Protesters put 'hands up' across US over Ferguson
Protesters around the US demonstrated Monday with their hands in the air in tribute to Michael Brown, the young black man killed by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri.
As part of the "Hands Up Walk Out" campaign, thousands of protesters gathered at universities and workplaces for midday demonstrations around the time Brown was killed on August 9.
In New York, hundreds of young mostly white students sat for a minute of silence in Times Square before chanting "hands up, don't shoot" and "no justice no peace."
Protesters shout and hold up their hands as they participate in a nationwide demonstration to show solidarity for Michael Brown and the Ferguson, Missouri community in New York on December 1, 2014 ©Timothy A. Clary (AFP)
Signs at the demonstration read: “Jail killer cops,” “Ferguson is everywhere,” and “Black lives matter."
The hands up gesture and the "hands up, don't shoot" slogan have been adopted by protesters in homage to what some witnesses said was Brown's last move before being shot.
"Our communities are hurting and justifiably angered," said Ferguson Action, the group that organized the demonstrations to protest a grand jury's decision not to charge 28-year-old Darren Wilson, the officer who killed Brown.
The group asked protesters to read out the names of "victims of police violence," such as 12-year-old Tamir Rice who was recently gunned down by police officers in Ohio while handling a toy pistol.
Other protests Monday took place across the country including in the states Massachusetts, California, Texas and Georgia. In the capital, Washington, dozens of people gathered outside the Justice Department.
The decision not to indict Wilson prompted riots in Ferguson and raised racial tensions across the country last week. Wilson had said he acted in self-defense.
