A group of protesters in Ferguson, Mo., confronted civil rights activist Jesse Jackson in a McDonald’s parking lot, saying they believed he was in the town for his own gain and not to support protesters.
“When you going to stop selling us out Jesse?” a protester shouts at Mr. Jackson in a video captured of the incident and first posted by conservative news site Western Journalism on Friday.
“We don’t want you here in St. Louis! When you gonna stop selling us out, Jesse?” the person continues.
Mr. Jackson largely remains silent during the confrontation, stating only that he is there to support the people of Ferguson and has met with the parents of Michael Brown, the unarmed black teenager who was killed.
The video makes it difficult to tell exactly how many people confronted Mr. Jackson, but one of them asks him “Are you marching today with us, or are you just going to sit in the car?”
At another point, a protester tells him, “You not a leader. If you not a leader we don’t want you here, brother.”
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Racial tensions in Ferguson — a suburb of St. Louis — spilled over Aug. 9 when Mr. Brown was shot by a white police officer. The officer, Darren Wilson, maintains that Mr. Brown was a threat, but the incident has set off a string of protests about civil rights abuses by the police.
Critics have accused Mr. Jackson and other civil rights leaders like him, such as the Rev. Al Sharpton, as using events like Ferguson to fundraise and increase their own media profiles.
And some local residents – likely including those people in the video – are concerned that nationally known figures such as Mr. Jackson coming to Ferguson could distract attention away from the issues of civil rights and possible police brutality.
• Phillip Swarts can be reached at pswarts@washingtontimes.com.
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