Minneapolis, MN – Nearly 200 people gathered at Plymouth and James Avenues, the memorial site where Jamar Clark was killed in 2015, answering the call of the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression – of which Twin Cities Coalition for Justice for Jamar (TCC4J) is a member – for a September 19 national day of action against police crimes.

The protest was organized under the demands for community control of the police, withdrawal of federal troops, and an end to white supremacist violence.

Protesters, led by TCC4J emcees Jae Yates and DeShaun McDonald, marched to the North Minneapolis home of Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, demanding that he use his power to do something against the state terror against Black, brown and indigenous communities in Minnesota.

Attorney General Ellison has a history of inaction on police murders, repeatedly ignoring demands for intervention and lying to family members of police victims. Last year, Ellison convened a commission on police violence that was protested for excluding family members of victims, activists and experts on police accountability. The group was over half cops and included police lobbyists but no one working against police killings.

Other protest demands included:

-- Free the unjustly imprisoned, such as Myon Burrell, by commuting his sentence. Burrell, railroaded as a teen for a murder he did not commit, has spent 17 years in prison. He was prosecuted by then-County Attorney and now U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar.

-- That the governor, attorney general, mayor and Minneapolis city council not obstruct the movements for community control of police.

-- Reopen the cases of those lost to police crimes and charge the killer cops for hundreds of murders across Minnesota. Many family members spoke at the march, including relatives of Justin Teigen, Isak Aden and Jamar Clark.

-- Increase charges in the case of white supremacist killer Anthony Trifiletti for murder of Doug Lewis. Doug Lewis’ sister gave an impassioned speech at the opening rally before the march.

Ali Fuhrman, president of ASCME Local 2822, one of the groups that endorsed CPAC, declared, “The labor movement needs the Black liberation movement,” adding, “We have to bring our movements together.”

As the crowd moved into the cul-de-sac in the development where Attorney General Ellison has a home, a person named “Paul”, one of Ellison’s neighbors, called the Minneapolis Police Department. This occurred after other neighbors invited protesters to share refreshments and speeches in front of the attorney general’s home. Protesters left Ellison’s resident with chants of “Fuck Paul” and vowed to return.

#MinneapolisMN #PeoplesStruggles #PoliceBrutality #NationalAllianceAgainstRacistAndPoliticalRepression #TwinCitiesCoalition4Justice4Jamar