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August 14, 2014

Ferguson Police Escalate Crackdown on Michael Brown Protests 
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Police in Ferguson, Missouri, appear to be escalating a crackdown on
protests over an officer's fatal shooting of unarmed African-American
teenager Michael Brown. On Wednesday, Ferguson police fired tear gas,
stun grenades and smoke bombs to break up a fifth night of
demonstrations. At least 10 people were arrested, including St. Louis
Alderman Antonio French, who has been posting video online of the
protests and who appeared on Democracy Now! earlier this week. An
earlier protest faced a heavy police response, with police in riot gear
stationed by a massive armed vehicle in the street.

Protest organizer: "I'm very discouraged. This was supposed to be a
peaceful rally, that we wanted peace and unity. We don't want an
adversarial relationship with the police. We want to partner with them
to find out what happened and to bring justice for Mike Brown, because
that's what it's all about. And so, the fact that it had to come to this
is very disheartening and disappointing."

 

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