Tensions returned to the streets of Ferguson late Friday night as protesters marched and faced off with police, chanting “who do you protect, who do you serve” while others yelled “I pay you.”
Hundreds of protesters clashed with officers and National Guard troops in front of the Ferguson Police Department.
As protesters stepped into the street, authorities rushed across to take them into custody.
Police pulled some to the ground and shackled them with plastic zip-tie cuffs. At least 15 people were arrested, including one facing a charge of assault on a law enforcement officer.
“Other protesters remain peaceful,” St. Louis County Police tweeted.
Earlier in the day, some protesters called for a Black Friday shopping boycott amid anger over the police shooting death of unarmed teen Michael Brown — and a grand jury’s decision not to indict the officer.
A demonstration at St. Louis Galleria Mall forced it to shut down temporarily on the busiest shopping day of the year.
Officials in St. Louis urged Galleria retailers to bring down security gates after several hundred protesters entered the mall and disrupted shopping.
Protesters chanted “hands up, don’t shop” while others lay on the floor in a “die-in.”
If supporters did shop, they were told to take their money to black-owned businesses, some of which were listed on social media.
Nationwide protests
Brown, 18, was fatally shot in August by Ferguson police Officer Darren Wilson. A grand jury’s decision Monday not to indict Wilson sparked protests in the St. Louis suburb that spread coast to coast.
Nationwide demonstrations included service disruptions at an Oakland, California, transit station and a march in New York City.
Protesters in Seattle clashed with authorities as well, prompting police to use pepper spray.
Seattle Mayor Ed Murray appealed for calm.
“While I understand the hurt and frustration that our city has experienced in the past days, this is a city that respects the rule of law,” he said in a statement. “I support the First Amendment rights of protesters, but violence against property or police officers will not be tolerated in our city.”
In Oakland, major delays were reported at the BART West Oakland train station because of “civil unrest,” according to a service advisory. There was no service into or out of San Francisco on Friday.
Protesters chanted “Which side are you on?” and “Black lives matter” as BART police officers tried to remove them from trains. Some chained themselves to handrails on the trains.
Policing in a post-Ferguson U.S.
Attorney General Eric Holder will travel to Atlanta on Monday to hold the first in a series of meetings focused on race relations and policing in minority communities.
Holder’s announcement comes just days after President Barack Obama promised regional meetings that would focus on “building trust in our communities.”
“For the overwhelming majority of people who just feel frustrated and pained because they get a sense that maybe some communities aren’t treated fairly or some individuals aren’t seen as as worthy as others, I understand that, and I want to work with you,” Obama said.
Holder plans to have about five of these meetings across the nation.
