Sacramento Protesters Stage Peaceful Demonstration In Killing Of Unarmed Black Men
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) - Across the country and in Sacramento, organized peace protests are calling attention to the deaths of unarmed black men at the hands of police.
"Don't go being disrespectful to the police, but just show up -- participate. This is America," said a protester.
More than 100 protesters filled midtown Sacramento's streets. The marchers were made up of different ages and ethnicities.
"Because all our lives matter," said a protester.
They joined folks across the nation in conjunction with the "Millions March,' protesting police killings. All the while, they marched and chanted for justice.
"It's obvious that people that are supposed to protect us are using our tax money and using it to kill us," said Maile Hampton, a protester.
For some, this was their first time taking a stance and asking for change.
"Never been arrested…never been in trouble, but this has got to stop," said Reggie, a protester.
Reggie says the killings of black youth like Michael Brown and Eric Gardner have become personal.
"Any of us at any time can fit the description. All I'm saying is we have to be aware, be careful," he said.
Many gathered and listened, holding their message up high. Some even wrote on the ground with chalk.
"If you have a fear of the cops, don't be afraid to speak out," said Braevayuan Mays, a protester.
And for Reggie, passing along that message to his children and grand kids has become his mission, and reminds them to do things peacefully.
"Don't burn, don't loot, don't destroy businesses. But just show up," said Reggie.
Things ended peacefully and no arrests were made. Protesters say they would be back soon.
In San Francisco, the Embarcadero was shut down temporarily as protesters marched to City Hall. By early afternoon protesters gathered at Civic Center Plaza.
The protests caused major gridlock across The City. There were major backups around 7th Street and in the Mission. Motorists were advised to steer clear of the demonstrations.
In the East Bay, police helicopters hovered in the sky as demonstrators made their way from Berkeley to a "Millions March" to Oakland. By afternoon, several hundred protesters had gathered on the steps of the Alameda County Courthouse. The group said they are calling attention to violence against communities of color.
In New York City, tens of thousands of people marched up Fifth Avenue in Midtown after gathering at Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village, CBS New York reported. They are demanding justice for 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, Staten Island father Eric Garner, who died in July after an NYPD officer put him in a chokehold, and Akai Gurley, the unarmed man fatally shot by police in a stairwell in East New York last month. They also want special prosecutors appointed to hand cases of alleged police brutality.
Family members of people killed in New York City police encounters going back decades also were among the demonstrators. They included Iris Baez, whose son Anthony Baez died after he apparently was placed in a chokehold in 1994.
Donna Carter, 54, marched with her boyfriend, whose teenage son was shot and killed by police in the 1990s while carrying a toy gun.
"It's good to see people of all colors here to say enough is enough," said Carter, who is black. "I'm a parent and every child that's killed feels like my child."
In Washington, D.C., a crowd gathered in Freedom Plaza before marching down Pennsylvania Avenue and past the White House, carrying signs reading "Black Lives Matter" and "Who do you protect? Who do you serve?"
Garner's mother, Gwen Carr, called Saturday's demonstration a "history-making moment."
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