Hundreds Gather For Teenager Michael Brown's Funeral In St. Louis

Hundreds of people gathered in St. Louis, Missouri Monday to attend the funeral of Michael Brown, the 18-year-old teen fatally shot by a local police officer that sparked over two weeks of protests.

The service was held at the Friendly Temple Missionary Baptist Church in St. Louis, near the small suburb of Ferguson, where Brown was shot by police officer Darren Wilson on Saturday, August 9. Various attendees of the funeral spoke to local media outlets, saying they wanted to attend the service to show their respects to Brown, his family, and the Ferguson community that evidently maintains a tense relationship with the local police force.

"It's important in that as a child I was pushed by police, mistreated by police, cursed by police, and I was a good kid," Will Acklin, a 63-year-old black man visiting from Little Rock, Arkansas, told the Associated Press. "I was an honor student. When I heard this, I felt compelled to come here and show my respects."

Protests, occasionally violent, all but subsided on Monday at the request of Michael Brown Sr., who requested a day of peace and reflection for his son's funeral.

Residents in Ferguson are demanding justice after Brown was allegedly shot to death by Officer Wilson, who is white. A federal investigation has been opened into the incident, as witnesses argue Brown was surrendering when he was shot to death, and the police department arguing that a scuffle had taken place between Brown and Wilson, forcing the officer to fire his gun in self-defense.

Attorney General Eric Holder visited the St. Louis suburb last week, visiting public places including the community college and restaurants to assure local residents that the federal government will do all it can to ensure justice for the Brown family.

President Obama has also spoken about the incident, encouraging protesters to express their passions peacefully and work in unity with the local police force to reach a solution.