Chicago, IL – 1500 people marched on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile on Friday, Nov. 27, the day after Thanksgiving. “A Unity March and Rally in Memory of Laquan McDonald” was called as part of the Black Friday protests that originated last year as part of the Black Lives Matter movement.

17-year-old Laquan McDonald was shot 16 times by a Chicago cop in October 2014, and only this week did a court compel Mayor Rahm Emanuel to release the dash cam video of his murder.

The Magnificent Mile is one of the ten richest shopping avenues in the world, and most protesters were there to call for a boycott of stores in order to press their demands for an end to police murders. They did so in a militant action that went on for many hours, shutting down Saks Fifth Avenue and dozens of other expensive stores.

Frank Chapman of the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression was one of the leaders of the march. He said of the crowd’s sentiments, “The people indicted all those who participated in the cover-up.” The killer cop, Jason Van Dyke, was shielded by Mayor Emanuel and Superintendent of Police Garry McCarthy, for 13 months.

Chapman added, “In the name of unity, Reverend Jesse Jackson has endorsed the demand for an elected Civilian Police Accountability Council (CPAC).” The movement in Chicago has increasingly called for CPAC to establish community control of the police.

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