I.S. Saluja
NEW YORK (TIP): New York has been among the large number of cities across the United States of America to witness loud protests following the Grand Jury verdict to not indict police officer Darren Wilson who had shot and killed the 18 year old Michael Brown in Ferguson, a suburb of St. Louis County, Missouri on August 9, 2014. Since November 24 when the Grand Jury verdict was announced by Prosecutor McCulloch in a 20-minute press conference in Ferguson at least 400 protesters have been arrested across the US, as they rallied against the grand jury decision on the shooting of Mike Brown in Ferguson, and police violence in general.
Thousands of protesters marched through the streets of New York City for the second night on Tuesday 25th November, 2014, chanting loudly and blocking traffic on some of Manhattan’s busiest streets to express outrage over the decision not to indict a white police officer in Ferguson, Mo., in the death of an unarmed black man. The protesters marched on Franklin D. Roosevelt Drive, through Times Square and across the Manhattan Bridge, disrupting traffic along those routes and at the Lincoln Tunnel, and Union Square. The protesters, a diverse and relatively young crowd, held signs saying, “Hands up, don’t shoot,” and “Black Lives Matter.” Around 9 p.m. they began to enter the roadway on the Manhattan Bridge, chanting, “Whose bridge? Our bridge,” and then crossed into Brooklyn.
Some 200 activists were detained in Los Angeles. At 7:30 pm local time on Wednesday, November 26. Police told the demonstrators to leave within four minutes. Those who stayed were taken to police stations, with a possible bail of $500. If the bail isn’t paid, the detainees are to stay in prison until at least December 1. “We won’t stand aside. The LAPD’s temper is known to the whole world. There’s no need to think of the film plots! We should protect ourselves, our patience has run out, we’ll be seeking the re-examination of the Wilson case,” a protester called Angelo told a news agency.
In Oakland, California, hundreds of protesters marched through the city, spraying walls, billboards and bus stops with graffiti and smashing storefront windows. It all led to clashes with police in a public plaza adjacent to City Hall. San Diego saw a peaceful march, with around 300 people chanting “Ferguson, we’ve got your back!” In Dallas, Texas, three members of a group called ‘Come and Take It’ marched alongside demonstrators, saying they were prepared to step in and protect private property if things turned ugly.
Things have also been largely peaceful in Ferguson, Missouri. Amid the snowy weather, several dozen protesters remained near the police station. On Monday, protests turned violent, with looting, gunfire, and clashes leading to over 60 arrests. Forty-five more people were detained on Tuesday. Over 2,000 National Guard forces were sent to step up security in Ferguson over the past few days. The protests kicked off after Darren Wilson, a white police officer who shot dead unarmed African-American teenager Michael Brown back in August, was not indicted by a grand jury on Monday.
The governor of Missouri has reportedly rejected calls for a new grand jury to reexamine the case. In a statement on Wednesday, November 26 Wilson said that he had a “clean conscience” over the killing. Brown’s family said that they were “crushed” by the grand jury’s decision, and that their son was “crucified” by the prosecutors, but called on the rallies to remain peaceful.