Protests in solidarity with Ferguson have stretched into a third day in Los Angeles since the announcement of the “non-indictment” of Darren Wilson in the killing of Michael Brown. On Wednesday morning, protesters shut down the 101 in both directions and police arrested several people, according to the LA Times.
On Monday night, when the news out of Wilson’s freedom was announced, protesters shut down an intersection of Rodeo Drive, several streets near Leimert Park; and about 150 demonstrators found their way onto the 110 Freeway.
Jasmyne Cannick, a political commentator was there. “This is Los angeles, we’ve been the epicenter for police relations for quite some time,” she told Warren Olney on Which Way, LA? “A lot of Angelenos here localize a lot of the issues when we look around the country when it comes to police killings or police brutality.”
The demonstrators were also protesting the death of Ezell Ford, a mentally disabled 25-year-old man who was shot and killed in August. Supporters say was trying to comply with the police when he was shot and killed. His autopsy report has been under a security hold, but Mayor Garcetti has asked for it to be released. “We have our own Mike Brown right here in Los Angeles,” said Cannick. Racial tension and protests aren’t new to Los Angeles.
LAPD Chief Charlie Beck said the trouble in Ferguson reminded him of rioting in Los Angeles in 1992, when four officers were acquitted in the beating of Rodney King. However, Monday’s demonstration in Los Angeles was mostly peaceful, if tense.
While it’s a long way from 1992, “in some ways it’s not because we’re still talking about and dealing with the exact same issues,” said Cannick.