The Reverend Al Sharpton called the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager by a white police officer in suburban St. Louis a "defining moment for this country," according to Reuters.
Sharpton spoke Sunday at a rally in Ferguson, also led by him,, where days of protest have ended with almost nightly confrontations between police and protesters, Reuters reported.
Sharpton says he wants Congress to stop programs that provide military-style weapons to police departments, according to Reuters. He says he expects police to "smear" the slain teenager, his family and his attorneys.
He also condemned the recent spate of violence and looting in Ferguson, Reuters reported.
Seven protesters were arrested early on Sunday after Missouri Governor Jay Nixon imposed an overnight curfew aimed at quelling protests and looting, according to Reuters. Police used canisters of smoke and later teargas to disperse the crowd, a Missouri State Highway Patrol spokesman said.
Patrol Captain Ron Johnson, entrusted by the governor with restoring order, told hundreds of people gathered at a local church for a rally that he was committed to protecting their right to protest, Reuters reported.
"I'm sorry," Johnson, who is black, told Brown's family during remarks that prompted repeated standing ovations, according to Reuters. "My heart is heavy."
President Barack Obama has been getting regular briefings while on vacation in Martha's Vineyard, including from senior adviser Valerie Jarrett, Reuters reported.
Jarrett spoke with Nixon on Saturday to get an update and offer the administration's continued coordination and support with state and local officials, a White House spokesman said, according to Reuters. Jarrett had also been in touch with civil rights leaders, including Sharpton and NAACP President Cornell Brooks over the last few days.
The U.S. Department of Justice and the St. Louis County Police department are investigating Brown's death, which has been described differently by the police and by a friend who was walking with him at the time, Reuters reported.
Police say that after Wilson asked Brown to move out of the road onto a sidewalk, Brown reached into the patrol car and struggled with Wilson for the officer's service gun, according to Reuters. Wilson, who sustained a facial injury, then shot Brown a number of times.
The friend, Dorian Johnson, 22, and at least one other witness have said the officer reached out through his car window to grab at Brown and the teenager was trying to get away from the officer when he was shot, Reuters reported. Brown held up his hands in a sign of surrender but the officer got out of his patrol car and shot Brown several times, they said.
