Michael Brown Music-Filled Funeral Calls For Peace, Police Reform

Family and supporters of Michael Brown on Monday celebrated the life of the black teenager slain by a white officer in Ferguson, Missouri, in a music-filled funeral service ringing with calls for peace and police reforms, according to The Associated Press.

Brown's body lay in a black and gold casket at the Friendly Temple Missionary Baptist Church, topped with the St. Louis Cardinals baseball cap he was wearing when he was killed on Aug. 9, the AP reported.

Brown's slaying has focused global attention on the state of race relations in the United States, according to the AP.

Police and demonstrators in Ferguson clashed nightly for more than a week, with authorities coming under fire for mass arrests and the use of heavy-handed tactics and military gear, the AP reported.

The teenager's coffin was surrounded by photos of him as a child, graduating from school and smiling in his baseball cap, according to the AP.

Spirited gospel music by a choir and horn players filled the sanctuary, and mourners clapped their hands and danced in the aisles, the AP reported. Readings from the Bible were met with whoops and cheers.

A letter by Michael Brown Sr. handed out at the funeral read: "I always told you I would never let nothing happen to you and that's what hurts so much, that I couldn't protect you," according to the AP.

Afterward, the funeral procession carried Brown's casket to St. Peter's Cemetery, a few miles from Brown's home, where it was loaded onto a horse-drawn carriage, the AP reported.

Michael Brown Sr. cried at his son's grave site and let out a scream before leaving, according to the AP. His mother arrived with a separate group and laid her body across his coffin as she wept.