Protestors Lie on Train Tracks, Stop Interstate Traffic in Berkeley
At 5pm on Monday evening, University of California Berkeley students and their supporters began crowding the campus entrance. Students handed out protest kits in case the Berkeley Police Department decided to use tear gas, as they did Saturday night. The kit also included a list of people's legal rights in case of police confrontations:
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A short rally took place before the march. Yvette Felarca of Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action, Integration, and Immigrant Rights and Fight for Equality By Any Means Necessary (BAMN) is pictured below. "For those who have been concerned about a few windows gettin broken, I want to clear the air on that up right now," she said. "You can never replace the life of Michael Brown and Eric Garner, but windows can always be replaced. So who do we hold responsible for inciting violence?" There was some disagreement on whether or not protests had to remain completely non-violent. A black woman who spoke after Felarca urged for peaceful protest.Â
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The crowd of about 1,500 protesters then marched through downtown Berkeley, stopping by the dorms to chant, "Out of the dorms, into the streets."
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Protesters then began marching down streets, stopping traffic at popular intersections.Â
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Protesters hold a sit-in for several minutes at Shattuck and Channing.Â
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Protesters then marched to the Berkeley Police Department. The street to the department was blocked off by metal gates. Police formed a line behind them. A few officers slammed their batons on the gates in order to, they claimed, remind protesters not to touch the gates. One officer shoved his baton into a young man's stomach.Â
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"Want to see who came to riot," the writing on his mirror reads. "Look who dressed for a riot."
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After about 15 minutes, protesters dispersed into other marches. A few protesters laid down on the tracks of an Amtrak train, forcing it to stop. About 200 made their way to highway I-80, stopping traffic on both lanes for more than an hour. The California Highway Patrol arrived on the scene. According to news reports, the Berkeley Police Department made nine arrests while the California Highway Patrol made 150.Â
LIVE updates: Protesters lying on train tracks, blocking Amtrak train in #Berkeley protests. http://t.co/zCG9xXDucA http://t.co/feVlJXcuBE— SFGATE (@SFGATE) 1418101517.0
#BREAKING: All lanes of I-80 near University Ave. in #Berkeley closed due to protest. WATCH: http://t.co/aLpvwy7Nfs http://t.co/Y4NabKzAjo— ABC7 News (@ABC7 News) 1418100485.0
ICYMI #berkeleyprotests photos after I-80 was blocked and #CHP began making arrests. http://t.co/8hf2cUHnVs http://t.co/D1JtOTuYLK— Mercury News (@Mercury News) 1418135452.0