Jamar Clark: calls for justice heard at funeral for man killed by police

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/nov/25/jamar-clark-justice-funeral-minneapolis

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Family members and community leaders renewed their calls for justice at the funeral of Jamar Clark, the unarmed black man shot and killed by police officers 10 days ago in Minneapolis.

James Hill, Clark’s eldest brother, told the mourners at the Shiloh Temple church on Wednesday that Mayor Betsy Hodges had sent a note expressing her condolences, and apologising for her absence.

“I’ve got one message for her,” he said. “We don’t want her to overdo her job. We don’t want her to underdo her job. We just want her to do her job. If she’s for this city, justice will be found.”

Related: The Counted: people killed by police in the United States in 2015 – interactive

Protests have been ongoing outside the police fourth precinct building since Clark was killed just a few hundred yards down the road. On Monday night, attackers believed to be white supremacists shot five people at the protest. More gunshots were heard on Tuesday night.

Police responded, eyewitnesses told the Guardian, by telling protesters requesting help with the wounded “isn’t this what you wanted?” Four people are now in custody, the police said in a press release, including two who turned themselves in.

“I love you all,” Hill said. “But we can’t get away with the fact that these savages must be held accountable.”

At the open casket viewing, one woman was escorted from the room screaming after viewing Clark’s body.

Representative Keith Ellison, the congressman for Minnesota’s 5th district, attended the funeral and said that he joined “in the community’s mourning for Jamar Clark and for all of the Jamar Clarks who propel the protesters to demand meaningful change”.

He demanded that Monday’s shooting be treated by authorities as a hate crime, but called for the occupation of the fourth precinct to end. He cited safety reasons, saying that it was time for the protest “to evolve beyond the encampment”.

The Tuesday after Clark’s death, 51 protesters, including eight minors, were arrested after blocking interstate 94 for several hours. Police have deployed mace against the protesters on several occasions, including after the protests.

Sharice Burns, Clark’s sister, thanked protesters for “hanging in there”, saying “we need justice sooner rather than later”. Clark’s younger brother Eddie Sutton said: “These same people that did this to my brother, I experienced it too. It’s not new to us.”

After the funeral service, a procession brought Clark’s body to the protesters, where improvised barricades of firewood were moved aside to let them through. Protesters lined the streets, fists raised in salute, as the cars stopped for several minutes, horns honking.

As they drove away, protesters began chanting “black lives matter”.