BREAKING NEWS: Shocking footage of police in downtown Los Angeles shooting to death a homeless black man has gone viral on social media.
The footage can be viewed here on New Matilda’s Facebook page. A warning to readers – the video contains graphic content.
The shooting is likely to re-ignite anger in the African American community, over the deaths of black citizens at the hands of police.
The video footage, uploaded a short time ago, shows six police fighting with a man in the street, and restraining a woman.
The man is lying prone on the ground, and officers appear to have him under control, before a single shot rings out, followed by four more.
Police step back and the man is lying dead on the street. His female companion is held by two officers.
The shooting was filmed, as an angry crowd began closing in on police.
The death is likely to re-incite widespread anger over the treatment of African Americans by police, in the wake of the shooting death of unarmed teenager Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri in August 2014. That killing sparked weeks of rioting after a grand jury refused to indict the officer responsible, Darren Wilson.
It also sparked a protest movement – called ‘Hands Up, Don’t Shoot’, with African Americans actively confronting police with their hands raised in the air.
Brown’s death was followed by the killing of Eric Garner in New York – police tried to arrest him for selling tobacco on the streets. He was held by officers in a choke-hold, and died.
In December, a gunmen ambushed and killed two New York police officers in response to the death of Garner.