The killing has sparked riots in Minneapolis
George Floyd was unarmed when he was killed by police in the city of Minneapolis on Monday. A police officer kneeled on his neck until he lost consciousness. He would die shortly afterwards.
His death, yet another example of a black American’s life being taken away at the hands of police, has sparked protests and riots in Minneapolis, protests which have become increasingly violent in nature.
Looting has taken place in the city’s shops and stores, and fires have spread around the city.
After the killing of an unarmed black man by police in Minneapolis, these angry scenes played out in the streets. pic.twitter.com/VD2eZAmRJs
— PoliticsJOE (@PoliticsJOE_UK) May 28, 2020
Reaction to these protests have been, as you’d expect, mixed. Many people are sympathetic to the cause of those who have experienced more injustice than most people could in a lifetime, and realise that the death of a man at the hands of police was what started these riots. Nothing else.
Some quarters of America, as is always the case, have reacted differently. Right-wing commentators have spouted their usual lines, and the country’s president has managed to shock people once again with his rhetoric.
….These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen. Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 29, 2020
In a shocking tweet even by his own standards, Trump called protesters and rioters ‘”thugs” and claimed that “when the looting starts, the shooting starts”.
This phrase, if it sounds familiar, was uttered by Miami’s police chief, Walter Headley who in 1967 warned of violent consequences to protests against his department’s stop-and-frisk campaign.
Riots have spread across America, following the police killing of an unarmed black man.
A tweet by Donald Trump has been censored by Twitter for ‘glorifying violence,’ in which he appeared to threaten protestors. pic.twitter.com/cbgFsYI3ED
— PoliticsJOE (@PoliticsJOE_UK) May 29, 2020
