About 300 protesters shut down Interstate 70 north of St. Louis for about an hour during rush hour Monday morning.

The protesters made a human chain across the region's busiest interstate. The group, MO-KAN, wants the state to hire more minority contractors for highway construction projects. They said despite talks with the governor's office last week, their concerns weren't being heard.
The group had hoped that about 10,000 people would turn out for the demonstration. About 20 minutes after demonstrators began walking onto the interstate, police started arresting them. Many had to be carried away. About 100 people were arrested on charges of impeding the flow of traffic and disobeying the law.
Commuters apparently had listened to warnings to use alternate routes; traffic was relatively light.