Curfews, Police Crackdowns Escalate As U.S. Protesters Demand Justice For George Floyd
Protests prompted by the police killing of George Floyd popped up in even more cities across the U.S. on Saturday as tens of thousands of people continued to demand justice for Black victims of police brutality, and in many cities they were met with increasingly heavy-handed police crackdowns.
By late Saturday, at least 25 cities across 16 states had imposed curfews in response to the demonstrations.
Large swaths of people gathered on the streets of Austin, Texas; Chicago; Columbus, Ohio; Denver, Colorado; Fayetteville, North Carolina; Indianapolis; Los Angeles; Miami, Florida; New York City; Newark, New Jersey; Philadelphia; Salt Lake City; San Francisco; Washington, D.C. and more on the warm weekend day.
As night fell, tensions increased in numerous cities. Police in Indianapolis said they were investigating multiple shootings downtown where protests had turned violent. At least one person had been killed and several people were injured in the shootings, Randal Taylor, police chief of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, told reporters late Saturday.
“Enough is enough. Indianapolis, we are better than this,” Taylor said, adding the downtown area was “not safe at this time.”
At least 13 police officers in Philadelphia were injured when demonstrations became violent, The New York Times reported.
In L.A., the National Guard was deployed, according to the Los Angeles Times. “This is no longer a protest,” Mayor Gil Garcetti said Saturday night. “This is destruction.”
Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak activated the National Guard Saturday night to “secure government buildings” in Reno, and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum declared a state of emergency in and around Fargo and activated the National Guard. Earlier on Saturday, the National Guard was deployed in the nation’s capital as well as several other states, including Georgia, Texas, Ohio, Kentucky.
The Pentagon ― in an extraordinary move ― said it put military units on a...
