Protesters shut down another California freeway

It's become a nightly ritual. When dusk descends, so do
they -- by the hundreds, in cities coast to coast.
And the protests over police brutality after recent deaths of
unarmed black men might only intensify. Organizers are
calling this week a "Week of Outrage," culminating in
massive demonstrations planned for Saturday in New York
and Washington.
Eric Garner Jr., the son of the man who died after a
New York police officer held him in a chokehold, said he
was proud of how protesters are carrying on.
"It made me feel proud because I don't have to share this
moment by myself and my family," the son told CNN's
Erin Burnett OutFront.
"It's amazing how everybody (is) doing this. My father and
I appreciate it."
But already this week, peaceful protests across the country
have been marred by bouts of violence and and crowds that
disrupted thousands by shutting down freeways.
Here's the latest on the unrest across the country:
California interstate shut down
For the second night in a row, protesters spilled onto a
Northern California freeway Monday night, this time
shutting down Interstate 80 in Berkeley.
Many snaked through the hundreds of cars that were
trapped for hours.
"We are out here because the system has made it obvious
that black lives do not matter, and us as a people are not
OK with that," a protester in Berkeley told CNN.
"We're here to demand justice, and we're here to demand
peace."
Some protesters also sat on a train track in Berkeley,
blocking a train from moving, the San Francisco Bay
Guardian reported.
But unlike Sunday night, when some protesters looted
businesses and damaged several police cars in the Oakland
and Berkeley areas, there were no reports of major
destruction in Northern California.
NBA players join in
Before the Brooklyn Nets and Cleveland Cavaliers faced
off on the basketball court Monday night, several players
were already scoring points with protesters outside the
arena.
As they warmed up for the game, Cleveland Cavaliers
LeBron James and Kyrie Irving were among the players
wearing T-shirts that said "I can't breathe" -- Eric
Garner's last words, which have become a rallying cry for
protesters after last week's grand jury decision not to indict
an officer in his death.
The crowd erupted in cheers after an organizer told them
about the players' T-shirts.
After the game, James explained why he wore the "I can't
breathe" shirt.
"It was a message to the family. I'm sorry for their loss,"
the four-time league MVP said.
"Obviously, we know that our society needs to get better.
But like I said before ... violence is not the answer, and
retaliation isn't the solution. As a society we know we
need to get better, but it's not going to be done in one day.
Rome wasn't built in a day."
New Yorkers protest near Prince William and Kate
Outside the Barclays Center, a large crowd of
demonstrators swarmed the streets, chanting "hands up,
don't shoot" and "black lives matter."
Activists had been threatening to disrupt the visit of the
Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who are visiting New
York and attended the Nets-Cavaliers game Monday night
"They need to know this is what America is. ... America
is a system where those who benefit from others neglect to
see the underclass, the people who are underprivileged, and
that's why we're out here," said Jibri Nuriddin, a
protester from New York.
"We're going to keep chanting and keep marching," he said.
"Everyone's going to know that this is an issue. We're not
going to let this issue die."
Demonstrations sprout up elsewhere
In Washington, demonstrators protesting police violence laid
down in the street several blocks from the White House on
Monday, blocking rush hour traffic.
Protesters chanted, "black lives matter" and "off the
sidewalks, into the streets."
One woman held a sign that said, "Stop killing us."
The demonstration blocked traffic at cross streets along
Connecticut Avenue, a major thoroughfare that connects the
White House to upper northwest Washington.
Collette Flanagan of Dallas told protesters her unarmed
son was killed by police.
"Our babies should be here in the prime of their lives," she
said.
Obama weighs in
After weeks of racial protests across the country,
President Barack Obama spoke about the future of race
relations in America to a network that reaches a
predominately young African-American audience.
"What I told the young people who I met with -- we're
going to have more conversations over the coming months
-- is, 'This isn't something that is going to be solved
overnight,' Obama said in an interview with BET. "'This
is something that is deeply rooted in our society. It's deeply
rooted in our history.'"
Once criticized for shying away from the topic of race
early on in his presidency, Obama has more recently been
forced to lead a discussion on the issue.
In his interview, the President said African-American
youth need to be both persistent and patient in order to
make progress on the issue of racial tensions in America.
"It's important to recognize as painful as these incidents are,
we can't equate what is happening now to what happened
fifty years ago," he said. "If you talk to your parents,
grandparents, uncles, they'll tell you that things are better
-- not good, in some cases, but better."