The Latest: Anti-violence protesters snarl Chicago traffic
CHICAGO (AP) — The Latest on protest demanding government action on gun violence, resignation of mayor and police superintendent (all times local):
4:50 p.m.
About 200 protesters are marching along Chicago's Lake Shore Drive toward Wrigley Field to demand more government action against gun violence.
Police shut down parts of the roadway that stretches along Lake Michigan to make way for the demonstration.
Organizers say the anti-violence march before a game between the Cubs and San Diego Padres and the first day of the Lollapalooza music festival is intended to "redistribute the pain." They say they believe the march in the affluent North Side neighborhood will draw attention to violence, corruption and the lack of economic investment in the city's African-American neighborhoods.
The protesters are also demanding the resignation of police Superintendent Eddie Johnson and Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
Johnson has asserted in recent weeks violent crime in the city has declined, attributing it to new police tactics. However, he conceded more has to be done in the neighborhoods where much of the violence takes place.
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3:10 p.m.
Authorities in Chicago say police will shut down part of Lake Shore Drive ahead of a march organized by people demanding the resignation of the city's mayor and police superintendent.
Protesters, led by Rev. Gregory Livingston, will gather on Lake Shore Drive on the city's North Side at 4 p.m. Thursday
Police say they will shut down the drive near the gathering point at around 3:45 p.m. Protesters plan to exit Lake Shore Drive and march on Wrigley Field, where the Cubs will play the San Diego Padres.
Organizers say they believe the march in the affluent neighborhood will draw attention to violence, corruption and the lack of economic investment in the city's African-American neighborhoods.
The protesters are also demanding the resignation of Superintendent Eddie Johnson and Mayor Rahm Emanuel for failure to stem gun violence.
The demonstration comes almost a month after anti-violence protesters shut down traffic on a Chicago interstate.
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12 a.m.
Chicago officials have issued parking bans and are warning motorists of rolling street closures ahead of a rush-hour protest march along the city's busy Lake Shore Drive.
Marchers plan to gather on the thoroughfare Thursday afternoon and walk north toward Wrigley Field. Organizers say they are marching to press demands for the resignations of Police Supt. Eddie Johnson and Mayor Rahm Emanuel. They claim the officials have failed in efforts to lower gun violence.
A San Diego Padres-Chicago Cubs game is scheduled Thursday evening, and it's the first day of the Lollapalooza music festival in Grant Park.
Organizers say they believe the march in the affluent neighborhood will draw attention to violence, corruption and the lack of economic investment in the city's African-American neighborhoods.
The demonstration comes almost a month after anti-violence protesters shut down traffic on a Chicago interstate.
