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Protesters criticize Minnesota congressman who backs cause

FILE - In this Nov. 18, 2015, file photo, Jeremiah Ellison, center right, son of U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison, stands near police during a protest at the Minneapolis Police Department 4th Precinct building in Minneapolis. In the tense days after a black man's death at the hands of police, Minnesota’s first African-American congressman stood with protesters as they besieged a police station, even tweeting what he called an “agonizing” photograph showing his son with hands raised in a confrontation with officers in riot gear. Yet lately, U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison has fallen out of favor with some protesters camped outside a Minneapolis police precinct. (Renee Jones Schneider/Star Tribune via AP, File) MANDATORY CREDIT; ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS OUT; MAGS OUT; TWIN CITIES LOCAL TELEVISION OUT FILE - In this Nov. 18, 2015, file photo, Jeremiah Ellison, center right, son of U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison, stands near police during a protest at the Minneapolis Police Department 4th Precinct building in Minneapolis. In the tense days after a black man's death at the hands of police, Minnesota’s first African-American congressman stood with protesters as they besieged a police station, even tweeting what he called an “agonizing” photograph showing his son with hands raised in a confrontation with officers in riot gear. Yet lately, U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison has fallen out of favor with some protesters camped outside a Minneapolis police precinct. (Renee Jones Schneider/Star Tribune via AP, File) MANDATORY CREDIT; ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS OUT; MAGS OUT; TWIN CITIES LOCAL TELEVISION OUT

By Associated Press December 2, 2015 1 min read

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – In the tense days after a black man’s death at the hands of Minneapolis police, U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison stood with protesters as they besieged a police station.

Yet as the protest has worn on, the Minneapolis Democrat has come into sharp criticism from some protesters who call him a “sellout” for joining in a call for them to take down their tents outside the station and to remove their roadblocks.

Ellison has been playing a delicate balancing act, trying to bridge the gap between the protesters, whose goals he shares, and officials who might be able to make the changes they want.

Ellison is Minnesota’s only black congressman. He says police accountability is a nationwide problem that must be addressed, but burning bridges won’t help advance that policy agenda.