Subject: Protests spread nationwide following Ferguson grand jury announcement Mon Nov 24, 2014 10:41 pm
Hundreds of protesters marched through Union Square Monday night holding signs saying "Jail Killing Cops" and "Resistance Is Justified," after a grand jury decided not to indict Ferguson, Mo., police officer Darren Wilson in the shooting of unarmed teenager Michael Brown.
With events scheduled in dozens of cities from coast to coast, Americans were girding for what could become a days-long series of protests in the wake of the announcement, with many marches to immediately follow the announcement.
In New York, protesters were penned in an area at the northern end of the square, behind a ring of police officers. They pushed the metal police barriers aside and rushed towards the southern end of the square where holiday kiosks selling crafts were set up. The protesters yelled, "No justice, no peace, no racist police."
Elsewhere, protesters from New Haven, Conn., to Bellevue, Wash., we expected to gather, some earlier, many immediately after the announcement was made.
In Sanford, Fla., protesters were expected to march at the local county courthouse. Sanford is the site of the Feb. 12, 2012, shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin, another unarmed African-American teen, by neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman. A prosecutor charged Zimmerman in the case, but a jury in 2013 acquitted him of murder and manslaughter charges in the shooting.
In Topeka, Kansas, protest organizers posted instructions on the Tumblr page of an informal group known as the Ferguson National Response Network, telling attendees to "Dress warmly — Bring signs."
In many cities, such as Philadelphia, New Orleans, Nashville, Toronto, Richmond, Va., Allentown, Pa., Knoxville, Tenn., and Tampa, protesters were urged to gather the day after the announcement.
Immediately following the announcement, the American Civil Liberties Union of Missouri on Monday night said the decision "does not negate the fact that Michael Brown's tragic death is part of an alarming national trend of officers using excessive force against people of color, often during routine encounters. Yet in most cases, the officers and police departments are not held accountable."
The ACLU said that while many police officers "carry out their jobs with respect for the communities they serve, we must confront the profound disconnect and disrespect that many communities of color experience with their local law enforcement."
Ron Hosko, president of the Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund, described Wilson "a victim of a polticized agenda that deemed him guilty until proven innocent."
"Although he will walk free, his life has been forever changed, as he has been exploited in a cynical effort to turn civilians against cops in fulfillment of an anti-law enforcement agenda,'' said Hosko, a former FBI assistant director.
In Ferguson, dozens of people gathered hours before the announcement in the parking lot across the street from the Ferguson Police Department. Many stood right at the edge of the lot, almost in the street, chanting, "No justice, no peace, no racist police."
One woman leading the group screamed through a bullhorn "Indict that cop. Police don't like it. We want an indictment."
Several young men in hooded sweatshirts reading "Peace Keepers" kept people from streaming into the street. A couple of people approached the police department building, but a woman asked them to protest the right way and pulled them into a prayer circle.
Subject: Re: Protests spread nationwide following Ferguson grand jury announcement Tue Nov 25, 2014 1:30 am
From Plains to Both Coasts, Fury Boils Over
Months of anger and frustration, in the end, led only to more anger and frustration. There were smoke bombs, tear gas and random gunshots. But in Ferguson, the aftermath of the shooting death of Michael Brown was almost as bitter and hollow as his killing itself. Brien Redmon, 31, stood in the cold watching a burning police car and sporadic looting after the announcement that there would be no indictments for Mr. Brown’s death at 18. “This is not about vandalizing,” he said. “This is about fighting a police organization that doesn’t care about the lives they serve.” Thomas Perry, 30, saw roughly the same thing. “I support my people who are out there doing it,” he said. “For years they’ve been taking from us. We don’t care.” The situation seemed to worsen as the night wore on, with fires and looting mostly limited to certain areas, but seemingly on the edge of spinning out of control. Thousands of people took to the streets in cities across the country — from Los Angeles to Atlanta to New York — to protest the grand jury’s decision, and in most places the demonstrations were peaceful.
In New York City, a rowdy group of hundreds of protesters made its way up Seventh Avenue through Times Square, halting traffic as police officers raced on foot to keep up. “No justice, no peace,” the group yelled as cars honked and tourists snapped photos from the sidewalks. “Everybody is frustrated,” said Hugh Jackson, 28, who just moved to New York from Atlanta and wore an American-flag-print bandanna over his mouth as he passed Carnegie Hall. Referring to a young black man killed a few days ago in Brooklyn, Mr. Jackson added that “you’re kind of numb to it at a certain point. It’s so systematic.” In Philadelphia, a large but orderly crowd gathered downtown, singing, playing drums and chanting, “Justice for Mike Brown.” In South Los Angeles, a crowd of protesters chanted, “From Ferguson to L.A., these killer cops have got to pay,” while about half a dozen police officers stood nearby. By 7:30 p.m., the crowd that gathered in a South Los Angeles park had dwindled to about 70 people. Chanting had given way to somber speeches. “We’re not here to socialize. We’re here to demand justice,” said Melina Abdullah, a professor and chairwoman of the Pan-African studies department at California State University, Los Angeles. But in Ferguson, the anger and violence that erupted in fits and starts after the announcement were part of a scene of seething anger, frustration and grief that ebbed and flowed all day before the announcement and after it. About 200 people stood in the cold in front of the Ferguson Police Department, listening on radios as the St. Louis County prosecuting attorney, Robert P. McCulloch, read his statement on Monday, reality dawning that they were not going to hear what they wanted. During Mr. McCulloch’s announcement, Mr. Brown’s mother, Lesley McSpadden, and stepfather, Louis Head, stepped up onto a platform where protest leaders were standing. “Defend himself from what!” Ms. McSpadden yelled, when Mr. McCulloch spoke of Officer Darren Wilson, the officer who shot Mr. Brown, defending himself. She bowed her head and tears started streaming down her cheeks. “Everybody wants me to be calm,” she said, her eyes covered with sunglasses. “You know what them bullets did to my son!” “They still don’t care!” she yelled. “They never going to care!” Ms. McSpadden then sank her head into her husband’s chest and bounced as she wept vigorously. Mr. Head then turned and began to yell. “Burn this down!” he repeatedly shouted, inserting an expletive. The crowd then began to roar. Some rushed toward the fence near where the police were lined up. Representatives for the family helped them down off the platform and ushered them away, through the crowd. Officers in riot helmets and shields came out. Soon came the smoke bombs, the random sounds of bullets, the chaos that was almost as predictable as the verdict everyone expected. The scene in downtown Ferguson near the police station grew increasingly unruly after a group of protesters tried to overturn a St. Louis County Police car that was parked just off the road. As the police arrived, protesters threw rocks and broke the windows of at least two police cars. The police responded with tear gas, its strong odor permeating the frigid night air. Nearby, the sound of glass breaking could be heard. El Palenque, a Mexican restaurant near the Ferguson Police Department, had what appeared to be two broken windows. Gunshots could also be heard outside the station. Protesters ran down South Florissant Road, out of sight of the police, and broke windows at several businesses, including a Beauty World store that they looted. Bursts of apparent gunfire were heard repeatedly. The looting was a remarkable change in tone after what had been a mostly somber response to the news that Officer Wilson would not be charged. Officers initially stayed behind a skirmish line outside the Ferguson police station, and many demonstrators stewed peacefully in the street for roughly an hour. But slowly, tension built and people began running north away from the police. Officers did not initially pursue them, and the first widespread looting occurred at that point. The police eventually followed, warning over a loudspeaker that anyone who did not disperse would be arrested. Cars sped off in all directions as people — peaceful protesters and looters alike — darted through the street.
Subject: Re: Protests spread nationwide following Ferguson grand jury announcement Tue Nov 25, 2014 2:05 am
'Must Not Stand': Nation Reacts to Missouri Grand Jury Decision
Protests erupted nationwide late Monday after a grand jury decided not to indict a white Missouri police officer in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black teenager, with several hundred people storming onto a New York City bridge, 500 demonstrators blocking traffic on a major highway in California, and others laying down outside the White House and on a street in Beverly Hills. Some demonstrations turned violent, with people looting a store in Chicago and vandalizing a police car in Oakland.
Subject: Protests spread nationwide following Ferguson grand jury announcement 
Mon Nov 24, 2014 10:41 pm
