U.S. NewsCrime

Actions

Hundreds Gather For Stephon Clark's Funeral Amid Passionate Protests

Rev. Al Sharpton delivered the eulogy Thursday at the funeral for 22-year-old Stephon Clark, whose death at the hands of police sparked protests.
Posted
and last updated

Hundreds of people in Sacramento showed up for Stephon Clark's funeral Thursday, a week and a half after police shot the unarmed 22-year-old in his grandparents' backyard. Police said they thought Clark had a gun at the time of the shooting, but he was only carrying a cellphone. The shooting sparked widespread protests and demonstrations across Sacramento.

Rev. Al Sharpton gave the eulogy, calling on the Trump administration to do more about what he called "police misconduct."

"The president's press secretary said this is a local matter. No, this is not a local matter. They been killing young black men all over the country," Sharpton said.

Clark's brother Ste'vante Clark, who led a protest during a meeting at City Hall Tuesday night, took over the microphone at the funeral and said this:

"We're gonna do coliseums for Stephon, we're gonna do libraries, we're gonna do resource centers, we're gonna — Stephon is gonna live for generations to generations to generations to generations."

The Clark family's attorney encouraged protests after the funeral to stay peaceful. 

"We must choose nonviolence to make sure that we protest, exercise our First Amendment rights in the most productive way possible," attorney Benjamin Crump said. 

Additional reporting from Newsy affiliate CNN.