Several arrests made at anti-police brutality protest in Houston

A protester is arrested during a demonstration outside the Galleria on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2014, in Houston. Hundreds gathered near the Galleria to speak out against alleged instances of police brutality. A protester is arrested during a demonstration outside the Galleria on Saturday, Dec. 13, 2014, in Houston. Hundreds gathered near the Galleria to speak out against alleged instances of police brutality. Photo: J. Patric Schneider, For The Chronicle Photo: J. Patric Schneider, For The Chronicle Image 1 of / 51 Caption Close Several arrests made at anti-police brutality protest in Houston 1 / 51 Back to Gallery

Hours after police shot an apparently unarmed man during a traffic stop in southwest Houston, a vocal crowd of about 300 gathered to protest other more prominent national shootings of unarmed black men by police officers.

Around noon, protestors gathered by the water wall on South Post Oak with signs like "Hands up, Don't shoot" and "We can't breathe." Near the entrance to the Galleria, protesters mounted a brief insurrection, darting into traffic, before being swarmed by cops, who arrested at least six of them.

One mounted officer could be seen restraining one African-American protester by leaning down and grabbing her by her braids, causing her to yelp in pain.

The march was one of several across the country to demand justice and more police accountability.

"We want to send the message there needs to be more police accountability," said Shere Dore, an organizer of the Houston march.

One young boy wore a shirt that said "I am Tamir Rice," referencing the young boy recently killed by police in Cleveland. The back of his shirt read, "Please don't shoot, I'm only 12."

Third Ward resident Patrick Smith, 28, said he was tired of being racially profiled as he walks through his neighborhood.

Smith, wearing a hemp noose around his neck and carrying a sign that said "Police brutality is modern day lynching," said he is frequently stopped by police walking along the streets of his neighborhood.

"What business is it of yours?" he said he frequently wanted to ask the police who would stop him.

Protesters marched Post Oak Boulevard and Hidalgo to Westheimer, where more than a dozen protesters staged a die-in.

Melissa Vivanco, 38, had a mask around her face which said "I can't breathe."

"I truly believe if you injure one, you injure all of us," she said, adding that she was worried about the large number of police at the event.

Officers, mounted on bikes and horses, corralled protesters on sidewalks, warning them repeatedly that if they tried to block traffic they would be arrested.

"People have the right to express themselves," HPD Assistant Chief Troy Finner said. "At the same time, we have to make things stay orderly, make sure traffic is able to flow."

The protest occurred just hours after two HPD officers shot a man multiple times during a traffic stop.

"I try to be unbiased, but generally it seems like excessive force was used," one protester said, of the shooting, identifying herself only as "Tina."

Kristen Anderson watched from the sidewalk as protesters occupied the four corners at Post Oak Boulevard and Westheimer.

"It seems a lot more controlled than Ferguson," said Anderson, who spent more than a week in Ferguson during the protests there. "It's hard to remain calm when police have sniper rifles and you know they're pointed at you."

Thad Hancock, 46, was visiting from Mississippi with his 39-year-old wife, Melissa, when they heard the protests from their room at the Westin Hotel. They wandered down to the Galleria parking lot to take it in.

"This side of the fence seems safer," Melissa Hancock said, watching from the parking lot bordering the sidewalk. "We don't want to go out there."

"They seem to feel very strongly about this," her husband adding.