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'We will not be silent': protests head into second weekend after George Floyd's killing – live 'We will not be silent': protests head into second weekend after George Floyd's killing – live
(32 minutes later)
NFL says it was wrong not to let players protest police brutalityNFL says it was wrong not to let players protest police brutality
Joe Biden’s statement as he clinches the nomination:
The spat between Twitter’s Jack Dorsey and the president continues, with the president claiming that it was illegal for the social media company to take down a Trump campaign video. Twitter said the video was taken down due to copyright infingement issues.
DC’s Muriel Bowser had this tweet, quite clearly aimed at Trump:
For days, Bowser said she opposed the stationing of federal law enforcement and the military in and around the district.
This morning, local artist Rose Jaffe joined city work crews to paint a giant Black Lives Matter slogan across two blocks. Later, Bowser watched as a city worker hung a sign at the street corner just north of the White House: Black Lives Matter Plz NW.
But activists said Bowser needed to to more than rename a street. The mayor’s proposed budget increases funding for policing and cuts funds for community-based interventions to reduce violence.
In Brooklyn, a reporter filmed police officers hitting a man with batons and shoving a journalist.
Later, a man who said he was a staffer for a state senator Julia Salazar or Brooklyn was arrested after he filmed officers.
Some more scenes from around the country:Some more scenes from around the country:
In Columbia, South Carolina, protesters gathered outside the governor’s mansion.In Columbia, South Carolina, protesters gathered outside the governor’s mansion.
In Washington, DC, hundreds marched in the rain, in the area near the White House that Mayor Muriel Bowser today renamed Black Lives Matter Plaza.In Washington, DC, hundreds marched in the rain, in the area near the White House that Mayor Muriel Bowser today renamed Black Lives Matter Plaza.
Although Biden has been the presumptive nominee since Bernie Sanders dropped out of the primaries in April, the former vice-president had yet to win the 1,991 delegates needed to formally claim the nomination.Although Biden has been the presumptive nominee since Bernie Sanders dropped out of the primaries in April, the former vice-president had yet to win the 1,991 delegates needed to formally claim the nomination.
Biden now has 1,993 delegates, according to the Associated Press.Biden now has 1,993 delegates, according to the Associated Press.
Demonstrations continued on Friday in San Francisco. A major rally earlier in the week drew thousands of participants who marched from the Mission District to City Hall. Many walked on foot, others on horseback.Demonstrations continued on Friday in San Francisco. A major rally earlier in the week drew thousands of participants who marched from the Mission District to City Hall. Many walked on foot, others on horseback.
This time, it appears many have arrived on two wheels ...This time, it appears many have arrived on two wheels ...
A coalition of criminal justice activists and homeless advocates have sued Los Angeles over how the police have responded to protesters following the killing of George Floyd.A coalition of criminal justice activists and homeless advocates have sued Los Angeles over how the police have responded to protesters following the killing of George Floyd.
The suit accuses the police of shooting a homeless man in the eye with rubber bullets and detaining people for more than 12 hours for curfew violations, the Los Angeles Times reports.The suit accuses the police of shooting a homeless man in the eye with rubber bullets and detaining people for more than 12 hours for curfew violations, the Los Angeles Times reports.
From the LA Times:From the LA Times:
In New Orleans, demonstrators have gathered at the banks of the Mississippi River, as depicted here by a reporter for the city’s public radio station:In New Orleans, demonstrators have gathered at the banks of the Mississippi River, as depicted here by a reporter for the city’s public radio station:
Although many local governments have lifted curfews ahead of this weekend, curfews remain in place in cities across the US in an attempt to quell the unrest over the killing of George Floyd in police custody.Although many local governments have lifted curfews ahead of this weekend, curfews remain in place in cities across the US in an attempt to quell the unrest over the killing of George Floyd in police custody.
The Guardian’s Vivian Ho reports:The Guardian’s Vivian Ho reports:
The selective enforcement of the curfew orders only underscores the demonstrators’ message about law enforcement abuses, civil liberties experts warn.The selective enforcement of the curfew orders only underscores the demonstrators’ message about law enforcement abuses, civil liberties experts warn.
The vague, broad language in these orders gives law enforcement leeway to pick and choose when to arrest someone for violating curfew, allowing for situations that are ripe for abuse, experts said. In some cities, this has worked in protesters’ favor when police chose not to arrest them. But when police enforce an order in some cases and not others, the order becomes an arbitrary tool of control that often appears to violate protesters’ constitutional rights to assembly and free speech.The vague, broad language in these orders gives law enforcement leeway to pick and choose when to arrest someone for violating curfew, allowing for situations that are ripe for abuse, experts said. In some cities, this has worked in protesters’ favor when police chose not to arrest them. But when police enforce an order in some cases and not others, the order becomes an arbitrary tool of control that often appears to violate protesters’ constitutional rights to assembly and free speech.
“The amount of discretion and the ways these laws are written are perpetuating the same injustices that our communities are out there protesting right now,” Shilpi Agarwal, a senior attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union of northern California, told the Guardian. “The thing that has inspired these protests and triggered this pain in folks is this flagrant abuse of power by police. The response to that should not be to further empower the police.”“The amount of discretion and the ways these laws are written are perpetuating the same injustices that our communities are out there protesting right now,” Shilpi Agarwal, a senior attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union of northern California, told the Guardian. “The thing that has inspired these protests and triggered this pain in folks is this flagrant abuse of power by police. The response to that should not be to further empower the police.”
In some locations, police have appeared to give certain people a free pass. In Salem, Oregon, the police chief was forced to issue a public apology after an officer was filmed Monday telling armed white men to duck into businesses or vehicles once curfew hits so “we don’t look like we’re playing favorites”.In some locations, police have appeared to give certain people a free pass. In Salem, Oregon, the police chief was forced to issue a public apology after an officer was filmed Monday telling armed white men to duck into businesses or vehicles once curfew hits so “we don’t look like we’re playing favorites”.
Elsewhere, police have treated curfew deadlines as a “flexible tool”.Elsewhere, police have treated curfew deadlines as a “flexible tool”.
Here are some images of demonstrations around the country.Here are some images of demonstrations around the country.
Medical professionals rallied in New York’s Union Square.Medical professionals rallied in New York’s Union Square.
In Los Angeles, activists displayed the names of 1,000 people killed by LA county law enforcement since 2000. Protestors placed roses next to the posters, which were placed in front of thr Hall of Justice.In Los Angeles, activists displayed the names of 1,000 people killed by LA county law enforcement since 2000. Protestors placed roses next to the posters, which were placed in front of thr Hall of Justice.
At least 100 cars joined a “Caravan for Justice” in Racine, Wisconsin, and protestors gathered near the county courthouse for a rally against police brutality.At least 100 cars joined a “Caravan for Justice” in Racine, Wisconsin, and protestors gathered near the county courthouse for a rally against police brutality.
In Washington, DC, demonstrators sang happy birthday to Breonna Taylor, who would have turned 27 today if she had not been killed.In Washington, DC, demonstrators sang happy birthday to Breonna Taylor, who would have turned 27 today if she had not been killed.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said officers who taped over their badges or turned off their body-worn cameras would be stripped of their police powers.Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said officers who taped over their badges or turned off their body-worn cameras would be stripped of their police powers.
At a news conference, she said:At a news conference, she said:
Her message to officers who use excessive force: “Shame on you, shame on you.”Her message to officers who use excessive force: “Shame on you, shame on you.”
Prior to being elected mayor, Lightfoot served as chair of the Chicago Police Accountability Task Force.Prior to being elected mayor, Lightfoot served as chair of the Chicago Police Accountability Task Force.
Lightfoot also announced that Chicago would open the city’s Grant Park and Union Park to accommodate demonstrators, and deploy 300 trucks to provide traffic support.Lightfoot also announced that Chicago would open the city’s Grant Park and Union Park to accommodate demonstrators, and deploy 300 trucks to provide traffic support.
Attorney general William Barr said he did not give the order to have peaceful protesters dispersed with chemical agents to clear the way for Trump to pose for a photo in front of a church near the White House, though he supports the decision.
In an interview with the AP, Barr said law enforcement was already clearing the crowd from a park near the White House on Monday evening when he arrived at the scene.
The episode has received widespread criticism, including from senior military figures outside the administration and church leaders. Earlier this week, White House spokesperson Kayleigh McEnany said it was Barr who decided to push back protesters and expand the perimeter around the White House.
In the AP interview, Barr indicated that the call to have protesters pushed back was unconnected to the presidential photoshoot. He said he had wanted the protesters moved, but he hadn’t directly given the tactical order.
Administration officials have been playing hot potato, passing responsibility for the choice to have peaceful protesters moved with force.
Washington governor Jay Inslee has promised an independent review of Manuel Ellis’ death.
Ellis, who was 33, died minutes after his arrest after pleading, “I can’t breathe”, echoing George Floyd and Eric Garner. The local medical examiner’s office concluded that Ellis’ death was a homicide.
Sara McDowell, a bystander who filmed parts of Ellis’ fatal encounter with the police, said she saw him approach a police car on 3 March. An officer threw open the car door and knocked Ellis down. In brief video clips, McDowell’s voice can be heard calling out to police officers: “Stop. Oh my God, stop hitting him.”
Police provided a different account, saying that Ellis initiated the confrontation, which prompted officers to restrain him.
The mayor of Tacoma, Washington, has called for the police officers involved to be fired and prosecuted.
“We know that Manuel Ellis is one of far, far too many Black men who died while in police custody in America,” Inslee said in a statement promising an “independent review of the investigation and any charging decisions related to the death of Manuel Ellis.”
Hallie Golden writes for The Guardian:
Dozens of healthcare workers in Seattle lined the streets outside Swedish Hospital for a moment of silence Friday in support of the George Floyd protests. A reporter for local news station Kiro 7 captured the moment the workers, who have spent months battling coronavirus, took a knee in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood.
A group of 66 United Nations human rights monitors issued a devastating critique of what they call modern-day “racial terror” lynchings in the US in the form of state-sponsored police violence against black Americans.
The group released two joint statements on Friday, prompted by the wave of protests against police brutality that has swept the nation in the wake of the deaths of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Breonna Taylor in Louisville, Kentucky.
The action marks an almost unparalleled outpouring of criticism by the UN’s independent body of human rights experts. Rarely have so many come together to speak as one voice. The language they deploy is also highly unusual in its excoriating critique of what the monitors state is the “fundamental racial inequality and discrimination that characterize life in the United States for black people”.
Most piercingly, the experts make a direct link between police killings of unarmed African American men today with the spate of thousands of racial lynchings that terrorized black communities in the era of segregation.
“African Americans continue to experience racial terror in state-sponsored and privately organized violence … In the US, this legacy of racial terror remains evident in modern-day policing.”
Earlier today, Drew Brees, the New Orleans Saints quarterback, apologized for comments implying that NFL players who kneel during the national anthem were unpatriotic, a common mischaracterization of the protest against police violence launched by Kaepernick in 2016.
But at least one person was unhappy with Brees’s decision to change the play at the line.
Trump took aim at the future Hall of Fame signal-caller on Friday afternoon, saying on Twitter: “I am a big fan of Drew Brees. I think he’s truly one of the greatest quarterbacks, but he should not have taken back his original stance on honoring our magnificent American Flag. OLD GLORY is to be revered, cherished, and flown high... We should be standing up straight and tall, ideally with a salute, or a hand on heart. There are other things you can protest, but not our Great American Flag - NO KNEELING!”
Calls for the NFL to formally apologize to Colin Kaepernick, who was sidelined after he protested police brutality in 2016, are gaining steam. So are calls to give him back his job – with a significant promotion.
Fox News is drawing rebuke after airing a graphic tracking stock market gains following the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr, the acquittal of Los Angeles police officers who savagely beat Rodney King, and the police killings of Michael Brown and George Floyd.
Representative Bobby Rush, a Democrat of Illinois and prominent civil rights activist, wrote on Twitter: “This is absolutely outrageous and disgusting. This graphic tells every single @FoxNews viewer that Black lives can be exchanged for market gain.”
The Guardian’s Ankita Rao reports from New York:
Hundreds of people gathered in Union Square this evening once more in New York City. But this gathering, organized in part by Frontlines for Frontlines, called for health workers to show solidarity with the movement against police brutality.
Amid a nationwide, politicized dialogue about why public health professionals are supporting the protests during a pandemic, the doctors and nurses here said systemic racism is a public health crisis that existed before Covid-19 and will continue to after. This evening, they knelt in silence, chanted the names of people who had died at the hands of police, and marched down the main route on Broadway toward City Hall.Many of the nurses and doctors here have been treating Covid-19 patients in the city, and said they saw the protest as essential for the wellbeing of their patients. The New York gathering was one of many that happened across hospitals and cities in the country, where healthcare workers knelt or observed silence for victims of police brutality.
The New York Times added an editor’s note to a piece by Republican senator Tom Cotton, which received widespread rebuke.
The note maintains that “The basic arguments advanced by Senator Cotton — however objectionable people may find them — represent a newsworthy part of the current debate.”
But it continues:
Cotton responded that the paper is “now run by a woke mob’.
Here’s the scene in Columbus, Ohio, captured by a reporter for WOSU, the local public radio station: