Thousands of protesters take to Sydney's CBD after George Floyd death
Thousands of people have turned up at Sydney’s CBD to protest following the death of black man George Floyd at the hands of police.
The group walked from Hyde Park to NSW Parliament to Martin Place on Tuesday afternoon carrying the Aboriginal flag and signs reading, “Black Lives Matter.”
Others held signs which read, “Australia is not innocent”, trying to highlight injustices and inequalities facing Indigenous Australians.
At Martin Place, they chanted, quoting Mr Floyd as he lay on the ground with a police officer’s knee on the back of his neck.
“I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe,” they shouted.
They then moved on to the US consulate.
“There’s a movement happening and people aren’t backing down,” one protester told 7News.
A NSW spokeswoman told Yahoo News Australia no arrests had been made and it was “peaceful so far”.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison told 2GB on Tuesday morning he was hopeful Australian protests did not mimic the violent riots unfolding in the US.
"There's no need to import things happening in other countries here to Australia," Mr Morrison told 2GB.
"Australia is a fair country. Australia is not the United States.”
The protest ended just before 7pm, The Guardian reported.
Thousands are expected to rally in Melbourne over the weekend, 7News reported.
The protests follow the emergence of a video showing a NSW police officer arresting an Indigenous teen on Monday.
It caused outrage as the officer kicked the teen’s legs out from underneath him before handcuffing the boy.
i cant be there tonight at the protest in sydney, but know that i fight with you and i stand with you #BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/q4jjlOftIl
— 𝕚𝑧𝕚 BLM (@ftdtizi) June 2, 2020
Peaceful protest in #Sydney #MartinPlace right now. pic.twitter.com/vP9JT804Pp
— Intern Pete (@Peter_Deppeler) June 2, 2020
That officer is now under investigation.
NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Mick Willing hopes the incident isn't turned into "something it's not".
"We're all aware of incidents that have taken place in the United States over the past week and we're aware of the sensitivities around what's occurring overseas," Mr Willing told reporters on Tuesday.
"Am I concerned about what I'm seeing in the footage? Absolutely. But I'm equally concerned about others who may use the footage to inflame it and turn it into something it's not."
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