Black Lives Matter Leader Released After Spending the Night in Jail

Editor’s Note: A very public, over-the-top arrest… kinda like watching a reality show. They’re really baiting people, aren’t they?

As noted yesterday, the most surprising twist from the Saturday night protests that swept America, the third consecutive night of demonstrations against police violence, was the arrest of DeRay McKesson, one of the leaders of the Black Lives Matter protest movement, who was arrested in Baton Rouge, where he traveled earlier Saturday “to demonstrate in solidarity with residents angered by the recent death of Alton Sterling after an officer-involved shooting that was captured on video.” McKesson was taken into custody around 11 p.m.

The Black Lives Matter activist was arrested while marching in Baton Rouge on Airline Highway Saturday night. Police had told demonstrators to stay off the road. But McKesson reportedly said to those marching that there was no sidewalk, The New York Times reported. Mckesson was broadcasting the march on Periscope and filmed a portion of his arrest.

In the broadcast, about five minutes in, police can be heard saying: “City police. You’re under arrest. Don’t fight me. Don’t fight me.” Mckesson then says: “I’m under arrest, y’all.”

The phone is handed off to other protesters who continued videotaping and explaining the incident. A Louisiana state police official told a reporter with The Advocate that the protesters were “clearly blocking the roadway.”

“We welcome the protests. We want them to voice their opinions. That’s what we’re here to do, to make sure they’re safe and they’re able to do that,” he said in a video the reporter posted on the reporter’s Twitter account. “We wouldn’t arrest people who are quietly protesting off the roadway,” he said.

It was not clear what charges, if any, McKesson will face, according to The Advocate.