Protesters have resumed this Tuesday, for the eighth consecutive night, protests against police brutality in US cities such as Los Angeles, New York and Washington, defying the curfews imposed to curb the concentrations, unleashed after the death of African-American citizen George Floyd at the hands of the Police.
In Los Angeles, where protesters have so far marched peacefully, and New York curfews have begun at 9:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. (local time), respectively.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has thanked protesters for speaking out peacefully and has said he is “proud” of them. “I accept our right to do this and I’m glad it was peaceful,” he said, assuring that he wants them to know that he can hear them “loud and clear.”
He also thanked the police officers for their work and reported that the looting episodes are decreasing in the city and that they have been resolved quickly. Currently, 1,000 National Guard service personnel are deployed on the streets of Los Angeles, it has reported.
For its part, in New York, where protesters march through Manhattan, Brooklyn and other parts of the city, the tension has begun to rise when the curfew has begun, although the protests have continued peacefully throughout Tuesday .
Specifically, as of 8:00 p.m., people have started looting and attacking stores in Manhattan, breaking the windows of these facilities with stones, CNN has transferred. In addition, protesters and police have clashed in the Chelsea neighborhood, also in Manhattan, when violent protesters have joined peaceful.
Also, a crowd has been trapped on the Manhattan Bridge because there were Police officers on either side. However, people have already begun to be able to leave the place.
So far, about 40 people have been arrested in New York on Tuesday, according to the city’s Police Department, which has said it expects this number to increase. Up to 700 people were arrested the night before.
New York experienced moments of great tension on Monday, with looting and vandalized properties, something with which the city’s mayor, Bill de Blasio, has justified his decision to advance the start of the curfew by three hours compared to Monday . In addition, it will be valid all week.
According to De Blasio, who has insisted that “coordinated criminal activity” was registered in New York, he specified that the situation began to “change” on Sunday night, as reported by the CNN television channel. “Now we have made the adjustment (…) that will help us lead this moment and return to a more normal place,” he added.
However, the city’s mayor has also emphasized that an “infinitesimal” number of people carried out the looting in question and that the vast majority of New York protesters have been peaceful.
De Blasio, who has rejected the possibility of deploying the National Guard, has reported that the police presence in the city on Tuesday is “vast” and has specified that it is “the largest number of police officers” that New York has had “in the last five days. “
In this context, the president of the United States, Donald Trump, has raised through the social network Twitter when the governor of the state of New York, Andrew Cuomo, will ask the central government for help. He has done so by describing the “chaos, disorder and destruction” in New York that Fox News has echoed.
PROTESTS ALSO IN WASHINGTON
As for Washington, the registered protests are also proceeding peacefully. The curfew has begun at 7:00 p.m. (local time), but protesters have remained in the streets, also in the immediate vicinity of the White House, despite the order.
However, there have been some tense moments. Outside of Lafayette Park, where police fired tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse a crowd on Monday, protesters have fired fireworks and other objects at the police, who have responded with pepper spray.
The United States Department of Defense has confirmed on Tuesday that 1,600 active-duty servicemen have moved from Fort Bragg and Fort Drum to the Washington area to collaborate with authorities, if necessary, according to a statement from the spokesman for the Pentagon, Jonathan Hoffman, collected by CNN.
Crowds of people have also come out to protest in the cities of Chicago, Houston, Orlando, Charlotte, Portland, Atlanta and Milwakee, among others. In these last two, according to the aforementioned media, the Police have used tear gas against the crowds.
On May 25, Floyd, a 46-year-old African American citizen, died while being detained for using an allegedly counterfeit $ 20 bill.
Chauvin reduced Floyd, who at no time offered resistance, according to the images of the arrest, exerting pressure for almost ten minutes with one of his knees on the victim’s neck, despite the fact that he reported that he had not he could breathe shortly before dying. Chauvin was arrested and sent to prison, after being charged with third degree murder.
Floyd’s death has sparked a wave of outrage accompanied by mass protests across the United States. According to CNN’s account, a total of 26 states, more than half of the country’s total, have mobilized the National Guard to contain the protests and riots.
