Students from both Madison East and West High Schools participated in coordinated nationwide protests against police brutality Tuesday, blocking East Washington Avenue from 10:45 a.m. until 6:30 p.m., according to a Madison Police Department incident report.
The protest took place alongside others in cities across the country. Protesters and community members tweeted #ShutDownA14 along with pictures, videos and reactions to the protests. Tweets depicted protesters blocking the Brooklyn Bridge and the Oakland freeway, as well as occupying many city halls and capitol squares.
Students from East High School were joined by students from West High School and other community members in one lane of East Washington Avenue, a state highway, beginning at 10:45 a.m. The group had blocked all inbound and outbound lanes by 1:15 p.m., the incident report said.
According to an East High School press release, most students returned to school in the afternoon. The school had to reroute buses to the front of Emerson Elementary on East Johnson Street and have offered guidance for students who wish to discuss the protests at a later time.
MPD Public Information Officer Joel DeSpain said in the incident report that the department values citizens’ rights to exercise their First Amendment rights. However, MPD Command Staff also considered the rights of those wishing to utilize the state highway and eventually had to ask protesters to leave the highway, the incident report said.
MPD officers, 100 Black Men President Dr. Floyd Rose, Dane County NAACP President Gregory Jones and Greater Urban League of Madison President and CEO Dr. Ruben Anthony attempted to negotiate with protesters to leave the roadway.
Officers arrested four adults after they refused to leave once MPD had issued a final request. MPD informed the protesters they would be arrested in violation of a city ordinance that prohibits the obstruction of streets, highways or alleys, the incident report said.
