Hundreds of protesters from across the United States, including mothers who have lost children in confrontations with police, marched in Washington Saturday to demand justice and an end to police brutality.
The march, sponsored by an organization of bereaved mothers, paraded down Pennsylvania Avenue to the U.S. Justice Department, where protest leaders presented demands for racial justice and equality.
Some carried photographs of their dead sons, and others wore T-shirts with names of loved ones lost to violence. They chanted the names of those whose recent deaths have triggered an outpouring of grief and civil unrest in the U.S. cities of Baltimore; New York; Madison, Wisconsin; and Ferguson, Missouri.
Saturday's protest was organized by Maria Hamilton, who founded Mothers for Justice United in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Hamilton's adult son, Dantre, who had a history of mental illness, was shot and killed by a Milwaukee police officer in 2014 in a city park where he had been sleeping.
Police responded to the park after a nearby coffee shop complained about Hamilton's presence near the shop. After what witnesses described as a scuffle, a policeman shot Hamilton 14 times. The shooting sparked a wave of protests across the city.
The officer was fired in the aftermath of the on-duty shooting but was not charged with any crimes.
The Justice Department is reviewing the case to determine whether any federal charges should be filed.
