23 arrested at 'Fight for $15' rally in Milwaukee
MILWAUKEE -- About 100 demonstrators pushing for a $15 an hour minimum wage prompted a McDonald's restaurant in Milwaukee to close as they congregated outside the fast food restaurant.
Police made about 23 arrests as the protest moved onto a busy street and blocked traffic on the city's north side. The demonstration is part of the "Fight for $15," a national movement seeking to increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour for fast food, child care, airlines and other workers. The group also wants the right to start unions or join existing ones.
PHOTO GALLERY
The workers blocked doors and took over the drive thru area of the restaurant before marching in the streets -- stopping traffic on I-43.
Police say the protesters refused to leave the roadway and were arrested. One person was arrested for disorderly conduct.
Milwaukee native and Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival Co-Chair the Rev. Dr. Liz Theoharis was among those arrested.
A demonstration was planned in Chicago Thursday and in Miami where higher education workers are expected to join fast-food workers in a protest in Miami. A U.S. House candidate was among those arrested Tuesday at a similar demonstration in Detroit.