The 11th night of protests brought some peace in the streets of Ferguson, but with tensions strained, unrest was just a shout away.
Protestors marching along West Florissant Avenue chanted “no justice, no peace,” while police, for the most part, looked on. It was a stark difference from the night before — when police were instructed by Gov. Jay Nixon to force groups to move along the protestors’ route. Anyone stationary would be arrested.
But with emotions still raw in the wake of Michael Brown’s death, unrest was still present. Clashes between police and protestors, while significantly decreased, still dotted the street. Fights and arguments were quickly diffused by community leaders or residents. Missing from the scene were the clouded streets, full of tear gas and smoke bombs, that have become synonymous with Ferguson since the unarmed teenager was shot by officer Darren Wilson.
The policing of journalists and residents protesting, however, was still very present. As the night went on, that tension boiled over.
Reporter face down in road being arrested. Tried to take picture. Officer shoves me
— Wesley Lowery (@WesleyLowery) August 20, 2014
The scene in #ferguson https://t.co/4yJibDDArA
— Ryan J. Reilly (@ryanjreilly) August 20, 2014
“Get that camera out of my fucking face.” — officer who pointed gun at protestors #Ferguson
— Ryan J. Reilly (@ryanjreilly) August 20, 2014
Police just charged into the McDonald’s and are pointing guns at people
— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) August 20, 2014
Police & protesters continuing to clash in a McDonald’s parking lot. Police have charged, retreated, and then charged pic.twitter.com/Mwaf9mT3HX
— Yamiche Alcindor (@Yamiche) August 20, 2014
In an early morning press conference, Capt. Ron Johnson commented on the decrease of clashes, crediting police for interrupting criminal activities and preventing violence.
From St. Louis Today:
“Protest crowds were a bit smaller, and they were out earlier,” he said, noting that no Molotov cocktails were thrown or bullets fired by protesters. However, he said some “criminals and agitators” threatened police, threw glass and plastic bottles — some filled with urine — at officers and hid behind members of the media covering the protests. Johnson praised religious and community leaders with keeping tensions lower than in recent nights. He also thanked hundreds of volunteers who cleaned area streets and businesses. “That is the true spirit of Ferguson,” Johnson said.
Authorities confiscated three loaded handguns on Tuesday night.
Police just put out these three guns as evidence for what was confiscated in #Ferguson overnight @kmov pic.twitter.com/RW8sfr1tvo — Laura Hettiger KMOV (@LauraKHettiger) August 20, 2014
In the end, 47 people were arrested.
We’ll keep you updated on the latest from Ferguson.
