Thousands gather near White House to protest

Thousands of peaceful demonstrators are pouring into the streets of Washington on a hot, humid Saturday afternoon to protest police brutality and racial inequality.

The protesters are gathering at the Capitol, on the National Mall and in many residential neighborhoods. The crowd has erupted in applause as Mayor Muriel Bowser walked along the portion of 16th Street that she renamed Black Lives Matter Plaza on Friday.

Many of the loosely organized groups were moving toward the White House, where US President Donald Trump was spending the day with no public events. The president remained behind-closed-doors, the faint sound of protesters audible in the distance.

One group of thousands of protesters chanted obscenities at Attorney General William Barr and the Department of Justice as they passed the FBI and Justice Department buildings. The protesters held signs that read, “When a cop kills someone, we all die” and ”White silence is violence.” With hands raised in the air, many also chanted “Hands up, don’t shoot.”

— AP