Black Lives Matter Leader DeRay McKesson Arrested At Protest In Baton Rouge For ‘Obstruction Of Highway Commerce’

UPDATE:

There’s been a lot of turmoil around the country in the face of the shooting deaths of both Alton Sterling and Philando Castile. And for good reason. The difference, thus far, between these protests and fallout from events such as what happened in Ferguson is the seeming willingness on both sides to find a common middle ground. However, that being said, there have still been a few clashes here and there between #BlackLivesMatter protesters and police. For the most part, these clashes have been non-violent. Most of the arrests made have been the result of public disturbances a la impeding traffic, stagnating public transportation, etc. Which, according to police, is what famed #BlackLiveMatter leader DeRay McKesson was booked for last night.

Via Washington Post:

“Police in Baton Rouge late Saturday arrested DeRay McKesson, one of the most visible faces of the Black Lives Matter movement, during one of several protests over the recent fatal shootings of black men. Police arrested more than 200 people on a night of tension and unrest. Throughout the nation, demonstrators on Saturday demanded accountability from police. The protests stretched into early Sunday in Baton Rouge and St. Paul, Minn., where tensions are most raw after the deaths of Alton Sterling in the Louisiana city and of Philando Castile in a St. Paul suburb.

With activists and police on edge after those deaths and the sniper killings of five police officers in Dallas, the United States is “sitting on a powder keg,” said Charles H. Ramsey, a former police chief in Washington and Philadelphia. President Obama plans to travel to Dallas on Tuesday at the invitation of the city’s mayor to deliver remarks at an interfaith memorial service for the slain officers, the White House announced Sunday. A Baton Rouge parish prison official told The Washington Post on Sunday morning that more than 120 people were arrested overnight at multiple protest sites across the Louisiana capital.”

“McKesson was charged with obstructing a highway of commerce, said the prison official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to talk to reporters. She said bond had not been set for the arrested protesters as of late Sunday morning. Another official said bonds for demonstrators arrested the previous night were set between $250 and $400.”

Protesters who were less than pleased with the way the police were handling the situation in some cities questioned the tactics.

Honestly, I kind of fall in the middle here. For one, after so many instances of these protests spiralling into violence, how can anyone blame the police for keeping an extra sharp eye on things. On the other hand, protests aren’t supposed to be convenient for anyone. It’s not like a protest is meant to be done on other people’s time. They’re supposed to leave an impression. So if a few highways get all congested, that’s part of the game.