There were multiple coordinated protests Tuesday around the country in order to keep attention on the problem of racial injustice and police shootings, including a large one in New York City that resulted in 42 arrests and a partial shutdown of the Brooklyn Bridge. Here around the Bay, a half dozen protesters did manage to make it onto the east-bound lanes of the Bay Bridge and were promptly arrested, as you can see in the CHP tweet below.
CHP SF arrests 6 for attempting to take over I80 e/b at 4th St. #ShutDownA14 pic.twitter.com/VvZomfD1uv
— CHP San Francisco (@CHPSanFrancisco) April 14, 2015
About 100 protesters rallied outside Oakland's City Hall, as CBS 5 reports, with some managing to take over the city council chambers, and a couple dozen making it onto an on-ramp of 880, briefly stopping traffic.
Others made their way to Oakland police headquarters and left some "fuck the police" graffiti behind.
Protestors leaving their mark on OPD headquarters. pic.twitter.com/TZ3lajPZJZ
— Kale Williams (@sfkale) April 14, 2015
According to Mission Local, the march through the Mission and ultimate rally at San Francisco City Hall, was 200 people strong. And they have some video, with that march beginning at 24th and Mission.
Once at City Hall, things got somewhat chaotic, with dozens entering the rotunda with shouts of "Shut it down," and others chanting "Mayor Lee can't you see, inequality is killing me," as ABC 7 reports.
Supervisors David Campos and John Avalos spoke to protesters / spoke to the press just as the Board of Supervisors' weekly Tuesday meeting was about to get underway at 2 p.m., with Avalos denouncing racial profiling by the SFPD and making the remark that if you're white and "if you're out there partying in Dolores Park, nothing happens."
Campos made some more incendiary remarks regarding the current situation of inequality in SF lately he he has mostly been talking about economic inequality and gentrification in the Mission, but here he's perhaps speaking to race too? noting that SF has "the fastest growing inequality of any city in the country" and that if San Francisco were a country, it "would be up there with Rwanda."
Board President London Breed temporarily adjourned the Board meeting after some protesters stormed the Board chamber, with some protesters specifically targeting Breed and fellow African American supervisor Malia Cohen with shouts of "Shame on you!" Breed briefly left the chamber, and returned later to resume the meeting at 2:45 p.m.
One African American female protester was quoted by the Examiner saying, "My black, female supervisor walks out on me?" she said. "Are you kidding me?"
Protesters were demanding the firing of racist cops, and an end to discrimination and inequality, but comments made in the Board chamber seemed to focus more on the housing crisis and economic inequality.
#NOW #ShutDownA14 march from #SF Mission district reaches City Hall. Large group entering now. #KTVU pic.twitter.com/9jek7APh8u
— David Stevenson (@DStevensonKTVU) April 14, 2015
Following that, some protesters proceeded down Market Street, disrupting mid-afternoon traffic there.
With ferry bldg in view ahead #ShutDownA14 continues to move along Market, stopping downtown traffic pic.twitter.com/4rMa9gEcye
— Mission Local (@MLNow) April 14, 2015
Previously: All previous Black Lives Matter protest coverage on SFist