George Floyd protests comparable to 1968 riots following Martin Luther King's assassination

329	George Floyd protests comparable to 1968 riots following Martin Luther King's assassination
	By Cathy Vikulchik on June 06, 2020 share91 Share chat_bubble_outline2 Comment

The protests have spread to over 500 cities and towns in all fifty states in the United States as well as in more than 40 other countries on all continents except the Antarctica.

Outside the United States, protests against the murder of George Floyd by a white police officer, Derek Chauvin, were also organised in the cities of Auckland, Barcelona, Berlin, Brisbane, Copenhagen, Dublin, Lagos, Nairobi, Cape Town, Paris, Perth, Rio de Janeiro, Sydney, Tel Aviv, Tokyo, Vienna, Toronto, London, Athens and many other cities. Some local politicians and other high-profile personalities joined the protesters and "took a knee" while observing silence for 8 minutes 46 seconds, the duration of George Floyd's agony until his death, which was declared a homicide by the official post-mortem. All 4 officers involved in the tragic incident have been arrested and are now in custody. From the beginning of the protests in Minneapolis on May 26, 2020 to June 5 2020, at least 11,000 people had been arrested. At least 18 have been killed in the United States. Governors have called in the National Guard to help control the protests and riots. Over 17,000 National Guard troops have been activated. Most state police officers across the United States have also been present in dozens of cities to help. As of June 5, 2,950 federal law enforcement staff from a dozen agencies including the Secret Service, Capital Police, Park Police, Customs and Border Protection, FBI's Hostage Rescue Team, Bureau of Prisons' Special Operations Response Team, DEA's Special Response Team, ATF, and Marshals Service's Special Operations Group have been dispatched to assist local authorities.

65	Street leading to the southward of the White House renamed "Black Lives Matter Plaza"
	By IcelandFisherman on June 06, 2020 share14 Share chat_bubble_outline1 Reply

Street leading to the southward of the White House renamed

10	The mayor did not only rename the street
	By Cathy Vikulchik on June 06, 2020 share Share chat_bubble_outline Reply

Mayor Muriel Bowser also had the slogan painted in huge yellow letters on the street's roadway after federal law enforcement agents and military troops lined up for days against protesters outside the White House. This was done ahead of Mr. Trump's photo op holding a bible at the nearby historic St John's Episcopal Church that faces the street. The money used for the work came from the city's mural program. Trump turned 1600 Pennsylvania Ave into a fortress ahead of an upcoming protest on Saturday in which around ONE MILLION people are expected.

67	"Get your knees off our necks" - Rev Al Sharpton
	By IcelandFisherman on June 06, 2020 share Share chat_bubble_outline1 Reply

1	George Floyd has paid a tragic price to finally reopen a dialogue about race relations in America
	By IcelandFisherman on June 13, 2020 share Share chat_bubble_outline Reply

This image of a White man kneeling on the neck of a dying Black man in handcuffs face down and all it evoked about America's disturbing past and troubled present, has been engraved into the American collective consciousness. Floyd’s last words — "I can’t breathe" — were a dying Black man's tragic plea and a distillation of multiplying national burdens. America is forced to have a conversation with itself. Even if it's in voices that ring with rage, revolt and despair, many of these voices do ring with hope. Blacks, Whites, all races have united to demand accountability, dignity and equality before the law. And the whole world seems to hear that call.

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