By Eric Roper and Erin Golden
Protesters took over Interstate 35W Thursday in a demonstration that halted traffic for several hours as they decried law enforcement's treatment of minorities.
The protest joined others nationally that have erupted in the wake of two grand jury decisions not to indict police officers who killed black men. The crowd began near Lake Street and walked up the freeway to Minneapolis City Hall, occasionally pausing to stage a "die-in."
The takeover of a major interstate is without precedent in recent local history. A similar protest occurred during the 1972 anti-war movement, however, when about 200 people blocked traffic on Interstate 94. Protesters also walked up Hiawatha Avenue, a state highway, late last month.
Traffic halt to a standstill in the northbound lane of Interstate 35W behind the protest. State troopers were on the scene, but appeared not to make any arrests.
The State Patrol's Acting Chief Lt. Col. Matt Langer said in a statement that their concern is "always for the safety of the public."
"To be clear: It is illegal and extremely dangerous to walk on a freeway," he said. "In this case, the safest and fastest way to clear the roadway was to keep the demonstrators moving and have them exit the Interstate. Arresting more than 100 people would have taken longer and been potentially more dangerous than letting them leave on their own."
The protest, which began by calling for higher fast food wages at a Burger King, largely focused on the death of Eric Garner at the hands of an officer in Staten Island, N.Y. The group often chanted "I can't breathe," which were Garner's last words.
