Al Sharpton to lead protest Saturday in D.C. against police brutality
Thousands of protesters are expected to descend on the District Saturday as part of a nationally organized demonstration demanding police reforms in the wake of two high-profile incidents in which white police officers faced no charges after killing unarmed black men.
The Al Sharpton-led march will join with several families who have lost loved ones at the hands of police, including the family of Michael Brown, whose fatal shooting by Officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Missouri, sparked national outcry against aggressive police tactics.
Near-nightly protests have shut down D.C. streets in the three weeks since a grand jury decided not to indict Mr. Wilson, who has since resigned from the force. But arrests at the scene of protests have been few and actions by the Metropolitan Police Department have garnered praise for the agencys light-handed approach to dealing with protesters.
But given the magnitude of Saturdays event and the nature of the protests, civil rights activists and police monitors will be out in force to educate protesters and document any clashes.
The Districts Office of Police Complaints is deploying teams specifically to monitor MPDs response to the march. It will be the first time the office has sent teams to monitor a protest since the 2009 International Monetary Fund demonstrations.
Our primary goal is to make observations. Well be noting whether MPD is following its own procedures, police complaints director Michael Tobin said, adding that he will be deployed alongside the police departments incident commander during the march.
Were anticipating this to be larger assembly than what weve been seeing over the past month or two, Mr. Tobin said. Thats why were getting involved in it.
The agency will release an after-action report on monitors observations of the demonstration.
Meanwhile, the American Civil Liberties Union plans to distribute T-shirts and postcards to inform participants of their rights while protesting. The Know Your Rights messaging was prompted in part by some of the protests that occurred in Ferguson, during which protestors and journalists were both arrested.
Despite the steady occurrence of protests in the District, Ferguson-related demonstrations have resulted in only 10 arrests, eight of which were made when protesters blocked I-395, said MPD spokesman Lt. Sean Conboy.
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Al Sharpton to lead protest Saturday in D.C. against police brutality