Police deploy pepper spray at Phoenix protest of officer-involved shootings
Freeway ramps were closed and pepper spray and tear gas were used Friday night during a protest in downtown Phoenix following the killings of black men in Baton Rouge, La., and suburban St. Paul, Minn., at the hands of police and the deadly sniper attack on officers in Dallas.
Police deployed the deterrents as demonstrators moved toward a freeway.
About 1,000 people chanted “black lives matter” and “hands up, don’t shoot” as they marched.
The few dozen officers initially escorting marchers mostly wore plain clothes.
Later, officers wore uniforms and riot gear.
Minor scuffles broke out when a man wearing a “Make America Great Again” T-shirt and holding a Donald Trump campaign sign interrupted the protest. Police pulled the man aside to let the marchers continue.
Before the pepper spray was deployed, marcher John Goodie said he was glad to see multiple races represented.
“I can see black, white, brown,” Goodie said. “It’s the spirit of Phoenix.”
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UPDATES:
12:07 a.m.: This article was updated with the deployment of tear gas and a quote from a protester.
This article was originally published at 11:43 p.m.
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