In the cities across the United States, the violence erupted on the sixth night of protests over the killing of an unarmed black man George Floyd in police Minneapolis’s police custody. More than 40 cities have imposed curfew in a bid to curb the unrest.
But the residents have largely defied curfews, leading to intense standoff in many places. In Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia, riot police clashed with demonstrators, firing pepper bullets and tear gas to disperse them.
Local media reported that in many cities, shops were looted and police vehicles were set ablaze. The country’s reserve military, National Guard, said in a statement that a total of 5,000 personnel had been activated in 15 states and Washington, DC, where protesters gathered outside the White House, throwing stones at riot police and lighting fires.
The National Guard further added that the responsibility of law and order remains with the local law enforcement agencies and state authorities. Washington police fired tear gas, the protesters who set a fire near the White House.
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There also have been reports that in Friday’s unrest, Secret Service took President to the underground bunker for his safety. The country is witnessing the most widespread civil unrest and racial turbulence since 1968.
Streets, which only a few days ago were deserted because of the coronavirus restrictions, thronged with protesters marching on the streets and roads in more than 75 cities across the US.
George Floyd’s death has reignited the anger of the killing of black Americans. The outrage also highlights years of frustration over segregation and socioeconomic inequality. On Sunday, many cases of looting and vandalizing were reported, riot police responded with tear gas and flash grenades.
Local media showed visuals of people looting stores and setting police cars on fire in Philadelphia. President Trump took to Twitter after the news reports and asked the state authorities to call in the National Guard to restore law and order.
In Santa Montana and California, looting was also reported. Over several days of protests, hundreds of people have been arrested by the police authorities. According to the data by AFP, nearly 4,400 people are in police custody over a range of offenses, looting stores, blocking highways, defying the curfew.
In Minneapolis, police arrested a lorry driver for breaching a road barrier before speeding towards a crowd of demonstrators gathered along a major motorway. CNN reported that he has now been charged for assault.
The videos circulating on the internet showed dozens of protesters pulling the driver out after it came to a stop. However, the driver was later taken to the nearest hospital for minor injuries, and there were no immediate reports of any other causalities.
Tim Walz, Minnesota’s governor, said that the motive of the lorry driver was unclear, but not having a tragedy and many deaths is a miracle, he said. Thousands of people took to streets in Colorado’s capital, lying on the ground with hands on their backs and chanting Floyd’s last words, “I can’t breathe”.
In Boston, Miami, Atlanta, and Oklahoma City, large demonstrations were held. Local media reported several cases of disproportionate police response to the protesters. On Sunday, two officers were sacked in Georgia for using excessive force, including firing a teaser on two college students.
Derek Chauvin has been charged for Floyd’s murder and was due to appear in the court for the first time on Monday, but due to the situation, his appearance has been pushed back to June 8. It follows the high profile cases of Eric Garner in New York and Michael Brown in Ferguson and many others that have driven the Black Lives Matter movement.
