Ferguson protestors defy curfew, police fire shots

Angry protestors in Ferguson in the US state of Missouri have defied a midnight curfew, with heavily-armed police firing tear gas canisters at demonstrators.

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency and a curfew in Ferguson on Saturday following a week of angry demonstrations over the death of an unarmed African-American teenager by a white police officer.

The curfew took effect at midnight but hundreds of protesters remained in the streets, chanting “No justice, no curfew!” and “Hands up, don’t shoot!” in a reference to the fatal shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown who was shot to death “execution style” by the Ferguson cop as he held his hands up.

Since August 9, when the tragic shooting took place, protests have been held in the predominantly black town every night.

According to The Washington Post, police fired shots, held shields, and pointed rifles, calling on protestors to disperse after they defied the curfew early Sunday.

“You are violating a state-imposed curfew. You must disperse or you will be subject to arrest or other actions,” police shouted over a loudspeaker but the protesters defied their calls.

The police made several arrests and officers in black gloves pushed back cameramen out of West Florissant, the street where Brown took some of his last steps, as they tried to capture images of a protester being led into a police van with his hands restrained behind his back.

The confrontation early Sunday was just the latest as unrest continues to grip Ferguson. Americans have held demonstrations over Brown’s death in over 100 cities across the United States.

Ferguson is a majority African-American city but almost all of its political representatives and all but three of its police force are white.