At least 1000 people (the Chronicle put it at 500) gathered Friday evening at the foot of Market Street to protest this week's deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile at the hands of police in Louisiana and Minnesota.
As of 9:45 p.m., a threat received by the SFPD of anarchy Friday evening had failed to materialize.
A parallel gathering at Frank Ogawa Plaza in Oakland this evening was reportedly much smaller than the one that occurred Thursday.
#BlackLivesMatter march about to start for #AltonSterling #PhiladoCastile, more than a thousand here. #SF pic.twitter.com/AtfFse1zTM
— Joe Rivano Barros (@jrivanob) July 9, 2016
What proceeded was a swift march up Market that included a sit-in near Powell Street in which protesters read off the names of over 500 people who had been killed by police in the past year.
At battery and moving pretty swiftly pic.twitter.com/KrGsqZhWT8
— Caleb Pershan (@calaesthetic) July 9, 2016
Now at third, chant is "indict, convict, send those killer cops to jail, the whole damn system is guilty as hell" pic.twitter.com/myDecbwnpU
— Caleb Pershan (@calaesthetic) July 9, 2016
Sit in outside Westfield, names of dead being read aloud pic.twitter.com/GRGQ0IxtIh
— Caleb Pershan (@calaesthetic) July 9, 2016
By 8 p.m. protesters had gathered outside City Hall, where barricades and police guarded the front of the building. The building was lit up in red, white, and blue, and the flags were at half mast in memory of the five police officers killed Thursday night in Dallas.
Speakers got on a megaphone and delivered a number of moving speeches, many stressing peace.
"Hands up don't shoot" pic.twitter.com/xTObA2bDO2
— Caleb Pershan (@calaesthetic) July 9, 2016
SF city hall lit in red, white, and blue and flag at half-staff to show solidarity with officers killed in Dallas pic.twitter.com/rGZLZHknLV
— Jenna Lyons (@JennaJourno) July 9, 2016
Still out front of city hall pic.twitter.com/uLRlujFMgG
— Caleb Pershan (@calaesthetic) July 9, 2016
Protestors are currently outside City Hall in #SanFrancisco. Barricades blocking entrance. pic.twitter.com/6lpsCJR64N
— Joel Angel Juárez (@jajuarezphoto) July 9, 2016
A view of the #blacklivesmatter protest crowd outside #SF City Hall pic.twitter.com/UTeTrC3IPY
— Jessica Christian (@jachristian) July 9, 2016
Speakers are fired up at SF city hall #AltonSterling #PhilandoCastile pic.twitter.com/wjabVlwu1A
— Jenna Lyons (@JennaJourno) July 9, 2016
And, yes, Frank Chu was there.
Frank is kinda off brand pic.twitter.com/YH219e4z5L
— Caleb Pershan (@calaesthetic) July 9, 2016
Previously: Photos: 2,000 Rally Peacefully In Oakland To Protest Shootings Of Philando Castile And Alton Sterling