CHICAGO — Small groups of demonstrators gathered again Wednesday to protest the death of a black teen shot 16 times by a white police officer, and they urged supporters to join them in trying to shut down Chicago’s Michigan Avenue shopping district during the Black Friday shopping bonanza.
About two dozen protesters gathered outside Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s office a day after authorities released the graphic video, footage that President Barack Obama said “deeply disturbed” him.
The video shows Officer Jason Van Dyke, who was charged Tuesday with first-degree murder, firing an entire magazine into 17-year-old Laquan McDonald.
The protesters held banners showing photos of other black people fatally shot by police in Chicago and elsewhere. Several said they were parents of black men killed by officers.
“You cannot kill our children and expect us to be quiet any longer,” protester Quovadis Green said. “It is unacceptable.”
Activist Mark Carter called on people to “rise up” and shut down the Magnificent Mile shopping area Friday. Protesters also planned to target the Board of Trade and other landmarks in the coming days, he said.
Carter and others want the Department of Justice to investigate the Chicago Police Department and its history of covering up bad behavior.
The Urban League of Chicago joined in the call for a federal investigation, alleging a pattern of “discriminatory harassment” against black people.
The Rev. Jesse Jackson said other officers involved in McDonald’s death should be fired or at least suspended. He also wants a special prosecutor appointed to the case,.
In a Facebook post, the president said he is asking Americans to “keep those who’ve suffered tragic loss in our thoughts and prayers” this Thanksgiving “and to be thankful for the overwhelming majority of men and women in uniform who protect our communities with honor.”
He said he is grateful to the people of his hometown, Chicago, for keeping protests peaceful.
