Protesters march near the RNC in response to the police killing

MILWAUKEE – About 100 demonstrators marched along the security perimeter of the Republican National Convention on Thursday to protest the death of Samuel Sharpe Jr. Who was shot and killed by police just two days earlier.

Sharpe, who was black, was killed by five police officers from other states from Columbus, Ohio, on the north side of Milwaukee, within a mile of the RNC grounds, but with no connection to the event.

Before the march, protesters gathered at Red Arrow Park, a few blocks east of the RNC security perimeter, to condemn the city’s decision to around 4,000 officials from other states to help with RNC security.

“The police probably thought they were doing what they were supposed to do, but shooting him like that was just over the top,” said Katrina Games, Sharpe’s aunt. “They didn’t even give him a chance to obey the order. They just shot him.”

Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman defended the police presence from other states at the RNC following the shooting in a press conference Tuesday.

“Someone’s life was in danger,” Norman said. “These officers, who are not from this area, took it upon themselves to intervene to save someone’s life.”

Protesters also drew attention to the killing of D’Vontaye Mitchell, a black man who died on June 30 after detained by private security guards Employees of the Hyatt Regency Hotel in downtown Milwaukee. The security forces involved were not charged in his death, although a coroner classified his death as a homicide.

“We will continue to protest and shout our anger to the mountaintops. We will be my brother’s voice so he gets justice,” said Nayisha Mitchell, D’Vontaye’s sister.

The march, organized by the Milwaukee Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression, began and ended at Red Arrow Park, the same park where about 700 to 800 protesters gathered to Protest against the RNC On Monday.

The streets were lined with police, but peaceful protesters managed to successfully march from the park to the Hyatt Regency Hotel and back.