Across Manhattan, protesters outraged over a Staten Island grand jury's decision not to indict a police officer in the chokehold death of Eric Garner took to the streets, with many chanting the same words Garner said before he died: "I can't breathe."
Demonstrators took over the West Side Highway, blocked traffic in Times Square, marched near the Christmas tree lighting in Rockefeller Center, and lay down in protest in Grand Central Terminal and Columbus Circle, The New York Times reports. Some protesters were also spotted in Staten Island at the site of Garner's death.
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New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said he understood why the protestors came out, adding that "anyone who believes in the value of this country should feel called to action right now." Some arrests have been made, but the protests have been mostly peaceful.
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U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said that a federal civil rights investigation will be opened in the case, and the Rev. Al Sharpton also held a press conference with the Garner family, calling for a national march in Washington, D.C., on Dec. 13 to address the Garner and Michael Brown cases. At the conference, Garner's widow, Esaw Garner, vowed that "as long as I have breath in my body, I will fight the fight until the end."
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