Hong Kong demonstrators protest extradition bill

Despite official calls to disperse, demonstrators continued to march on Wednesday. They overturned police barriers and stood their ground even when confronted with pepper spray and a threat by police to use force if they continued to oppose their orders.

Some protesters left umbrellas on the police barricades, an homage to the "Occupy Democracy" movement that began in 2014. The massive, months-long campaign was prompted by constitutional reforms that allowed Beijing to approve candidates for Hong Kong elections.

Organizers say that over 1 million people have joined in the demonstrations, which blocked two main highways near government headquarters on Wednesday. Most of the protesters are students and young people. Students were boycotting classes to attend the rallies.

Activists have decried the move to allow extradition to China, because of Beijing's poor human rights and legal record. Many in Hong Kong are also upset by the creeping authoritarianism in the city, after they were promised autonomy when the territory was given back to China from the UK in 1997.

Thousands of officers, including riot police, have been deployed throughout the city. Over the weekend, demonstrators hurled bottles at security forces and tried to push their way into the parliament building, but were blocked.

China has long promised Hong Kong self-rule under the "one country, two systems" motto. But for those in the sprawling city, the extradition bill is the latest in a long line of examples of creeping Chinese control.