St. Louis Police Group Demands Punishment for Rams Players in Ferguson Protest
Photo Credit: AP / L.G. Patterson
A St. Louis police officers’ group called on the NFL to punish five Rams players who stood with their hands raised before trotting onto the field for pregame introductions Sunday.
The St. Louis Police Officers’ Association said it was “profoundly disappointed” with what it called a “display that police officers around the nation found tasteless, offensive and inflammatory.” It called for the players involved to be disciplined and for both the league and team to issue a “very public apology.”
The so-called “hands up, don’t shoot” gesture has been commonly used by demonstrators protesting the decision of a St. Louis County grand jury to not indict Officer Darren Wilson in the August 9 shooting death of 18-year-old Michael Brown in suburban Ferguson. Some witnesses said Brown, who was black, had his hands up before being fatally shot by Wilson, who is white.
Prior to kickoff of their game against the Oakland Raiders, Rams wide receivers Tavon Austin and Kenny Britt came out together and raised their hands, but the move was obscured by a smoke machine in the upper reaches of the Edward Jones Dome. Jared Cook, Stedman Bailey and Chris Givens then came out and stood together with hands raised in the fog.
“I just think there has to be a change,” Cook said after the Rams’ 52-0 win. “There has to be a change that starts with the people that are most influential around the world.
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‘Everyone Is Under Arrest!’: Portland Goes Berserk During Ferguson Protest
By Scott Greer.
Portland, Oregon might be two thousand miles away from Ferguson, Missouri, but that didn’t stop protesters from causing chaos in the city Saturday night in response to the non-indictment of Officer Darren Wilson.
Hundreds gathered in the Pacific Northwestern town to shout, march, jump on police SUVs, argue with fellow protesters about whether to fight cops, stage a “die in” and listen to Jesse Jackson give a speech urging non-violence.
“We must turn the pain of Ferguson into the… reconciling hope of love and care for one another. Red and yellow, brown, black and white, we’re all precious in God’s sight. Everybody is somebody,” Jackson said earlier that night, The Oregonian reports.
Several protesters apparently didn’t take heed to the activist’s words and immediately began provoking police.
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