The police killing of George Floyd sparks widespread anger and protests throughout the US

Ed Sykes


A white police officer was caught on video kneeling on the neck of a handcuffed African-American man – George Floyd – for several minutes during an arrest, even after Floyd said he could not breathe and stopped moving. He died shortly after.

“No threat”

The mayor of Minneapolis later said he believes the officer in question should be charged over Floyd’s death, saying:

If most people, particularly people of color, had done what a police officer did late Monday, they’d already be behind bars.

He later added: “I saw no threat. I saw nothing that would signal that this kind of force was necessary.”

Protests and police violence

Floyd’s death soon prompted protests across the US:

Thousands of people took to the streets where he died:

A woman lies in the street as protesters gather near the site of George Floyd's arrest
A woman lies in the street as protesters gather near the site of George Floyd’s arrest (AP/Jim Mone)

Many protesters marched more than 2 miles to the police station in that part of the city, with some damaging the building’s windows and cars and spraying graffiti. Police in riot gear confronted them with tear gas and projectiles.

‘Looting’

As CNN reported on 28 May, “Minneapolis’ second night of protests transitioned to rioting and looting over a few blocks south of downtown, with people smashing their way into stores and setting businesses and other buildings ablaze”. Many highlighted the existence of different types of looting:

Media hypocrisy

Some people, meanwhile, pointed out the difference in media coverage of these protests in the US and protests over in Hong Kong:

Investigation

The FBI and state law enforcement are investigating Floyd’s death, which immediately drew comparisons to the case of Eric Garner, an unarmed African-American man who died in 2014 in New York after he was placed in a chokehold by police and pleaded for his life, saying he could not breathe. In the Garner case, local prosecutors, the NYPD’s internal affairs unit and the Justice Department all finished investigations into the case before the officer was ultimately fired. Garner’s family and activists spent years begging for the officer to be removed.

Featured image and additional content via Press Association

We need your help ...

The coronavirus pandemic is changing our world, fast. And we will do all we can to keep bringing you news and analysis throughout. But we are worried about maintaining enough income to pay our staff and minimal overheads.

Now, more than ever, we need a vibrant, independent media that holds the government to account and calls it out when it puts vested economic interests above human lives. We need a media that shows solidarity with the people most affected by the crisis – and one that can help to build a world based on collaboration and compassion.

We have been fighting against an establishment that is trying to shut us down. And like most independent media, we don’t have the deep pockets of investors to call on to bail us out.

Can you help by chipping in a few pounds each month?

The Canary Support us
  • Show Comments

    1. Unbelievable how racist the police are in the USA. White guys armed with AR-15’s and side arms intimidate people outside State Senates. Police response? Nothing. I wonder what would have happened if the guys were Black? Research “Panthers Bill”

      Report comment

      1. The reason they did not react is because of how heavily armed the white people were. We need to stop the division. The police have killed an innocent human being, thats all that should matter. Black/White Unite. Stop state sponsored Murder.

        Report comment

    2. A new low for The Canary. How much Chinese money are you receiving? To compare those protesting to preserve their democracy from a cruel, twisted Chinese dictatorship to opportunistic looting is disgusting.
      Looting shops, destroying your community and destroying property is not constructive and cannot be justified. To try and use this tragedy to further an anti capitalist agenda as can be seen in this article is gutter politics.

      Report comment

    3. There is only one way left if the American people want to change their istitutionally racist and elitist system. That’s to register to vote and on polling day get out there and vote for anyone but the usual two.
      Democrats and Republicans. There’s little to no difference between either of them. They don’t care for the people on the streets, their jobs, or their wellfare. All they care about is helping their billionaire paymasters to keep gorging on the blood of the workers.
      Attempting to infiltrate their corrupt system, especiaaly with peoples of colour, has been a failure. The only ones the elite let in are those that they know they can bend to their will.
      So in November they must vote Independent, Green, Socialist. Anyone but the usual two.

      Report comment

    Leave a Reply

    Join the conversation

    Please read our comment moderation policy here.

Related articles