Protesters took to the streets again on Saturday night, clashing with cops in Louisiana, Minnesota and New York after the high-profile shootings of Alton Sterling, Philando Castile and Delrawn Small by police officers.
State police said cops seized seven guns during protests in Baton Rouge, La., and made at least 30 arrests — including Black Lives Matter activist DeRay McKesson — as lines of officers in riot gear faced off with demonstrators protesting Sterling’s death outside a convenience store.
McKesson celebrated his birthday by attending the protests and streaming the moments before his arrest on Periscope.
He was walking along the side of the Airline Highway in Baton Rouge, carefully noting he was on the shoulder and that a large group of police officers were warning his group to stay off the road.
“They’re literally just provoking people,” McKesson said.
An officer then grabbed McKesson from behind and is heard on Periscope telling him to not “fight” him.
“I’m under arrest ya’ll,” said McKesson, before his phone was handed off to another protester who took over the livestream.
Police detained McKesson while the prominent activist wore a shirt stating “#StayWoke” a hashtag used to encourage people to be aware of current events surrounding social injustices.
He was booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish jail early Sunday, records show.
McKesson, who ran an unsuccessful bid for Baltimore mayor during the primary, was cuffed during a Black Lives Matter protest in St. Louis for civil disobedience in 2015.
In a video posted to the Louisiana State Police Facebook page, an official said the protesters arrested along the highway “want(ed) to cause an issue.”
“They want to get out in the road and block traffic,” he said. The official could not be immediately identified.
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SOURCE: NICOLE HENSLEY
NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
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