Black Lives Matter Activist DeRay Mckesson was arrested Saturday night as he and a large group of protesters marched along Airline Highway protesting the unlawful killing of Alton Sterling. Police arrested 101 people that night, Mckesson amongst them. The march and arrest were broadcast live on Periscope. His arrest came as a shock to the crowd of protesters surrounding him who can be heard demanding the reason for his incarceration.
Mckesson was charged with a single count of ‘simple obstruction of a highway of commerce.’ according to Louisiana RS14:97, Simple obstruction of a highway of commerce is the intentional or criminally negligent placing of anything or performance of any act on any railway, railroad, navigable waterway, road, highway, thoroughfare, or runway of an airport, which will render movement thereon more difficult. The charge is a joke and clearly a political weapon being used against Black Lives Matter activists for exercising their right to protest. Anyone who watches the video livestreamed by Mckesson at the time of his arrest can see lines of police cars, with their lights activated, blocking every lane of the highway. Mckesson and his group of protesters were walking peacefully along the side of the highway. Mckesson was arrested when the sidewalk ended and where police were waiting for him.
DeRay Mckesson is no stranger to police hostility. He has been an outspoken member of the Black Lives Matter movement where he led protests in both Ferguson and Baltimore. He has been a contributor to the Huffington Post and the Guardian. He even ran for mayor of Baltimore but ended up sixth in the race. Mckesson took part in a group that created Campaign Zero. Campaign Zero proposed a ten point plan to overhaul police work in America. The plan called for limited use of police, ending the for-profit policing system, increasing training and body cam use and the demilitarization of police departments. His arrest should be interpreted as a direct attack on the leadership of the Black Lives Matter movement, as he was singled out by police for leading the demonstration.
The Baton Rouge Police Department has engaged in morally reprehensible behavior, starting with the shooting of Alton Sterling and continuing with the blatant harassment and unlawful arrests of protesters for charges that will be inevitably dropped in court. Trumped up charges on people exercising their rights is blatant oppression by the police state backed by local governments. St Paul protesters were also met with over 100 arrests Saturday as they protested the killing of Alton Sterling. Twenty-one officers who suited up and had their own march against protesters were injured during the course of Saturday’s protests. Sections of I-94 were blocked by angry demonstrators who were met with tear gas as they approached the line of officers. Rocks and bottles were hurled at police resulting in only minor injuries as was reported to the media.
Black Lives Matter activists continue their protests as new information about Sterling’s shooting are coming to light. In response to the killing of black men by police, the head of the national NAACP, Cornell Brooks, sent a clear message to our Presidential Candidates. “We want them to clearly state their commitment to address criminal justice reform and the issues of racial profiling, use of excessive force, and stop and frisk abuses. … We must demand that they support legislation to reform our fractured criminal justice system and end the murder of black and brown men and women at the hands of police.”
Baton Rouge Police issued a press release in regards to Mckesson’s arrest. An unidentified police official stated “Well, they’re clearly blocking the roadway. We welcome the protests. We want them to voice their opinions. That’s what we’re here to do, to make sure they’re safe and they’re able to do that.” It is clear that this official did not see the rows of police cars blocking the roadway while Mckesson and his group peacefully marched along the roadside. Mckesson’s charge is not likely to stick.
http://www.startribune.com/about-100-arrested-in-st-paul-protests/386197981/
http://abcnews.go.com/US/200-protesters-arrested-baton-rouge-st-paul-overnight/story?id=40467365
