NYC protesters defy mayor's call for moratorium

Defying Mayor Bill de Blasio's plea for a moratorium on protests over police conduct, hundreds of demonstrators in New York City briefly blocked busy Fifth Avenue on Tuesday night amid last-minute Christmas shopping and tributes to two slain officers.

Marchers were peaceful and generally kept to the sidewalks as they worked their way through the packed Midtown shopping district, media reported.

De Blasio had called for a halt to protests until after the funeral of two NYPD officers who were gunned down Saturday by a man angry over the police killings of Eric Garner, Michael Brown and other unarmed black men.

Police Commissioner William Bratton, who was in Rhode Island, called Tuesday's protest "unfortunate" in light of de Blasio's request.

The action, organized by the Act Now to End War & Stop Racism Coalition, came hours before the city's landmarks, including the Empire State Building, the Chrysler building, One World Trade Center, were to dim their lights at 9 p.m. for five minutes to honor officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos.

News outlets reported that protesters' chants included "NYPD, KKK, how many kids did you kill today?" and "How do you spell murderers? NYPD!" — references to Eric Garner, who died after being placed in a chokehold by an undercover NYPD officer this summer. A Staten Island grand jury did not indict the officer.

"There have been calls to put aside the protests, well, I will tell you this, the NYPD and police around this country have not put aside their murdering of our people," said Travis Morales, of Stop Mass Incarceration Network, WABC-TV reported.

"You got no right to tell us when, how and whether we can protest," added Carl Dix, another organizer.

Earlier in the day, de Blasio held a moment of silence at City Hall to honor Liu and Ramos, who will be buried Saturday. De Blasio and his wife also visited the makeshift memorial on the Brooklyn street where the officers were slain as they sat in their patrol car.

Their slayings have raised tensions amid protests over the police killings of Garner, Brown and 12-year-old Tamir Rice in Cleveland. The NYPD officers union has blamed de Blasio for inciting Ismaaiyl Brinsley to ambush the officers during a day-long rampage in which he wounded his ex-girlfriend in Baltimore and threatened to kill police. He killed himself after shooting Liu and Ramos.