Peaceful protesters march the streets of state capitals in Missouri and Kansas

Protesters marched along the streets of the state capitals of Missouri and Kansas on Monday night to protest the death of George Floyd, who was kneeled on for nearly nine minutes by a Minneapolis police officer.

In Jefferson City, a crowd that grew to about 2,000 people amassed in the Missouri Capitol lawn off East High Street.

In Topeka, hundreds of protesters marched peacefully through downtown before gathering at a plaza for a brief rally a couple blocks from the Kansas Capitol.

The Capitol and state office buildings in Jefferson City closed at 3 p.m. in anticipation of planned protests. Protesters started to filter onto the front lawn of the Capitol building shortly after 5 p.m.

The Capitol, which is under construction and has had a fence surrounding it for more than year, was additionally protected by a combination of Capitol police, Army National Guard members, state troopers and Missouri Department of Conservation agents.

“We are here to make sure everyone is safe and able to exercise their First Amendment rights,” said Sandy Karsten, Department of Public Safety director. “Right now, they are peaceful and doing just that.”

The crowd, which was mostly young people, chanted “Black Lives Matter” and “I can’t breathe,” which echoed against the Capitol.

Protesters, wearing face masks, also listened to speakers who told of their experiences with police brutality.

Being pulled over excessively if they drove nice cars. Being mistaken for a drug dealer. Being afraid for their son and having the “talk,” in which they described how being black put a target on their backs.

“I’m tired of not being able to sleep at night because of the unknown about my child — the fear that my son will be next,” said Iasha Cannady, 45, of Jefferson City.

For most of the protest, the crowd faced away from law enforcement. But at one point they turned. The protesters kneeled and asked the officers to join in solidarity.

“Take a knee! Take a knee!”

Three state troopers kneeled. That left a majority of the law enforcement on their feet.

The scene played out again at the end of the night.

This time, several members of the Missouri National Guard, holding their shoulder-high clear shields for balance, took a knee. Two flashed signs of love at the protesters.

Though the anger at the police would abate momentarily, it was felt in each yell of “Prosecute the police!”

Protesters streamed through downtown Jefferson City, past restaurants, the Cole County courthouse, the Sheriff’s Department and jail.

Business remained untouched and no altercations broke out.

They headed to the park next to Lincoln University, Jefferson City’s historically black college. Police blocked off streets keeping the way clear.

There, they lay with their hands behind their backs on the asphalt or the grass and chanted “I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe!”

In Topeka, the predominantly young marchers, often clad in black, yelled “No justice, no peace!” and held signs, many of which read “I can’t breathe” and “Black Lives Matter.”

Police officers blocked traffic for the protesters as a helicopter hovered above.

More than an hour and a half after a large peaceful march dispersed in downtown Topeka, a group of protesters gathered near city police headquarters. On multiple social media live video feeds, a Kansas Highway Patrol official could be heard declaring an unlawful assembly and ordering protesters to disperse.

After 10:30 p.m., a line of officers in heavy gear began walking north through downtown. Beginning at about 10:50 p.m., police deployed gas.

It wasn’t clear from videos how many protesters were still in the area.

This story was originally published June 1, 2020 at 10:19 PM.