The decision to clear out the Fourth Precinct demonstration came two days after elected officials began asking activists to voluntarily move.
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As of 6:15 a.m., officers in riot gear have broken down an encampment outside a Minneapolis precinct where protesters have been demonstrating for almost two weeks following the fatal shooting of a black man by police.
Kandace Montgomery of Black Lives Matter disputes Mayor Betsy Hodges’ statement that it was time for the encampment to disband in the name of public safety.
On its Facebook page, Black Lives Matter called the police action violent and said this afternoon’s rally is in response to city officials’ “continued brutality against peaceful protesters who have endured a white supremacist terrorist attack, police violence and freezing temperatures to demand justice for Jamar Clark”.
Police moved in early Thursday to break up the encampment of protestors outside a police precinct in North Minneapolis. Following the notification, the Minneapolis Fire Department began extinguishing the protestors’ campfires with buckets of water as police and city crews hauled away items on the street.
The protesters have been at the police station at 1925 Plymouth Ave.
Socks hang from a wooden blockade in front of the 4th Precinct after policecleared the protestors and their encampment early, Thursday, Dec. 3, 2015 in Minneapolis. He died the next day.
Police responding to a report of an assault in which Clark was a suspect said they arrived to find him interfering with paramedics who were trying to treat the victim. Scuffles between protesters and police were common early on, but had slowed down in recent days.
Protesters called for a federal investigation, the release of any video of the shooting and a plan to keep protesters safe from authorities.
Officers handed out fliers telling the demonstrators they had 10 minutes to collect their things and leave. “It is a city building within city grounds and people have the right to peacefully demonstrate or protest”, the notice said.
Protesters say they are planning a protest at 4 p.m. Thursday at Minneapolis City Hall.
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Harteau said the protesters’ property had been saved and could be reclaimed, but Montgomery said their tents, other equipment and stockpiles of donated food and clothing were ruined.
