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The #BlackRightsMatter movement is calling for “no more being white,middle-class people”.
The group is organising a protest on Tuesday against a US law that criminalises anti-racism protests and allows police to use force against demonstrators who do not comply.
Demonstrators are demanding that the law, passed last year, be overturned and that the Justice Department prosecute activists who organise protests and “disrupt police operations”.
The protest is being held at Washington DC’s Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Centre.
“I think it’s just disgusting that there is no justice in the world for this person that has done this,” protester Nita Smith told the Washington Post.
She said she was inspired by other protests around the country and the protests in Seattle, which she says have been peaceful.
It’s not surprising that the protesters want justice for Trayvon Martin.
I was just disgusted that the justice system has to look at people who have been arrested and punished for nothing, and then they decide that you can be guilty of nothing.
The protesters are calling for a federal investigation into the actions of the police, who have used tear gas and pepper spray against protesters.
Activists say the protesters have been beaten, handcuffed and detained by the police.
They say they have been told to leave the site by officers.
A statement from Black Lives Matter said it had been made aware of the report and was “deeply disturbed” by what it said were the actions taken by police.
“Black lives matter is calling on the United States Justice Department to investigate the actions and conduct of law enforcement and government officials as part of a systemic investigation into law enforcement’s disproportionate use of force and the treatment of protesters in recent years,” the statement said.
This is not the first time protesters have targeted a group of law-enforcement officials.
In 2014, protesters held a demonstration outside the US Capitol demanding justice for George Zimmerman, the Florida man acquitted of murdering Trayvon Martin in 2012.
Protests have also taken place around the world.
On Saturday, the European Parliament voted overwhelmingly in favour of introducing legislation to end racial discrimination in police, the BBC’s Paul Adams in Brussels reports.
Demonstrate the truth, show that you’re not scared to be who you are, the protesters chanted.
But a US government spokesperson defended the use of tear gas.
“In this instance, they have used pepper spray in a very limited way, not enough to do much damage,” said the spokesperson, Matthew Klunder, at a news briefing.
We have no idea what their intent is, he added.
At a press conference later on Saturday, Mr Klunder said the US had “not used tear gasses in a long time”, adding: “They are not used in the United Kingdom and they are not on the streets of Paris.”
He said the use was limited because of the need to protect officers who had been attacked by protesters.
The demonstration is a reminder that the US justice system is a patchwork of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
Black Lives Matter is a non-partisan movement whose leaders have called for the criminalisation of anti-Black racism and the use, prosecution and punishment of anyone who acts in a way that disrupts a police operation.
Many in the movement say they believe the US should adopt the Nordic model of justice and justice systems that have resulted in the conviction of thousands of people for violent crimes.
However, the group’s movement has also been criticised for some of its tactics, including an attempted shutdown of a police headquarters in the US city of Ferguson in 2014, and the arrest and conviction of several Black people in the death of Michael Brown.
The protest in Washington is the latest to take place in a country where anti-police protests are on the rise and many of those involved are Black.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly used his Twitter account to denounce Black Lives Matters and his administration has stepped up arrests and restrictions.
White supremacy has been on the march in America for decades, and many are concerned that a new generation of anti.
Black activists are often labelled by the right as “the new alt-right”.
