Thousands of people marched in cities from Boston to Chicago to Ferguson, Missouri, to show solidarity with Baltimore and connect the case of Freddie Gray with police killings of unarmed African Americans across the country. In Boston, protesters gathered in front of police headquarters, chanting “Being black is not a crime, same story every time.” In Minneapolis, protesters marched across town carrying a coffin. Here in New York City, at least 120 people were reportedly arrested as protesters shut down parts of the Holland Tunnel, West Side Highway and Times Square. Protester Al Patron said attention has focused too heavily on the tactics used during Monday night’s uprising in Baltimore and not enough on the underlying problems.
Al Patron: “And it’s getting lost. It’s getting lost. And instead of looking at the root, we’re looking at the riot, when the root is more important. They murdered somebody, you know? And a life was taken. So I think we need to, like, start paying attention to that instead of like — and put more on preservation of life than preservation of buildings or whatever and property. I don’t care about that. I care about people that look like me’s lives.”