This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/02/nyregion/nyc-protests-george-floyd.html

The article has changed 15 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 9 Version 10
Protesters Linger After N.Y.C. Curfew, and Some Are Arrested: Live Updates Protesters Linger After N.Y.C. Curfew, and Some Are Arrested
(32 minutes later)
For a second straight night, a citywide curfew took effect in New York on Tuesday, this time at 8 p.m., as officials tried again to curb the violent clashes, looting and other destructive acts that have marred the mostly peaceful protests that have filled the streets for nearly a week. For a second straight night, a citywide curfew took effect in New York on Tuesday, this time at 8 p.m., as officials tried again to curb the violent clashes, looting and other destructive acts that have marred the mostly peaceful protests filling the streets for nearly a week.
As happened on Monday, when much of the worst damage was done before an 11 p.m. curfew took effect, groups of people still lingered outside when the cutoff came. As happened on Monday, when much of the worst damage was done before an 11 p.m. curfew took effect, groups of people lingered outside after the cutoff came. The largest crowd tried to cross the Manhattan Bridge from Brooklyn, but was turned back peacefully after a lengthy standoff with the police.
In the hours after Tuesday’s curfew took effect, hundreds of people continued to walk peacefully in large groups through Brooklyn and Manhattan, chanting protest slogans and urging change as they had for nearly a week in demonstrations touched off by the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Overall, there appeared to be fewer violent confrontations between officers and protesters than there had been in recent days, and there also appeared be fewer acts of looting than in the two previous nights.
“Very calm situation,” Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Twitter after 11 p.m. “So far, the curfew is certainly helping, based on everything I’ve seen in Brooklyn and Manhattan over the last three hours.”
Mr. de Blasio and had been sharply criticized earlier in the day by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and others for how he and the Police Department had handled what turned into a rash of looting across Midtown Manhattan on Monday in advance of the 11 o’clock curfew.
On Tuesday, in the hours after the curfew took effect, the group on the bridge and several other crowds of hundreds of people continued to walk peacefully through Brooklyn and Manhattan, chanting protest slogans and urging change as they had for nearly a week in demonstrations touched off by the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
“As long as it takes, I’m going to do it,” Sam Fitzgerald, 35, of Brooklyn, said of protesting. “It’s a revolution, baby.”“As long as it takes, I’m going to do it,” Sam Fitzgerald, 35, of Brooklyn, said of protesting. “It’s a revolution, baby.”
For the first hour after the curfew had passed, the police did not appear to be dispersing nor arresting the remaining protesters, at least not in large numbers. But many of those who were still marching were trailed closely by clusters of officers. Others encountered squad cars or barricades that diverted them from crossing bridges between boroughs or flooding commercial corridors.
On Manhattan’s Upper West Side, cross streets were blocked to keep demonstrators flowing uptown. Both the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges were blocked to keep large numbers of protesters from crossing the East River into Manhattan. At least one group appeared to have sidestepped a barricade to continue its march from Brooklyn but was not stopped before they could complete the trek. In the first hour after the curfew began, the police did not appear to be moving aggressively to disperse or arrest the remaining protesters, at least not in large numbers.
As the night continued, some officers appeared to become more aggressive as they sought to disperseprotesters. But many of those who continued to march were trailed closely by clusters of officers. Others encountered squad cars or barricades that kept them from crossing bridges between boroughs or from flooding commercial corridors. On Manhattan’s Upper West Side, cross streets were blocked to keep demonstrators flowing uptown.
On the Upper West Side, officers charged into a group that was peacefully protesting at around 9:30 p.m., according to New York Times reporters at the scene. The officers tackled a person with press credentials and made several arrests, and the crowd scattered. As the night continued, some officers became more forceful as they sought to disperse the protesters who were left.
Two hours after the restriction took effect, it was unclear exactly how effective it would be in stopping the kind of looting and vandalism that erupted on Monday across Midtown Manhattan and in the Bronx. At around 9:30 p.m. on the Upper West Side, officers charged into a group that was peacefully protesting, according to New York Times reporters at the scene. The officers tackled a person with press credentials and made several arrests, and the crowd scattered.
There were scattered break-ins. In one, the windows at a Gap store in Greenwich Village were smashed, with shattered glass and mannequins strewn on the street. Police arrived on the scene in a few minutes. Looters also hit Zara and Verizon stores in Lower Manhattan. Later, after 11 p.m., the police were making a significant number of arrests around Union Square and Astor Place, with social media reports suggesting that officers were using aggressive tactics as they enforced the curfew.
Still, by the time 8 p.m. arrived, there did not appear to be rampant reports of stores being broken into as there had been on Monday, when, the police said, there were some 700 arrests. The area also saw scattered break-ins. In one, the windows at a Gap store in Greenwich Village were smashed, with shattered glass and mannequins strewn on the street. Hours later, a Starbucks around the corner, on Astor Place, had its windows smashed. Looters also hit Zara and Verizon stores in Lower Manhattan.
The latest round of rallies unfolded only hours after a rash of looting erupted through much of Midtown Manhattan, wrecking small shops and huge stores alike. In addition to casting a shadow over the protests, the destruction led Mayor Bill de Blasio to acknowledge that the curfew meant to halt it had failed, and to move Tuesday’s version up by three hours. In several instances in Manhattan, protest organizers engaged in tense exchanges with people who were spoiling for violence and destruction.
The events of Monday night led Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Tuesday to criticize the New York Police Department sharply and to second-guess Mr. de Blasio’s handling of the lawless groups that had run amok. As some people banged on windows at two stores at the intersection of Vesey Street and Broadway early on, a young organizer shouted into a microphone, “Stay calm and peaceful” and “Keep it moving!”
“The N.Y.P.D. and the mayor did not do their job last night,” Mr. Cuomo said. “It was rampant looting across the city last night that they did not stop.” Similar scenes played out all night. Occasionally, as at Gentlemen’s Barber Spa on Church Street, an entire window would be smashed, and objects would be thrown into the street. But organizers would corral the rest of the crowd, depriving the vandals of cover.
Mr. Cuomo said the State Police and 13,000 members of the National Guard were on standby. But Mr. de Blasio has said he opposes bringing in the National Guard, as President Trump has encouraged. “It’s really frustrating when the protesters get mixed in with the looters,” said Moses Gardner, 26. “It’s really hurtful to the message. People are looking for reasons to discredit the protests.”
“We do not need nor do we think it’s wise for the National Guard to be in New York City,” Mr. de Blasio said at his daily briefing on Tuesday, calling it unwise to bring “outside armed forces into a situation they are not trained for.” As organizers tried to bring the protest to close around 10 p.m., several looters approached a Foot Locker store on Broadway near Washington Square Park. Chants urging them to stop were not heeded. A small group of Guardian Angels, a public safety group, appeared outside the store and confronted the looters.
The mayor extended the city’s 8 p.m. curfew through Sunday night and promised to take action against the “outsiders,” “gang members” and “common criminals” he said were responsible for looting and violence. Altercations ensued, with a series of loud cracks. One Guardian Angel was hit in the face with a blunt object, and his eye was soon covered with blood. The Foot Locker’s glass entryway was smashed, and items from inside the store were flung about.
“I know we will overcome this. I want to be abundantly clear,” the mayor said before adding that “we will have a tough few days.” Around 10 p.m., after a protest near the Barclays Center in Brooklyn dissolved, a splinter group moved toward the borough’s Downtown section. On Livingston Street off Flatbush Avenue, a group of people smashed the glass at the Wright and Goebel liquor store. About a half-dozen people streamed in, then streamed out seconds later, some of them clutching bottles of wine.
The curfew was a historic measure: The last time New York City faced one was in 1945. At the time, the United States was fighting World War II and facing a coal shortage, and the federal government ordered a midnight curfew on all “places of entertainment” to curb energy use. Around the corner on Flatbush Avenue, people shattered the glass at a TD Bank branch. The police arrived several minutes later, with a commander calling for officers in pursuit of the vandals to start “locking them up.”
More than seven decades later, Mr. de Blasio's executive order delivered another emotional blow to a city whose vibrant nightlife and always-on reputation were already stymied by shutdown orders enacted to fight the coronavirus pandemic. The liquor store’s owner, Owen Wright, said the thieves who broke into the shop had stolen about $500 worth of wine. He had brought back a former delivery man to watch the store, and the man had been inside when the looters smashed the glass.
The mayor defended the police’s response to the looting, and called on civic, religious and neighborhood leaders to step forward and encourage peaceful protests while telling New Yorkers to prepare for a few more days of unrest. Despite the damage, Mr. Wright remained optimistic.
Mr. Cuomo repeatedly said he would need to “displace” the mayor in order to send in the National Guard. But to do so now, he added, could make an already chaotic situation even worse. “I think the peaceful protesters are doing the right thing, and it’s very powerful right now,” he said. “There’s a possibility for change I haven’t felt before.”
Still, the governor made clear that the onus was on the mayor to get things under control. As the curfew descended on Tuesday, hundreds of protesters made their way from the Barclays Center in Brooklyn onto the Manhattan Bridge with the goal of continuing their march on the other side. They wound up hemmed in from both ends for roughly two hours.
In a statement released Tuesday evening, Richard Azzopardi, a senior adviser to the governor, clarified that Mr. Cuomo “has always said he has respect and confidence in the N.Y.P.D.” while doubling down on his critique of Mr. de Blasio. Two New York Times reporters who followed with the protesters onto the bridge documented the episode, which ultimately ended peacefully, in a series of tweets.
“It’s not the men and women of the N.Y.P.D. — he questions the management and deployment of the N.Y.P.D. and believes the mayor should put more N.Y.P.D. officers on the streets to do their job,” Mr. Azzopardi’s statement said. “There are 36,000 police officers — why isn’t at least half the force on the streets protecting public safety with looting going on across the city?”
As soon as the city’s curfew was announced on Monday, residents, elected officials and activists immediately raised questions about its enforcement and who would be exempt.As soon as the city’s curfew was announced on Monday, residents, elected officials and activists immediately raised questions about its enforcement and who would be exempt.
Those issues resurfaced on Tuesday, when the Police Department said that traffic in Manhattan would be banned below 96th Street as part of the city’s curfew, with exemptions for local residents, essential workers, buses and truck deliveries. (The area includes neighborhoods that have been the sites of some of the large peaceful protests and some of those hit hardest by looting.)Those issues resurfaced on Tuesday, when the Police Department said that traffic in Manhattan would be banned below 96th Street as part of the city’s curfew, with exemptions for local residents, essential workers, buses and truck deliveries. (The area includes neighborhoods that have been the sites of some of the large peaceful protests and some of those hit hardest by looting.)
City officials have issued guidance saying that “essential workers” are among those excepted from the shutdown order, which is in effect from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. City officials have issued guidance saying that “essential workers” are among those excepted from the shutdown order, which is in effect from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. every day through Sunday.
Those exempt from the curfew include:Those exempt from the curfew include:
Health care workersHealth care workers
Law-enforcement officers, firefighters and emergency medical techniciansLaw-enforcement officers, firefighters and emergency medical technicians
Those working at businesses deemed essential during the coronavirus pandemic, including grocery stores, convenience stores and pharmaciesThose working at businesses deemed essential during the coronavirus pandemic, including grocery stores, convenience stores and pharmacies
People seeking medical treatment or obtaining medical suppliesPeople seeking medical treatment or obtaining medical supplies
Homeless people living unsheltered on the street and homeless outreach workersHomeless people living unsheltered on the street and homeless outreach workers
Members of the news mediaMembers of the news media
Officials also clarified on Tuesday that the following activities are permitted during the curfew:Officials also clarified on Tuesday that the following activities are permitted during the curfew:
Restaurant and food deliveryRestaurant and food delivery
Taking dogs out to use the bathroom, but only in the immediate vicinity of your homeTaking dogs out to use the bathroom, but only in the immediate vicinity of your home
For-hire car services, including those dispatched by Uber and Lyft, will also be banned from 8 p.m. to 12:30 a.m., according to the city’s Taxi and Limousine Commission, which oversees for-hire drivers. Yellow cabs and green cabs will continue to operate to transport essential workers or those needing medical treatment. For-hire car services, including those dispatched by Uber and Lyft, were also banned from 8 p.m. Tuesday to 12:30 a.m. on Wednesday, according to the city’s Taxi and Limousine Commission, which oversees for-hire drivers. Yellow cabs and green cabs were allowed to continue to operate to transport essential workers or those needing medical treatment.
“We have Uber and Lyft and Via closed down because, bluntly, looters were using them,” Mayor de Blasio said in a CNN interview on Tuesday night. “We’ve limited traffic below 96th Street in Manhattan to knock the looters off their game.”
Citi Bike, New York City’s bike-share program, said that the city was requiring it to shut down during the curfew. Revel, a moped-sharing company, said that it had been told to end its service at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, two hours before the curfew took effect.Citi Bike, New York City’s bike-share program, said that the city was requiring it to shut down during the curfew. Revel, a moped-sharing company, said that it had been told to end its service at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, two hours before the curfew took effect.
As the 8 p.m. curfew neared on Tuesday, dozens of police officers began to gather along 149th Street, near Third Avenue, a South Bronx commercial hub that largely escaped the looting that occurred further north a night earlier. Mayor de Blasio and the New York Police Department faced sharp criticism on Tuesday from Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who second-guessed Mr. de Blasio’s handling of the lawless groups that had run amok.
“The N.Y.P.D. and the mayor did not do their job last night,” Mr. Cuomo said Tuesday afternoon. “It was rampant looting across the city last night that they did not stop.”
Mr. Cuomo said the State Police and 13,000 members of the National Guard were on standby. But Mr. de Blasio has said he opposes bringing in the National Guard, as President Trump has encouraged.
“We do not need nor do we think it’s wise for the National Guard to be in New York City,” Mr. de Blasio said at his daily briefing on Tuesday, calling it unwise to bring “outside armed forces into a situation they are not trained for.”
Still, the mayor acknowledged that Monday night’s curfew had failed to stop a rash of looting that erupted through much of Midtown Manhattan, wrecking small shops and huge stores alike, and he moved Tuesday’s version up by three hours.
The mayor also extended the city’s 8 p.m. curfew through Sunday night and promised to take action against the “outsiders,” “gang members” and “common criminals” he said were responsible for looting and violence.
The curfew was a historic measure: The last time New York City faced one was in 1945. At the time, the United States was fighting World War II and facing a coal shortage, and the federal government ordered a midnight curfew on all “places of entertainment” to curb energy use.
More than seven decades later, Mr. de Blasio's executive order delivered another emotional blow to a city whose vibrant nightlife and always-on reputation were already stymied by shutdown orders enacted to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
The mayor defended the decision and the police’s response to the looting. He called on civic, religious and neighborhood leaders to step forward and encourage peaceful protests while telling New Yorkers to prepare for a few more days of unrest.
Still, Mr. Cuomo made clear that the onus was on the mayor to get things under control.
In a statement released Tuesday evening, Richard Azzopardi, a senior adviser to the governor, clarified that Mr. Cuomo “has always said he has respect and confidence in the N.Y.P.D.” while doubling down on his critique of Mr. de Blasio.
“It’s not the men and women of the N.Y.P.D. — he questions the management and deployment of the N.Y.P.D. and believes the mayor should put more N.Y.P.D. officers on the streets to do their job,” Mr. Azzopardi’s statement said. “There are 36,000 police officers — why isn’t at least half the force on the streets protecting public safety with looting going on across the city?”
As the curfew neared, dozens of police officers began to gather along 149th Street, near Third Avenue, a South Bronx commercial hub that largely escaped the looting that occurred further north a night earlier.
As the number of officers in the area swelled, so did the groups of teenagers. Some carried backpacks that appeared to be mostly empty. One had a wooden baseball bat; another a broken-off dowel. Everyone seemed to be waiting. The officers were clutching batons.As the number of officers in the area swelled, so did the groups of teenagers. Some carried backpacks that appeared to be mostly empty. One had a wooden baseball bat; another a broken-off dowel. Everyone seemed to be waiting. The officers were clutching batons.
A woman got off a bus nearby, surveyed the tense scene and shouted “I can’t breathe!” twice. Nobody joined in the chant and she walked away.A woman got off a bus nearby, surveyed the tense scene and shouted “I can’t breathe!” twice. Nobody joined in the chant and she walked away.
It was quiet for a moment as curfew fell.It was quiet for a moment as curfew fell.
Soon afterward, the police began to shout “go home” at the teenagers and chased a few of them off, banging the metal roll gates of shuttered shops with their batons for effect.Soon afterward, the police began to shout “go home” at the teenagers and chased a few of them off, banging the metal roll gates of shuttered shops with their batons for effect.
Then they began to make arrests.Then they began to make arrests.
One man who tried to run from officers stumbled as he crossed the street.One man who tried to run from officers stumbled as he crossed the street.
“My neck,” he shouted from the asphalt as three officers grabbed him. They accused him of violating curfew and led him away.“My neck,” he shouted from the asphalt as three officers grabbed him. They accused him of violating curfew and led him away.
“I can’t breathe,” a young man began shouting over and over. Again, no one took up the chant.“I can’t breathe,” a young man began shouting over and over. Again, no one took up the chant.
On Pearl Street in Manhattan, under the Brooklyn Bridge, demonstrators who saw a verbal confrontation start between protesters and police officers rushed to intervene. “Not worth it!” one of the peacemakers said. As of midnight, it appeared that the increased police presence in the area had managed to avoid the kind of havoc that had struck parts of the Bronx the previous night.
On Wall Street, a young man implored a police sergeant to use his stature to bring change to his department. The sergeant responded by nodding his head in agreement.
At Washington Square Park, the site of a standoff a day earlier, scores of demonstrators left signs and flowers in a fountain before heading up to Fifth Avenue.
Near Union Square, hundreds of marchers filled Park Avenue as they marched north. Some apologized to drivers for stopping traffic. As the crowd passed a Duane Reade store with a smashed entryway, construction workers inside pressed their faces to the glass; some, their eyes wide, filmed the protesters with their phones.
Navid Mamoon, 20, marched with his mother, Nazmeen Mamoon, a Bangladeshi immigrant in her 50s, who said she had “never seen anything like this before,” in the United States. Ms. Mamoon said she supported the protests, but she added that she worked at a Macy’s store and that she and her colleagues were “scared” after the looting of the Herald Square flagship on Monday.
Asked if she was also worried for her son, Ms. Mamoon offered a broader answer: “I am scared for all of us,” she said.
Back at Washington Square Park earlier in the day, Alene Cohen, 92, looked on from the periphery as hundreds of protesters gathered in front of her.
She said that she had been “radicalized” after graduating from Brooklyn College in 1948 and that was particularly struck by the racial diversity of the protests of the past several days. She said she had not even had a conversation with a black person until she was 18 and in college.
“Nothing like this has happened in my 92 years of life,” she said. “I’m very proud of what all these people are doing, the grandchildren who might be here.”
She did find one fault with the crowds.
“There should be more people out here my age protesting!” she said.
Hundreds of demonstrators, led by well over 100 doctors and other medical workers, rallied in Times Square late Tuesday to honor Black Lives Matter protesters and black victims of police violence.Hundreds of demonstrators, led by well over 100 doctors and other medical workers, rallied in Times Square late Tuesday to honor Black Lives Matter protesters and black victims of police violence.
The protest was built around a repurposing of a daily tradition that emerged amid New York’s battle against the coronavirus pandemic: the 7 p.m. cheer to honor medical professionals, grocery store employees, delivery drivers and other essential workers who have kept the city during the near-total shutdown of daily life prompted by the outbreak.The protest was built around a repurposing of a daily tradition that emerged amid New York’s battle against the coronavirus pandemic: the 7 p.m. cheer to honor medical professionals, grocery store employees, delivery drivers and other essential workers who have kept the city during the near-total shutdown of daily life prompted by the outbreak.
“We are members of a community that is being applauded every day at 7 — there are advertisements here in Times Square thanking us,” said Dr. Hillary Dueñas, a resident physician at Mount Sinai Hospital on the Upper East Side and an organizer of the demonstration. “We think it is more appropriate to use our voice to applaud people who are protesting right now.”“We are members of a community that is being applauded every day at 7 — there are advertisements here in Times Square thanking us,” said Dr. Hillary Dueñas, a resident physician at Mount Sinai Hospital on the Upper East Side and an organizer of the demonstration. “We think it is more appropriate to use our voice to applaud people who are protesting right now.”
Dr. Dueñas said that the pandemic, and its disproportionate impact on black and Latino people, was at the front of many doctors’ minds during the wave of civil unrest that has convulsed the country for the past week.Dr. Dueñas said that the pandemic, and its disproportionate impact on black and Latino people, was at the front of many doctors’ minds during the wave of civil unrest that has convulsed the country for the past week.
“The coronavirus pandemic has made clear that there have always been inequities in the community,” she said. “There has been a hugely disproportionate burden of death and disease among marginalized communities and communities of color.”“The coronavirus pandemic has made clear that there have always been inequities in the community,” she said. “There has been a hugely disproportionate burden of death and disease among marginalized communities and communities of color.”
As the 7 p.m. cheer broke out, doctors and hundreds of protesters who had come to support their efforts marched to the center of Times Square chanting “Black Lives Matter!” and “How do you spell racist? N.Y.P.D.!”As the 7 p.m. cheer broke out, doctors and hundreds of protesters who had come to support their efforts marched to the center of Times Square chanting “Black Lives Matter!” and “How do you spell racist? N.Y.P.D.!”
“Nurses know the cops are racist!” one woman in blue scrubs and a floral face mask yelled. “We see the patients they beat!”“Nurses know the cops are racist!” one woman in blue scrubs and a floral face mask yelled. “We see the patients they beat!”
Many of the doctors who took part in the protest said they were uneasy about speaking to reporters, citing reports from earlier in the pandemic about hospital workers who had been penalized for speaking out about conditions at local hospitals.Many of the doctors who took part in the protest said they were uneasy about speaking to reporters, citing reports from earlier in the pandemic about hospital workers who had been penalized for speaking out about conditions at local hospitals.
One doctor, a 30-year-old emergency room doctor from Brooklyn who immigrated to the United States as a teenager, said she was frustrated by what she said were racist double standards in the county. She asked not to be publicly identified, fearing retaliation by her employer.One doctor, a 30-year-old emergency room doctor from Brooklyn who immigrated to the United States as a teenager, said she was frustrated by what she said were racist double standards in the county. She asked not to be publicly identified, fearing retaliation by her employer.
“I feel disheartened as a black person who has been in the United States for 13 years because no matter what you do here, you will never be treated equally by the police or by society,” she said. “It is not about your achievements or who you are as a person, as soon as I take off this white coat I am treated as badly as every other black person.”“I feel disheartened as a black person who has been in the United States for 13 years because no matter what you do here, you will never be treated equally by the police or by society,” she said. “It is not about your achievements or who you are as a person, as soon as I take off this white coat I am treated as badly as every other black person.”
“As a doctor, we treat every single patient we see equally, no matter their race or gender or anything else,” she added. “But as black people in America we are never given that same treatment by the police or by society.”“As a doctor, we treat every single patient we see equally, no matter their race or gender or anything else,” she added. “But as black people in America we are never given that same treatment by the police or by society.”
Mr. de Blasio seemed to be trying to accomplish two goals in his briefing: unifying New Yorkers against recent acts of violence and looting, and explaining why a citywide curfew was necessary. Before the curfew took hold, demonstrators returned to New York City’s streets for a sixth day of protests that reflected a sense of purpose and would foreshadow a relatively calm night to come.
By beginning the curfew at 8 p.m. instead of 11 p.m., the police would be in better position to address “any situation where someone is trying to do violence to person or property,” the mayor said in explaining his decision. Fanning out to sites across Manhattan and Brooklyn, New York Times reporters witnessed many subtle moments of compromise, understanding and restraint throughout the day on Tuesday — even in tense situations.
He said that New Yorkers — from the city’s Police Department to ordinary citizens — were better equipped to deal with the looting and violence than outsiders like the National Guard. On Pearl Street in Manhattan, under the Brooklyn Bridge, demonstrators who saw a verbal confrontation start between protesters and police officers rushed to intervene. “Not worth it!” one of the peacemakers said.
“The people of New York City are strong and resilient. The people of New York City are good and decent people. The people of New York City stand up no matter what’s thrown at them,” Mr. de Blasio said. On Wall Street, a young man implored a police sergeant to use his stature to bring change to his department. The sergeant responded by nodding his head in agreement.
He talked about being born in the city in 1961 and how over the next few decades it had overcome the threat of financial collapse, white flight and the AIDS and crack epidemics of the 1980s and ’90s. At Washington Square Park, the site of a standoff a day earlier, scores of demonstrators left signs and flowers in a fountain before heading up to Fifth Avenue.
The mayor added that the city was still in the midst of an enormous health challenge in dealing with the coronavirus outbreak; he said that the city was moving forward to begin the first phase of reopening on June 8 in spite of the unrest. He cited statistics showing a decline in the number of coronavirus infections. Alene Cohen, 92, looked on from the periphery of the park as the hundreds of protesters gathered in front of her.
Just two weeks ago, he said, the city was focused almost exclusively on beating back the pandemic. But the combination of the coronavirus and the economic ruin it has brought, along with the death of George Floyd at the hands of police in Minnesota, has taken a toll on the city. She said that she had been “radicalized” after graduating from Brooklyn College in 1948 and that was particularly struck by the racial diversity of the protests of the past several days. She said she had not even had a conversation with a black person until she was 18 and in college.
“This is a horrible perfect storm we’re living through,” the mayor said. “Nothing like this has happened in my 92 years of life,” she said. “I’m very proud of what all these people are doing, the grandchildren who might be here.”
She did find one fault with the crowds.
More than a dozen New York Times journalists are on the streets of the city on Tuesday night covering protests from Midtown Manhattan to Park Slope in Brooklyn to Fordham Road in the Bronx. They will be following demonstrators as they march and several are posting live updates on Twitter. “There should be more people out here my age protesting!” she said.
Here is a look at some of their reporting:
Black transgender men and women stood in a triangle slice of park in front of the Stonewall Inn as part of vast protest at the birthplace of the gay rights movement on Tuesday, using megaphones to call out the names of people who have been killed by police or have been victims of transphobic hate crimes.
Many of those with the megaphones asked white people in the crowd of thousands to fall back as a gesture of respect for the movement.
“We are standing here in a gentrified space with gentrifiers who do not live our lives,” one person said over a loud speaker.
State Senator Brad Hoylman, an openly gay official who is white, attempted to speak but was initially shouted down by spectators who accused him of taking over a moment meant for black people. But another person silenced the hecklers, telling them: “He is at least trying.”
One of the hecklers, Joey DeJesus, who is running for elected office in the Bronx, was furious.
“They grandstand on our graves,” they said, with tears in their eyes.
By around 6:30 p.m., the large group had splintered into separate protests; one group began heading toward Union Square, marching peacefully as a long line of police cars and officers in riot gear followed behind them.
With the city’s curfew only about an hour away, some signaled a readiness to stay out on the streets well into the night.
“The city is calling a curfew — it is a curfew on blackness!” Olympia Sudan, a black trans activist shouted to the crowd, which roared back approval.
Reporting was contributed by Julia Carmel, Annie Correal, Luis Ferré-Sadurní, Alan Feuer, Sandra E. Garcia, Michael Gold, Joseph Goldstein, Melissa Guerrero, Amy Julia Harris, Corey Kilgannon, Colin Moynihan, Jeffery C. Mays, Andy Newman, Sarah Maslin Nir, Derek M. Norman, Azi Paybarah, Jan Ransom, Dana Rubinstein, Ashley Southall, Liam Stack, Matt Stevens and Alex Traub.Reporting was contributed by Julia Carmel, Annie Correal, Luis Ferré-Sadurní, Alan Feuer, Sandra E. Garcia, Michael Gold, Joseph Goldstein, Melissa Guerrero, Amy Julia Harris, Corey Kilgannon, Colin Moynihan, Jeffery C. Mays, Andy Newman, Sarah Maslin Nir, Derek M. Norman, Azi Paybarah, Jan Ransom, Dana Rubinstein, Ashley Southall, Liam Stack, Matt Stevens and Alex Traub.