Wave Of George Floyd Protests Continues Into Sixth Day

TOPLINE

Protests across major US cities entered into the sixth day on Sunday as demonstrators outraged at the death of unarmed black man George Floyd were undeterred by curfews in their calls for justice.

KEY FACTS

Crucial quote

“We haven’t seen a spasm of riots like this since the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968,” historian Douglas Brinkley told CNN’s Brian Stelter.

He added: “There were more deadly and expensive riots in the 1960’s — like Newark, Detroit and Watts — but there is no comparison to the toxic combination of George Floyd’s murder, Covid-19 and economic depression. 2020 is an election year and our entire democratic process is bursting at the seams.”

News peg

Floyd’s death has brought out huge crowds of protesters across the U.S. under the rallying cry of “I can’t breathe” in a restart of widespread marches and demonstrations against the death of black people in police custody. The death of the 46-year-old has drawn comparisons to the death of Eric Garner in 2014, an unarmed black man who died after being put in a chokehold by the NYPD. The tensions come amid a backdrop of the coronavirus pandemic that has hit the U.S. the hardest and triggered widespread economic unrest and tens of millions of job losses.

Key background

The death of George Floyd sparked outrage in Minneapolis that has since spread across the nation and prompted protests in Canada and parts of Europe. Floyd died in hospital after police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for more than 8 minutes as four officers attempted to detain him for allegedly using a fake $20 bill. A disturbing video of the events went viral, showing Floyd expressing pain and saying “I can’t breathe”. Chauvin, was arrested and charged with third degree murder and manslaughter on Friday following a night of protests, but Floyd’s family say he should be charged with first degree murder. An active investigation into the other three officers—Thomas Lane, Tou Thao and J Alexander Kueng who were also fired—is ongoing and they may still be charged.

Further reading

George Floyd Protests Continue Across U.S. For Fifth Day: Joe Biden Condemns Violent Protests (Forbes)

Minnesota Freedom Fund Raises $20 Million In 4 Days Amid George Floyd Protests (Forbes)

George Floyd protesters: ‘We don’t need a curfew, we need change’ (Al Jazeera)

‘I can’t breathe’ protests heat up as curfews imposed in several U.S. cities (Reuters)