Tear gas was deployed on protesters who defied a curfew in Kenosha, Wis., on Monday, taking to the streets for a second night following the police shooting of Jacob Blake, now in serious but stable condition. Hundreds of protesters lingered near the courthouse beyond the 8pm curfew, shouting at police officers in tactical gear. Some threw water bottles and fireworks, prompting authorities to respond with smoke bombs and flash bang grenades, per the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. A video appeared to show tear gas deployed around 9pm. Several parked cars were seen in flames around 11pm, per NBC News. Fires later consumed several stores and a restaurant in a residential neighborhood, not far from where a probation and parole office was seen in flames, per the New York Times. A sheriff's deputy was reportedly injured in the neck by a firework.
A police officer had reportedly been hit with a brick on Sunday before Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers authorized National Guard troops to assist local law enforcement in Kenosha on Monday. The Milwaukee Police Association urged calm while acknowledging that a cellphone video showing an officer shooting Blake seven times in the back "may show some troubling things." Blake's uncle, Justin Blake, called for peace and asked people to contact their elected representatives in an effort to spur change. "We want these young people to vent and voice their opinion … we just want them to do it safely," he said, per NBC. Protests also erupted in New York City; Los Angeles; San Diego; Portland, Ore.; and Madison, Wis., where dumpsters were set on fire, storefronts were smashed, and a liquor store was looted. It's still unclear if there were arrests in Kenosha, a city of 100,000. (More protests stories.)