Hundreds of mostly white protesters have gathered and marched in St. Louis, Missouri, chanting “white silence is violence” in the latest demonstration following the acquittal of a white police officer in the fatal shooting of a African American man.
The march, dubbed the “White Allies Only” rally by its organizers, took place Thursday evening from a downtown plaza to Busch Stadium.
The crowd stood outside the stadium chanting for several tense minutes while about 100 officers stood inside a metal barrier, some in riot gear.
A judge acquitted former officer Jason Stockley on September 15 in the 2011 shooting death of Anthony Lamar Smith. Stockley, 36, killed 24-year-old Smith after a police chase.
Protest organizer Cori Bush said the point of Thursday’s rally was to emphasize that it isn’t just African-Americans upset by police violence against blacks.
“I think it’s great for people to know there are white people that believe black lives…