA14 pic.twitter.com/ysFhQCwaVm
— Alexey Yaroshevsky (@Yaro_RT) April 14, 2015
#ShutDownA14 in #Oakland. Whistles and chants make for a deafening noise in City Hall. pic.twitter.com/DthTflWqD0
— David DeBolt (@daviddebolt) April 14, 2015
Dr. Cornel West also delivered a moving speech at the protest in Union Square.
An investigation is still underway regarding the case of former officer Michael Slager, who was charged with murder for killing Walter Scott in South Carolina earlier this month. On Monday, audio was released of Slager allegedly laughing about the adrenaline high he felt after the incident.
SOURCE: NY Daily News | VIDEO CREDIT: News Inc.
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#ShutItDownA14: Protestors Take Brooklyn Bridge, Over A Dozen Arrested was originally published on newsone.com