Hundreds of protesters converge on East Pittsburgh to protest teen's shooting by police
Hundreds of protesters converged in East Pittsburgh on Wednesday night to protest the police shooting of unarmed black teenager Antwon Rose the previous day.
"Enough is enough. We won't be quiet," said Saundra Cole McKamey. "We're sick of losing our babies, whether it's black-on-black crime, or whether it's the cops killing us. But enough is enough."
The protest came a day after an East Pittsburgh police officer shot and killed Rose when he and another person ran from a traffic stop on Grandview Avenue.
Police pulled over the vehicle in which Rose was a passenger because it matched the description of one involved in an earlier shooting in nearby North Braddock.
Police have not named the officer, but Mayor Louis Payne confirmed that the officer who shot Rose had been sworn in by borough council an hour earlier. Payne noted that the officer has eight years of experience.
Officers from surrounding departments as well as Allegheny County police stood by as protesters took over the streets near the police department, but began engaging protesters as the crowds grew.
Some had frank conversations with protesters despite a number of tense moments, including when police used a vehicle to move protesters out of the street.
A police cruiser attempts to push through the crowd as a rally shuts down Braddock Avenue a day after an East Pittsburgh police officer shot 17-year-old Antwon Rose, a Woodland Hills High School honors student, during a traffic stop. @TribLIVE #AntwonRose pic.twitter.com/hJsCyUeJcP
" Andrew Russell (@RussBurgh) June 20, 2018
A torrential downpour that began about 90 minutes into the protest deterred some, but not all, and police and protesters alike took cover under a nearby awning and an overpass.
Community members and police take shelter as rains started to fall while protesting around police headquarters in East Pittsburgh on June 20, 2018. @TribLIVE #AntwonRose pic.twitter.com/wifzb9gHzH
" Nate Smallwood (@nsmallwoodphoto) June 21, 2018
Some took shelter - others keep on unfazed. #AntwonRose @TribLIVE pic.twitter.com/y5wPAr0kr2
" Nate Smallwood (@nsmallwoodphoto) June 21, 2018
Protesters chanted rallying cries that have become familiar in the aftermath of police-involved shootings: "No justice, no peace, no racist police."
" Megan Guza (@meganguzaTrib) June 20, 2018
Allegheny County police are investigating the shooting, which became a national topic after Facebook video surfaced showing the shooting. The video appears to show Rose running from the vehicle and almost immediately falling to the ground between buildings, having been struck by gunfire.
