Ferguson Shooting: Protests Spread Across US

Crowds have rallied across the US to protest against Monday's decision not to charge a policeman over the killing of black teen Michael Brown. Demonstrations from New York to Seattle were mostly peaceful but rioting broke out in Oakland, California. In and around the St Louis suburb of Ferguson, scene of major riots on Monday, 2,200 National Guard troops were deployed to stop further unrest. The white officer who killed Mr Brown there says he has a "clean conscience". Darren Wilson shot the 18-year-old on 9 August, sparking weeks of unrest in the Missouri town. Jump media playerMedia player helpOut of media player. Press enter to return or tab to continue. Officer Darren Wilson, who shot and killed Michael Brown: "I know I did my job right" Many in Ferguson's predominantly African-American community had called for the officer to be charged with murder, but the grand jury's decision means the police officer will not face state criminal charges over the shooting. Lawyers for Mr Brown's family denounced the grand jury's decision as "unfair" while condemning the violence that followed the decision. 'Black lives matter' With the number of troops more than trebled, the situation in Ferguson was calm for most of Tuesday, though demonstrators briefly closed a major road in central St Louis and rallies were staged outside the federal court house. Late in the evening, however, tension began to rise. Protesters set a police vehicle alight after failing to overturn it, and police began to clear streets, firing smoke bombs and tear gas, making a number of arrests. Protesters carried signs saying "Black lives matter". They chanted "Hands up, don't shoot," a reference to claims by some witnesses that Mr Brown had his hands raised when he was shot. In Oakland, in the San Francisco Bay area, rioters vandalised police cars and businesses in the centre during a second night of unrest in the port city of 406,000 people. Looting was reported in several locations, including a classic car dealership and a mobile phone store, while a main road was briefly blocked, the US broadcaster CBS reports. On Monday night, 43 arrests were made in Oakland as police struggled to control a crowd of some 2,000 people. Protesters also briefly stopped traffic in central Los Angeles before police moved in to clear them off. line At the scene: Joanna Jolly, BBC News, Ferguson Protester in front of police vehicles in Ferguson, 25 November 2014 There's been confrontation outside Ferguson City Hall where a police vehicle was burnt earlier and tear gas still hangs in the air. There's a heavy police presence with several armoured cars and vehicles. There is tension as police try to move people from the area - officers are saying anyone standing in the street will be subject to arrest. Some are giving chase to people in the surrounding streets and tonight they have dogs with them. A police helicopter is hovering overhead with a spotlight. Further along, police and the National Guard face off with an angry crowd in front of the Police Department. There are fewer protesters, but a larger media presence. The crowd is jittery and there is a sense there could be further clashes. line Elsewhere in the US Hundreds blocked traffic in Cleveland, Ohio, in a separate demonstration over the fatal shooting of a 12-year-old boy by a police officer Protesters in New York briefly shut down the Brooklyn Bridge and disrupted traffic on other roads A car ploughed into protesters blocking a road at a rally in Minneapolis, injuring one person Protesters staged a sit-in outside the office of Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel Protest in New York Protesters in New York briefly shut down the Brooklyn Bridge Protesters in Washington, DC In Washington, DC, protesters gathered on the steps of the National Portrait Gallery Prison in Boston Inmates in Boston taped Mr Brown's name on their window Soldiers with the Missouri National Guard stand guard outside the Ferguson police station on 25 November 2014 in Ferguson, Missouri In Ferguson, itself the number of National Guardsmen was more than tripled Speaking from Chicago on Tuesday, President Barack Obama said there was "no excuse" for destructive behaviour and criminal acts of rioting, adding that those responsible should be prosecuted. The frustration seen by the grand jury's decision, he said, had "deep roots in many communities of colour who have a sense that our laws are not being enforced uniformly or fairly". He said he had ordered Attorney General Eric Holder to look at what steps could be taken to build trust in communities and make sure that "law enforcement is fair". US President Barack Obama: "The problem is not just a Ferguson problem, it's an American problem" Much of the debate since August has centred on whether Michael Brown was attempting to surrender to Darren Wilson when he was shot. Speaking to ABC News in his first public comments, Mr Wilson said there was nothing he could have done differently. "The reason I have a clean conscience is because I know I did my job right," he said. He described Mr Brown as a "powerful man," saying he had felt "like a five-year-old holding on to [US wrestler] Hulk Hogan". He denied witness statements that Mr Brown had put his hands up, insisting race had played no part in the confrontation. Source:bbc