Thursday, July 7, 2016

Alton Sterling Shooting Exposes Racial Fractures in Baton Rouge

 

BATON ROUGE, La. — The mourners danced in the muggy night air, beneath the stars and behind a brass band that led a second line parade through a neighborhood accustomed to rituals of grief and celebration.

The band played and mourners quick-stepped — some drenched in sweat, some with their heads cocked and their hands held high. A man heaving a gleaming brass trombone shouted out: "Oh, free my people!" The crowd responded: "Let my people go!"

That call-and-response captured the mood in this deeply segregated capital city, where two white police officers early Tuesday shot and killed Alton Sterling, 37, a black father of five. Police say he was armed as he wrestled with the officers outside the convenience store where he sold CDs. The Justice Department is investigating the killing, and the officers have been suspended. 

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