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The daytime protests this week across the United States have been largely peaceful, consisting of people drawn from all racial backgrounds and all walks of life, young and old. They have including mothers fearful that what befell George Floyd — an African-American man who died in police custody after a white police officer knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes — could all too easily happen to their sons.But many of the nights since Floyd’s death have been different, full of rampant pillaging, arson and vandalism and brawling with police. There have been isolated incidents of shots being fired at police. In their turn, protesters blame police for heavy-handed tactics and say they are merely defending themselves.Who’s behind the violence?President Donald Trump and some of his top officials accuse “radical left” agitators for the mayhem. U.S. Attorney General William Barr points the finger at “far-left extremist groups” including Antifa, a network of confrontational, autonomous far-left groups.FILE – A woman holds up a sign addressing Antifa at a George Floyd protest in Los Angeles, California, June 1, 2020.Some Democratic governors have in turn blamed far-right groups, highlighting an announcement this week by social-media giant Twitter that it had suspended an account linked to a white nationalist group, Identity Evropa, for inciting violence.The account was set up with a fake Antifa profile and was linked to other false-flag accounts that pumped out provocative false information accusing authorities and internet providers of censoring protest news. Facebook also announced this week it had suspended several accounts linked to white nationalist groups after they urged people to bring weapons to protests in the U.S.Meanwhile, members of the so-called “Boogaloo” movement — an amorphous collective with far-right and far-left elements — were seen at protests in some states, wearing their signature Hawaiian shirts, including in Minnesota, Texas and Pennsylvania. Some “Boogaloo” adherents are part of a broader movement of white supremacists called “accelerationists,” who welcome civil disorder and want to foment violent political polarization, hoping it will end up toppling America’s current political order.FILE – People, including activists with the Boogaloo movement, rally at the State House in Concord, New Hampshire, May 2, 2020, in a protest unrelated to the George Floyd demonstrations.Researchers at the Counter Extremism Project, an international policy organization formed to monitor and combat extremist groups, say white supremacists and neo-Nazis have been celebrating the past week of mayhem on the streets. On the Telegram channel of one violent neo-Nazi group, 5,500 followers reportedly were advised that a large protest would provide the perfect opportunity to commit a murder. Another Telegram channel said the time was right to attack synagogues with law enforcement being distracted by the civil unrest, according to CEP.But it is unclear to what extent radical groups of left or right have been able to orchestrate violence.New York’s deputy commissioner for intelligence and counterterrorism, John Miller, believes anarchist and radical left groups have been stoking the fury in his city. “Before the protests began,” he told reporters, “organizers of certain anarchist groups set out to raise bail money and people who would be responsible to be raising bail money, they set out to recruit medics and medical teams with gear to deploy in anticipation of violent interactions with police.”He added: “They prepared to commit property damage and directed people who were following them that this should be done selectively and only in wealthier areas or at high-end stores run by corporate entities.” One in seven of those arrested in New York for public order offenses has been from outside the city, which officials say is suspicious.FILE – People exit damaged stores after their front windows were knocked out during George Floyd protests, in the Chelsea neighborhood of New York City, June 1, 2020.Law enforcement officials in several other states and cities contacted by VOA say they believe out-of-state actors seeded themselves within the overwhelmingly non-violent local community protesters. But they acknowledge they’re still trying to assess how much those agitators have been able to steer the course of events on the streets. Some officials say it doesn’t take much to spark conflagration and prod agitated, passionate crowds, setting up a reciprocal cycle of violence.Analysts and researchers who follow radical groups say they have little doubt extremists were involved in the much bigger stew of unrest, anger and protest. “It will take time to unravel what extremist networks may or may not have been involved,” Brian Levin, a professor of criminal justice at California State University-San Bernardino and director of the Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism, told VOA.“Some people being arrested appear to be affiliated to the hard left, but others seem to be from the far right. Some of these folks might just be thrill-seeking manipulators or are felonious opportunists and not just ideologues, others are idiosyncratic wildcards,” he added. Distinguishing between them all can be difficult.“But we have a very fragmented and splintered socio-political landscape in America now, and with institutions under stress, a pandemic and an election year underway, I really think we have to reassess what the threat matrix. There is a deep reservoir of potential extremist recruits,” he adds. 
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U.S. officials say that a Navy veteran detained in Iran for nearly two years has been released and is on his way home aboard a Swiss government aircraft.
 
The officials say that American diplomat Brian Hook has flown to Zurich with a doctor to meet just-released Michael White and will accompany White back to the United States.
 
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Mourners are set to gather Thursday in the U.S. city of Minneapolis for the first of three memorials for George Floyd, the man whose death in police custody has led to more than a week of nationwide protests demanding justice and systemic reforms.Civil rights leader the Rev. Al Sharpton is leading Thursday’s private service for family and friends.“We remember the long list of those that were killed unjustifiably by law enforcement and those that were killed unjustifiably because of double standards, bigotry and racism,” Sharpton said in a social media post hours before the service.  “We think of their loved ones, we think of what they could have been.  We think of the contributions that they could have made, and then we get up and do something about achieving justice and fairness.”A public viewing and private service is then scheduled Saturday in North Carolina, the state where Floyd was born, followed by a large service Monday in Houston where he spent most of his life.Protesters welcomed the move by prosecutors in the state of Minnesota to charge three additional officers in connection with Floyd’s death, and demonstrations Wednesday night in numerous cities were once again largely peaceful.A Utah National Guard soldier fist-bumps with a demonstrator as protests over the death of George Floyd continue, June 3, 2020, near the White House in Washington.Washington DC
In Washington, several thousand people protested outside the White House and the Capitol, and marched down Pennsylvania Avenue as National Guard troops, police and personnel from several federal agencies stood guard. Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser relaxed the city’s curfew, starting it at 11 p.m. rather than 7 p.m., after several calmer nights. Detroit’s police chief said officers there would not impede anyone peacefully marching after the nighttime curfew there went into effect, while the Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan canceled her curfew order that was supposed to last through Saturday. San Francisco Mayor London Breed and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said they planned to end their curfews Thursday. Garcetti responded to protester demands to cut his police department’s budget, announcing Wednesday he would redirect $150 million from that department and $100 million from others to projects focusing on health and education for the black community. He also announced planned police reforms, including requiring officers to intervene if they see another officer inappropriately using force, boosting mental health intervention training, having all officers complete training in de-escalation and crowd control, and strengthening relationships between the police and the community. This combination of photos provided by the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office in Minnesota on June 3, 2020, shows Derek Chauvin, from left, J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao.4 Police officers charged
The nationwide protests began in Minneapolis, where Floyd, a 46-year-old African American man, died May 25 after a white police officer held him face down on the street and pressed a knee against his neck for several minutes. Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison announced Wednesday second-degree murder charges against Derek Chauvin, the officer who held Floyd.  Chauvin was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter after his arrest last week. Ellison also announced charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder against the other three officers at the scene: J.A. Keung, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao.  All four officers are in custody and have been fired from the police department. “I strongly believe that these developments are in the interest of justice for Mr. Floyd, his family, our community and our state,” Ellison said. “We’re working together on this case with only one goal: justice for George Floyd.”  A Floyd family attorney said the additional charges are “a bittersweet moment.”   Congressional efforts
Congressman Justin Amash and Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley announced Wednesday they are co-leading a bill to end qualified immunity, a move that would make it easier for victims of civil rights abuses to sue officers in civil court. “Qualified immunity shields police from accountability, impedes true justice, and undermines the constitutional rights of every person in this country,” Pressley said. Protesters breach a line of police atop the Crescent City Connection bridge, which spans the Mississippi River in New Orleans, June 3, 2020, during a protest over the death of George Floyd.New Orleans clash
In one of the few reports of clashes Wednesday night, police in New Orleans used tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters.  Police officials said the demonstrators defied orders not to cross a bridge. In New York, police dressed in riot gear confronted a group of protesters who were peacefully demonstrating but after the city’s curfew had gone into effect.Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
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The US Senate on Wednesday approved reforms to the popular Paycheck Protection Program that will give small businesses greater flexibility in using the coronavirus crisis funds. The measure, which cleared the House of Representatives by a 471-1 vote, unanimously passed the Senate and now heads to President Donald Trump’s desk for his signature. The new changes to the PPP, established as a lifeline for small businesses struggling to stay afloat during coronavirus lockdowns, allow for more flexibility in how the relief loans are used, and in the time given to businesses to repay the funds. “These changes will let business owners spend their PPP funds over a longer period of time, use a larger percentage of the loan on non-payroll expenses (like rent), and more,” said Senator Angus King, an independent who aligns with Democrats. The two phases of the PPP have provided a total of $669 billion in lending. “The PPP is a pro-worker, bipartisan program that has been hugely successful in protecting 50 million employees and helping small business owners endure this crisis,” said Senate Republican Marco Rubio, chairman of the small business committee. The bill would extend from eight weeks to 24 weeks the period when funds must be spent for the loans to be forgiven, and would also give businesses as long as five years to repay any money owed on a loan, up from two years.  Businesses would be able to use a larger percentage of the funds on rent and other approved non-payroll expenses. The bill would require that 60 percent of a loan be used on payroll, instead of 75 percent — a current stipulation that frustrates businesses like restaurants, which are grappling with high overhead costs. Congress is meanwhile working on a massive new measure to provide fresh economic relief for Americans and fund local pandemic response efforts.   But the $3 trillion bill, which passed the Democratic-led House, faces opposition from Senate Republicans who branded it an exorbitant liberal wish list. 
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The White House medical team kept a close eye on President Donald Trump’s heart rhythms, including at least one electrocardiogram, to watch for potential side effects when he took a two-week course of a malaria drug to try to prevent the coronavirus, his doctor reported Wednesday.”The President completed the regimen safely and without side effects,” Dr. Sean Conley wrote in a report on Trump’s latest physical and his treatment with hydroxychloroquine.A pharmacy tech pours out pills of hydroxychloroquine at Rock Canyon Pharmacy in Provo, Utah, May 20, 2020.Overall, Conley said, Trump showed little change in basic health measurements from 16 months ago. On the negative side, he gained a pound. But on the plus side, his cholesterol level continued to fall.”The data indicates the President remains healthy,” Conley concluded. Trump recently took a two-week course of hydroxychloroquine after two White House staffers tested positive for COVID-19.Conley said it was done in consultation with “appropriate care team members and close monitoring of the electrocardiogram (EKG),” indicating that doctors were looking for changes in his heartbeat because abnormal heart rhythms are one of the dangerous side effects that have been found in studies of the drug.The drug proved ineffective for preventing COVID-19 in the first large, high-quality study to test it in people in close contact with someone with the disease. Results published Wednesday by the New England Journal of Medicine show that hydroxychloroquine was no better than placebo pills at preventing illness from the coronavirus. The drug did not seem to cause serious harm, though — about 40% on it had side effects, mostly mild stomach problems. Trump has frequently cited anecdotal reports and seemed determined to prove the naysayers wrong. Trump’s weight came in a 244 pounds. That gives him a Body Mass Index of 30.5, based on his 6-foot, 3-inch frame. An index rating of 30 is the level at which doctors consider someone to be obese. About 40% of Americans are obese.  Trump was evaluated twice for the physical, first in November 2019 and then in April. He has a resting heart rate of 63 beats per minute. A normal resting heart rate for adults ranges from 60 to 100 beats per minute, and generally, a lower rate implies better cardiovascular fitness.  His blood pressure came in at 121 over 79. The American Heart Association says an elevated blood pressure range is when a reading for the upper number consistently ranges from 120-129 and less than 80 for the lower number. People with elevated blood pressure are likely to develop high blood pressure unless steps are taken to control the condition. Trump has shown marked improvement in his cholesterol levels during his presidency, helped by medication. At his physical in January 2018, his total cholesterol was 223. In early 2019, the reading came in at 196. It now stands at 167. The president takes rosuvastatin to help lower his bad cholesterol, known as LDL, and to raise his good cholesterol, or HDL. Ideally, total cholesterol should be less than 200.  Trump also takes aspirin daily and finasteride, a drug to treat enlargement of the prostate and male pattern hair loss. Aspirin reduces the risk of heart attack and stroke in people at high risk for them. 
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In an abrupt reversal, Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Wednesday overturned an earlier Pentagon decision to send a couple hundred active-duty soldiers home from the Washington, D.C., region, amid growing tensions with the White House over the military response to the protests.Army Secretary Ryan McCarthy told The Associated Press that the reversal came after Esper attended a meeting at the White House, and after other internal Pentagon discussions. It is unclear if Esper met with President Donald Trump. McCarthy said he believes the change was based on ensuring there is enough military support in the region to respond to any protest problems if needed.McCarthy said he received notice of the Pentagon order to send about 200 soldiers with the 82nd Airborne’s immediate response force home just after 10 a.m. Wednesday. Hours later, the Pentagon notified him that Esper had reversed the decision. The move to keep the troops in the region, however, comes as Pentagon leaders continue to insist they do not want to use active-duty forces to help quell the protests.Earlier in the day, Esper had tamped down threats from Trump about sending troops to “dominate” the streets, telling reporters at a Pentagon news conference that he opposes using military forces for law enforcement in containing the current street protests.  Active-duty troops should be used in the U.S. “only in the most urgent and dire of situations,” He said, adding, “We are not in one of those situations now.””It is our intent at this point not to bring in active forces, we don’t think we need them at this point,” McCarthy said in an interview with The Associated Press. “But it’s prudent to have the reserve capability in the queue, on a short string.”Demonstrators gather to protest the death of George Floyd, June 3, 2020, near the White House in Washington. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers.The AP reported earlier Wednesday that the 82nd Airborne soldiers would be the first to leave and would be returning home to Fort Bragg, N.C. The remainder of the active-duty troops, who have all been kept at military bases outside the city in northern Virginia and Maryland, would get pulled home in the coming days if conditions allowed.But then the Pentagon changed its plans.”It’s a dynamic situation,” said McCarthy, adding that the 82nd Airborne troops “will stay over an additional 24 hours and it is our intent — we’re trying to withdraw them and get them back home.”The active-duty troops have been available, but not used in response to the protests.About 1,300 active-duty troops were brought in to the capital region early this week as protests turned violent. The protests came in the aftermath of the death in Minnesota of a black man, George Floyd, who died after a white police officer pressed his knee to Floyd’s neck for several minutes. The active-duty unit that will be last to remain on alert is the Army’s 3rd Infantry Regiment, which is normally most visible as the soldiers who stand at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The troops, known as the Old Guard, are based close to D.C. at Fort Myer, Virginia, and have been on 30-minute alert status. They would continue to be prepared to respond to any emergency in the region within a half-hour for as long as needed.Pentagon leaders have consistently said there continues to be no intent to use the active-duty forces in any law enforcement capacity. They would be used to assist the National Guard or other forces.So far, Indiana has sent about 300 National Guard troops to D.C., Tennessee has sent about 1,000 and South Carolina has sent more than 400.
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Former U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein defended his decision to open a special counsel investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, telling a Senate panel Wednesday that while there was “reasonable suspicion” for the probe, he should not have signed an application for a surveillance warrant against a Trump campaign adviser.The Senate Judiciary Committee called Rosenstein in to testify about the origins of the FBI investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, the first step in a broader effort by the Republican-majority U.S. Senate to investigate alleged abuses on the part of Obama administration officials, as well as presumptive 2020 Democratic nominee, former Vice President Joe Biden.Chair of the Republican-led Senate Judiciary Committee Lindsey Graham of South Carolina prepares to hear testimony from former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington, June 3, 2020.Judiciary Committee Chairman Lindsey Graham is set to issue 53 subpoenas Thursday, in an attempt to compel testimony from former Obama administration officials, including former FBI Director James Comey and former Attorney General Loretta Lynch. Last month, the Senate Homeland Security Committee approved a subpoena for Blue Star Strategies, the consulting firm that employed Biden’s son, Hunter Biden.The investigation by Senate Republicans — coming five months before the 2020 presidential election — revives President Donald Trump’s long-standing claims there was a conspiracy within the Obama administration to hinder his bid for the presidency and later, his incoming administration.”There are millions of Americans pretty upset about this,” Graham said in his opening statement. “There are people on our side of the aisle who believe that this investigation, Crossfire Hurricane, was one of the most corrupt, biased criminal investigations in the history of the FBI. And we would like to see something done about it.”A Justice Department investigation found last year that the FBI had committed errors in investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election, including mistakes in an application to put former Trump campaign adviser Carter Page under surveillance. However, the investigation did not find any evidence of political bias by federal investigators, as Trump alleges.Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, questions former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein via teleconference during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, June 3, 2020.Rosenstein told lawmakers Thursday he would not have signed the warrant authorizing surveillance of Page under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) if he had been aware of the errors in the application.”Every application that I approved appeared to be justified based on the facts it alleged, and the FBI was supposed to be following protocols to ensure that every fact was verified,” Rosenstein said in his opening testimony.Rosenstein defended the recusal of then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions that put him in charge, calling Sessions one of the most “principled people in Washington.” He also described the decision-making process leading to the appointment of Robert Mueller as special counsel, telling lawmakers “appointing a special counsel was the best way to complete the investigation appropriately and to promote public confidence in its conclusions.”Rosenstein left the Justice Department in May 2019 after two stormy years as the deputy attorney and shortly after Mueller had completed his investigation.Democratic Senator from California Dianne Feinstein prepares to hear testimony from former Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington, June 3, 2020.Senator Dianne Feinstein, the ranking Democratic member on the Judiciary Committee, noted the Mueller investigation “uncovered more than a 120 contacts between the Trump campaign and individuals linked to Russia.”Feinstein went on to directly quote from the Mueller report, citing its findings that the Trump campaign “expected it would benefit electorally from Russia’s interference” and that members of the campaign lied to Mueller and the U.S. Congress about their contacts with Russia.Democrats have criticized efforts to investigate the Obama administration, saying that Republicans are using congressional resources to help the president’s personal political fortunes while there are more pressing issues.”Those who tuned in might have expected that we’d have a hearing concerning the public health crisis facing America, the pandemic, which we’re fighting every day, which has claimed over 100,000 American lives,” Democratic Senator Dick Durbin said Wednesday.”They might even wonder if we would take up the issue of racism in the administration of justice in America,” he added. “Certainly a timely topic, but we’re not. They might wonder if we would ask a question about President Trump’s suggestion 48 hours ago that he would have a federal militarization of law enforcement across the United States. Certainly a significant constitutional issue. But no, not taking that up today. Instead, taking up the Mueller report, an investigation that was completed more than a year ago.”Chairman Graham has announced the committee does plan to hold a hearing on police use of force.  
 
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Prosecutors charged a Minneapolis police officer accused of pressing his knee against George Floyd’s neck with second-degree murder on Wednesday, and for the first time leveled charges against three other officers at the scene, according to criminal complaints.The upgraded charge against Derek Chauvin says the officer’s actions were a “substantial causal factor” in Floyd’s death.”Officer Chauvin’s restraint of Mr. Floyd in this manner for a prolonged period was a substantial causal factor in Mr. Floyd losing consciousness, constituting substantial bodily harm, and Mr. Floyd’s death as well,” the criminal complaint said.Widely seen bystander video showing Floyd’s May 25 death has sparked protests nationwide and around the world against police brutality and discrimination. The officer, Derek Chauvin, was fired May 26 and initially charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter. The three other officers involved were also fired  but were not immediately charged.Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison upgraded the charge against Chauvin to unintentional second-degree murder. He also charged Thomas Lane, J. Kueng and Tou Thao with aiding and abetting second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.Ellison was expected to talk about the new charges on Wednesday afternoon.Attorney Earl Gray, who represents Lane, told The Associated Press that the  Star Tribune’s initial report about the charges was accurate, before ending the call. Before news of the upgraded charges, an attorney for Chauvin said he was not making any statements at this time. Attorneys for Thao and Kueng did not return messages seeking comment on the charges.Attorney Ben Crump tweeted that the Floyd family was “deeply gratified” by Ellison’s action and called it “a source of peace for George’s family in this difficult time.” He said Ellison had told the family his office will continue to investigate and upgrade charges against Chauvin to first-degree murder if warranted. Reached by phone, Crump declined to speak beyond the statement or make clear when Ellison had spoken with the family and whether he had been informed directly that additional charges had been filed.Floyd’s family and protesters have repeatedly called for criminal charges against all four officers as well as more serious charges for Chauvin, who held his knee to Floyd’s neck, despite his protests that he couldn’t breathe, and stayed there even after Floyd stopped moving. Floyd, a black man, was in handcuffs when he died with his face pressed to the street.”He died because he was starving for air,” Crump said at a news conference earlier Wednesday. “He needed a breath. So we are demanding justice. We expect all of the police officers to be arrested before we have the memorial here in Minneapolis, Minnesota, tomorrow.”Crump said the other officers failed to protect a man who was pleading for help and said he couldn’t breathe.”We are expecting these officers to be charged as accomplices,” he said.Personnel records released by the city show Chauvin served as a military policeman in the U.S. Army in the late 1990s. Since being hired as a police officer in 2001, he has been awarded two medals of valor: One for being part of a group of officers who opened fire on a stabbing suspect after the man pointed a shotgun at them in 2006, and one for apprehending another man in a domestic incident in 2008. In the latter incident, Chauvin broke down a bathroom door and shot the man in the stomach.Chauvin was reprimanded in 2008 for pulling a woman out of her car in 2007, frisking her and placing her in his squad car after he stopped her for speeding 10 miles per hour over the limit. His dashboard camera was not activated and a report said he could have interviewed the woman while standing outside her car.Lane, 37, and Kueng both joined the department in February 2019 and neither have any complaints on their files.Lane previously worked as a correctional officer at the Hennepin County juvenile jail and as a probation officer at a residential treatment facility for adolescent boys.Kueng was a 2018 graduate of the University of Minnesota where he worked part-time on campus security. He also worked as a theft-prevention officer at Macy’s in downtown Minneapolis while he was in college.Tou Thao, a native Hmong speaker, joined the police force as a part-time community service officer in 2008 and was promoted to police officer in 2009. He was laid off later that year due to budget cuts and rehired in 2012.Gov. Tim Walz and the Minnesota Department of Human Rights on Tuesday launched a civil rights investigation  of the Minneapolis Police Department and its history of racial discrimination, in hopes of forcing widespread change. 
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Hundreds of cities have imposed curfews to keep the peace during a week of violent unrest across the U.S., employing a tactic that gives law enforcement sweeping arrest powers but is frequently flouted and criticized as being unconstitutional.From New York City to Fargo, North Dakota, cities large and small have put curfews in place — in some cases for the first time in decades — sending out emergency notices on phones and highway signs urging people to stay off the streets.But the deadlines aren’t hard and fast — many of them have exceptions for people heading to and from work, reporters, public transportation and even people buying groceries. Many protesters and citizens have routinely disregarded the restrictions, and police have allowed peaceful demonstrations to continue after curfew while focusing their attention on violent unrest.In New York City, an 11 p.m. curfew was originally put in place this week for what appeared to be the first time in nearly 80 years. Mayor Bill de Blasio rolled it back to 8 p.m., but thousands of people defied the curfew Tuesday night, continuing to march in parts of Brooklyn and Manhattan. After initially standing by and letting protesters continue, officers began ordering people to leave and some people were taken into custody.On an overall calmer night in New York City, de Blasio said the relative quiet was due partly to the curfew. ” So far, the curfew is certainly helping, based on everything I’ve seen in Brooklyn and Manhattan over the last three hours,” de Blasio tweeted.A curfew allows police the ability without any other reason to threaten to arrest or detain crowds of protesters that linger or groups that appear to be a danger to order. And curfews can be a deterrent to get law-abiding citizens off the street and allow police to focus their efforts on the unrest and not get bogged down in run-of-the-mill violations.They have been installed in Los Angeles, Atlanta, Detroit, Denver, Philadelphia and hundreds of other cities and communities across the country.Curfews aren’t unusual in the United States but are typically used in natural disasters like hurricanes, floods and tornadoes to allow law enforcement to stop anyone on the streets and prevent stealing when many homes and empty or damaged. New York City has used curfews in specific locations like parks — sometimes with controversial results.The 1988 Tompkins Square Park riot in Manhattan had to do in part with a then-newly imposed 1 a.m. parks department curfew in a bid to rid the park of drugs and crime. In enforcing the curfew, police flooded the park with officers and were accused of rampant abuses.Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani ramped up enforcement of Central Park’s nightly closure after a string of robberies in the late 1990s. Giuliani was so strict about the curfew, he wouldn’t grant an exception for a late-night vigil to John Lennon, despite intercession from the lord mayor of Liverpool on behalf of aggrieved Beatles fans.During the unrest of the past week, police also want bystanders off the street during unrest — and the curfew solves that.”The curfew really is to keep people from coming sort of to gawk at what’s going on and keep the looky-loos away,” said Sacramento City Councilman Steve Hansen, whose city’s 8 p.m. Monday curfew appeared to help prevent the destructive demonstrations from the night before.The curfews also come on the heels of lockdowns and stay-at-home orders imposed during the coronavirus pandemic, making for an unprecedented stretch in cities like New York.In Columbia, South Carolina, officials lifted a weekend curfew and the mayor joined an afternoon protest at the state capitol calling for police reform. But several dozen people stayed for hours after the protest ended as tensions with police grew as shadows got longer.Just before 7:30 p.m. Monday, Columbia, South Carolina , Mayor Steve Benjamin set a curfew for 7:45 p.m. for a small area of downtown and an areas of restaurants and shops. The city sent an emergency notice and protesters looked at their screens as their phones started to buzz and the curfew set in. The protesters immediately started to walk away.But some civil rights organizations think hastily issued curfews are unfair and against the First Amendment of the Constitution.”By making presence on public streets anywhere in these cities unlawful, these measures give police too much discretion over whom to arrest,” said the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California after a number of cities issued curfews.New York City on Monday found out an unintended consequence of a curfew is keeping away law-abiding protesters. The night before, they banded together to stop vandalism and help police find lawbreakers.It also sends a subtle message, said New York City Council member Ydanis Rodriguez.”Implementing a curfew and increasing the number of police officers patrolling the streets is a tactic to effectively silence the voices raised in protest against the abuse of power and looting of black and colored bodies by members of the police,” Rodriguez said.Curfews can cause other problems too. Charleston, South Carolina, had a curfew for three days after late night Saturday protests led to shattered windows for restaurants and businesses and stolen merchandise downtown.Monday night was quiet. And Charleston Mayor John Tecklenburg said he immediately heard from a certain group of people.”We want to give our businesses a chance to get back into business,” Tecklenburg told his City Council at a Tuesday meeting lifting the curfew.A curfew also allows police to separate people who want to protest while following the law from people who want to cause harm, said Tamara Herold, an assistant professor in the Criminal Justice Department at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas. That makes it easier for law enforcement to decide how to use force to break up unrest.”One of the things police always want to avoid is using indiscriminate force against a large crowd,” Herold said. 
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Protests in the city of Minneapolis, Minnesota are the latest in the modern era that began as the result of racially charged confrontations between police and black Americans.  Here is a historical timeline of events that sparked protests similar to those we are now witnessing.
 
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Thousands of furloughed South Korean workers could soon return to their jobs on U.S. military bases in South Korea under the terms of a deal announced by the Pentagon. In a statement late Tuesday, the Defense Department said it has accepted South Korea’s offer to fund labor costs for all Korean national employees on U.S. bases through the end of 2020. The agreement does not completely resolve a months-long impasse between Washington and Seoul over how to split the cost of the roughly 28,000 U.S. troops in South Korea.  The allies’ previous military cost-sharing agreement expired at the end of the year. Over 4,000 South Korean civilian employees were placed on unpaid leave in March, after temporary U.S. funding ran out.  Military officials and analysts have warned the furloughs could jeopardize military readiness, especially amid the coronavirus pandemic and increasing North Korean provocations. Under the new agreement, South Korea will provide more than $200 million for the entire Korean national (KN) workforce through the end of 2020, the Pentagon said. The U.S. said it expects all Korean employees to return to work “no later than mid-June.” “This decision enables a more equitable sharing of the KN employee labor burden by (South Korea) and the U.S.,” the U.S. statement said. “More importantly, it sustains the Alliance’s number one priority – our combined defense posture.” A South Korean foreign ministry official confirmed the arrangement, according to the Yonhap news agency. But the announcement does not mean that a broader cost-sharing deal, or Special Measures Agreement (SMA), has been reached.  Critical defense infrastructure projects will remain suspended and all logistics support contracts for USFK will continue to be paid completely by the United States, the Pentagon statement said.  “Burden sharing will remain out of balance for an Alliance that values and desires parity,” the U.S. statement added. “USFK’s mid- and long-term force readiness remains at risk.”  President Donald Trump, who has long accused South Korea of taking advantage of U.S. protection, last month said he rejected South Korea’s latest offer.  The negotiations have spilled over into the public – a rarity for such talks – greatly straining the alliance.  South Korean officials have said publicly that a 13 percent increase is their final offer. Washington is reportedly now asking for a 50 percent increase.  “It does not seem like we are anywhere close to an agreement,” said David Maxwell, an analyst who focuses on U.S.-South Korea military relations at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. “This is only a band-aid. It will not stop the bleeding in the alliance.”  Any eventual cost-sharing deal must be approved by South Korea’s National Assembly, and observers have noted that allies of South Korean President Moon Jae-in may be less likely to cede ground on the issue after winning a landslide election last month. It is not clear if the narrower labor proposal will need to be approved by parliament.  
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Protests were largely peaceful and the nation’s streets were calmer than they have been in days since the killing of George Floyd set off demonstrations that at times brought violence and destruction along with pleas to stop police brutality and injustice against African Americans. There were scattered reports of looting in New York City overnight, and as of Wednesday morning there had been over 9,000 arrests nationwide since the unrest began following Floyd’s death May 25 in Minneapolis. But there was a marked quiet compared with the unrest of the past few nights, which included fires and shootings in some cities. The calmer night came as many cities intensified their curfews, with authorities in New York and Washington ordering people off streets while it was still daylight. A block away from the White House, thousands of demonstrators massed following a crackdown a day earlier when officers on foot and horseback aggressively drove peaceful protesters away from Lafayette Park, clearing the way for President Donald Trump to do a photo op at nearby St. John’s Church. Tuesday’s protesters faced law enforcement personnel who stood behind a black chain-link fence that was put up overnight to block access to the park. “Last night pushed me way over the edge,” said Jessica DeMaio, 40, of Washington, who attended a Floyd protest Tuesday for the first time. “Being here is better than being at home feeling helpless.” Pastors at the church prayed with demonstrators and handed out water bottles. The crowd remained in place after the city’s 7 p.m. curfew passed, defying warnings that the response from law enforcement could be even more forceful. But the crowd Tuesday was peaceful, even polite. At one point, the crowd booed when a protester climbed a light post and took down a street sign. A chant went up: “Peaceful protest!” Trump, meanwhile, amplified his hard-line calls from Monday, when he threatened to send in the military to restore order if governors didn’t do it. “NYC, CALL UP THE NATIONAL GUARD,” he tweeted. “The lowlifes and losers are ripping you apart. Act fast!” Thousands of people remained in the streets of New York City Tuesday night, undeterred by an 8 p.m. curfew, though most streets were clear by early Wednesday other than police who were patrolling some areas. Midtown Manhattan was pocked with battered storefronts after Monday’s protests. Protests also passed across the U.S., including in Los Angeles, Miami, St. Paul, Minnesota, Columbia, South Carolina and Houston, where the police chief talked to peaceful demonstrators, vowing reforms. “God as my witness, change is coming,” Art Acevedo said. “And we’re going to do it the right way.” More than 20,000 National Guard members have been called up in 29 states to deal with the violence. New York is not among them, and Mayor Bill de Blasio has said he does not want the Guard. On Tuesday, Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo called what happened in the city “a disgrace.” Demonstrators greet members of the National Guard as they march along Hollywood Boulevard, Tuesday, June 2, 2020, in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles.“The NYPD and the mayor did not do their job last night,” Cuomo said at a briefing in Albany. He said the mayor underestimated the problem, and the nation’s largest police force was not deployed in sufficient numbers, though the city had said it doubled the usual police presence. Tuesday marked the eighth straight night of the protests, which began after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee against Floyd’s neck while the handcuffed black man called out that he couldn’t breathe. The officer, Derek Chauvin, has been fired and charged with murder. The mother of George Floyd’s 6-year-old daughter, Gianna, said she wanted the world to know that her little girl lost a good father. “I want everybody to know that this is what those officers took,” Roxie Washington said during a Minneapolis news conference with her young daughter at her side. “I want justice for him because he was good. No matter what anybody thinks, he was good.” Some protesters framed the burgeoning movement as a necessity after a string of killings by police. “It feels like it’s just been an endless cascade of hashtags of black people dying, and it feels like nothing’s really being done by our political leaders to actually enact real change,” said Christine Ohenzuwa, 19, who attended a peaceful protest at the Minnesota state Capitol in St. Paul. “There’s always going to be a breaking point. I think right now, we’re seeing the breaking point around the country.” “I live in this state. It’s really painful to see what’s going on, but it’s also really important to understand that it’s connected to a system of racial violence,” she said. Meanwhile, governors and mayors, Republicans and Democrats alike, rejected Trump’s threat to send in the military, with some saying troops would be unnecessary and others questioning whether the government has such authority and warning that such a step would be dangerous. A senior White House official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that the president is not rushing to send in the military and that his goal was to pressure governors to deploy more National Guard members. Such use of the military would mark a stunning federal intervention rarely seen in modern American history. Amid the protests, nine states and the District of Columbia held presidential primaries that tested the nation’s ability to run elections while balancing a pandemic and sweeping social unrest. Joe Biden won hundreds more delegates and was on the cusp of formally securing the Democratic presidential nomination. Also Tuesday, Minnesota opened an investigation into whether the Minneapolis Police Department has a pattern of discrimination against minorities. 
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Images of violence and looting have dominated news coverage of America’s protests against racism and police brutality, but most people participating in the demonstrations have not taken part in the mayhem. VOA’s Jesusemen Oni has this report on how people are making themselves heard without violence.Camera:  Saqib Islam, Jason Patinkin   
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Protests in the United States continued Tuesday night in cities all over the country as people continued to express anger and frustration at the death of George Floyd in police custody. The protesters defied nighttime curfew orders in some areas, including in New York City, where hundreds of people remained on the Brooklyn Bridge late into the night after marching from the Brooklyn side to find their path into Manhattan blocked by police. In Atlanta, police fired tear gas to break up a crowd of hundreds who remained after the start of the city’s 9 p.m. curfew.  Officers were seen detaining people in both cities. Hundreds of people remained past curfew time in Washington’s Lafayette Square park across from the White House, where the scene was much quieter than the day before when officers aggressively pushed largely peaceful protesters out to clear the way for President Donald Trump to make an appearance in front of St. John’s Church. The protesters who gathered in the park Tuesday chanted slogans of “Black lives matter,” “Don’t shoot,” and “Enough is enough.”WATCH: Peaceful demonstrationsSorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
Joined by community faith leaders Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti takes a knee in prayer during a Black Lives Matter protest in downtown Los Angeles, Tuesday, June 2, 2020.The demonstrations started more than a week ago in Minneapolis, where Floyd, a 46-year-old African American man, died after a white police officer held him face down on the street and pressed a knee against his neck for several minutes. The state of Minnesota said Tuesday it filed a civil rights charge against the Minneapolis Police Department and opened an investigation into whether the department has “engaged in systemic discriminatory practices.” “My administration will use every tool at our disposal to deconstruct generations of systemic racism in Minnesota. This effort is one of many steps to come in our effort to restore trust with communities that have been unseen and unheard for far too long,” said Governor Tim Walz. The officer who held Floyd, Derek Chauvin, was fired and has been charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.  Three other officers who were at the scene were also fired. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “heartbroken” to see violence in the streets of the world body’s host city.  New York is one of many places where protests have been largely peaceful, but particularly at night some people have smashed windows, lit fires and looted stores. “Grievances must be heard, but should be expressed peacefully — and authorities must show restraint in responding to demonstrations,” Guterres said.  “Racism is an abhorrence that we must all reject.  Leaders in all sectors of society must invest in social cohesion so every group feels valued.  That means addressing inequality and discrimination, strengthening support for the most vulnerable and providing opportunities for everyone.” A Reuters/Ipsos poll released Tuesday showed 64% of adults in the United States were “sympathetic to people who are out protesting right now,” compared to 27% who were not and 9% who were unsure.Demonstrators greet members of the National Guard as they march along Hollywood Boulevard, Tuesday, June 2, 2020, in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles.The same poll showed 55% of people disapproved of the way Trump has handled the situation, compared to about one-third who said they approved. Trump has said he is an “ally of all peaceful protesters” while posting numerous tweets about the use of force to keep peace in the nation’s cities. “New York’s Finest are not being allowed to perform their MAGIC but regardless, and with the momentum that the Radical Left and others have been allowed to build, they will need additional help. NYC is totally out of control,” he wrote late Tuesday. “MUST PUT DOWN RIOTING NOW!” Earlier in the day, his opponent in the November election, former Vice President Joe Biden, criticized Trump’s response, saying, “I won’t traffic in fear and division.” “The country is crying out for leadership,” Biden said in Philadelphia. “Leadership that can unite us, leadership that brings us together. Leadership that can recognize pain and deep grief of communities that have had a knee on their neck for a long time.”  Former President George W. Bush cited the historic pain of the African American community, saying in a statement, “Black people see the repeated violation of their rights without an urgent and adequate response from American institutions.” Bush said he and his wife, Laura, are “anguished by the brutal suffocation of George Floyd and disturbed by the injustice and fear that suffocate our country.” “It remains a shocking failure that many African Americans, especially young African American men, are harassed and threatened in their own country.  It is a strength when protesters, protected by responsible law enforcement, march for a better future.” 
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An advocacy group backed by the tech industry filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against President Donald Trump’s executive order on social media, as U.S. technology companies have been fighting White House efforts to weaken a law that protects them. The Washington-based Center for Democracy & Technology said in its lawsuit that Trump’s executive order violates the First Amendment rights of social media companies. It noted that the order was issued after Twitter Inc amended one of Trump’s tweets and called it “plainly retaliatory.” The lawsuit argues that Trump’s executive order will “chill future online speech by other speakers” and reduce the ability of Americans to speak freely online. Trump, in an attempt to regulate social media platforms where he has been criticized, said last week he will introduce legislation that may scrap or weaken a law that has protected internet companies, including Twitter and Facebook. The proposed legislation was part of an executive order Trump signed on Thursday afternoon. Trump had attacked Twitter for tagging his tweets about unsubstantiated claims of fraud about mail-in voting with a warning prompting readers to fact-check the posts. Trump said he wants to “remove or change” a provision of a law known as Section 230 that shields social media companies from liability for content posted by their users. He also said Attorney General William Barr will begin drafting legislation “immediately” to regulate social media companies. The White House declined comment on the lawsuit. “Twitter appended the President’s tweets … in immediate retaliation, the President issued the Executive Order,” said the lawsuit, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. 
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A Confederate soldiers’ monument that stood in Birmingham, Alabama, for more than 100 years is no more.Construction workers Tuesday dismantled the last piece of the five-story structure after Mayor Randall Woodfin ordered it gone.The mayor acted Sunday after a group of demonstrators protesting the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis threatened to tear down the monument themselves. They had already vandalized it and destroyed a statue of Confederate Navy Captain Charles Linn, one of Birmingham’s founders.”Allow me to finish the job for you. I wanted you to hear it directly from me. But I need you to stand down,” Woodfin told the crowd before declaring a state of emergency and curfew in Birmingham.Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall has sued the city, accusing it of violating a state law ordering protecting Confederate memorials that are at least 40 years old.The Washington Post reported that a statue honoring Confederate troops in Alexandria, Virginia — a Washington suburb — was taken also taken down Tuesday.Demonstrators in Nashville took matters in their own hands and tore down the statue of Edward Carmack, a former state lawmaker and newspaper publisher who espoused racist views, who was gunned down in the streets of Nashville in 1908, according to the Tennessean newspaper.FILE – Protesters toppled the statue of Edward Carmack outside the state Capitol after a peaceful demonstration turned violent, in Nashville, Tenn., May 31, 2020.And outside Tampa, Florida, a Sons of Confederate Veterans chapter voluntarily lowered a huge Confederate battle flag that flew within sight of two major highways for years.City and state officials across the southern U.S. have been removing Civil War Confederate-era memorials over the past several years.African Americans and others call the structures monuments to slavery, institutionalized racism, and terror.Alabama statue of LinnSarah Collins Rudolph’s sister Addie Mae Collins was one of four black girls killed in a 1963 church bombing in Birmingham by Ku Klux Klansmen — one of the most shocking acts of violence during the civil rights era.”I’m glad it’s been removed because it has been so long, and we know that it’s a hate monument,” said Rudolph, referring to the Linn monument. “It didn’t represent the blacks. It just represented the hard times back there a long time ago.”Rudolph continued, “The things that we were fighting for in the ’60s aren’t solved yet. We shouldn’t be treated the way they treat us.”A large group of southern states broke away from the United States in the 19th century in part to preserve the institution of slavery. Other areas of disagreement with the northern states included states’ rights and westward expansion. The resulting Civil War from 1861 until 1865 resulted in the official end of slavery in the U.S. when Congress passed the 13th Amendment three months before the Confederate surrender. 
 
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Thousands of Paris protesters defied a virus-related police ban and rallied Tuesday against racial injustice and heavy-handed police tactics, as global outrage over the death of George Floyd in the United States kindled frustrations across borders and continents.Clapping, cheering and waving signs reading “Black Lives Matter” and “Police Everywhere, Justice Nowhere,” the largely young, multiracial crowd streamed to the main Paris courthouse and rallied peacefully while police monitored closely from nearby corners.
Chanting “I can’t breathe,” thousands marched peacefully through Australia’s largest city, while thousands more demonstrated in the Dutch capital of The Hague and hundreds rallied in Tel Aviv. Expressions of anger erupted in multiple languages on social networks, with thousands of Swedes joining an online protest and others speaking out under the banner of #BlackOutTuesday.World Outrage Grows at Floyd’s Death; EU ‘Shocked, Appalled’ EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell’s remarks in Brussels were the strongest so far to come out of the 27-nation bloc, saying Floyd’s death was a result of an abuse of powerDiplomatic ire percolated too, with the European Union’s top foreign policy official saying the bloc was “shocked and appalled” by Floyd’s death.
As protests escalated worldwide, solidarity with U.S. demonstrators increasingly mixed with local worries.
“This happened in the United States, but it happens in France, it happens everywhere,” said Paris protester Xavier Dintimille. While he said police violence seems worse in the U.S., he added, “all blacks live this to a degree.”
Floyd died last week after a police officer pressed his knee into his neck for several minutes even after he stopped moving and pleading for air. The death set off protests that spread across America — and now, beyond.
Fears of the coronavirus remain close to the surface and were the reason cited by the police for banning Tuesday’s protest at the main Paris courthouse. Gatherings of more than 10 people remain banned in France as part of virus confinement measures.
But demonstrators showed up anyway. Some said police violence worsened during virus confinement in working class suburbs with large minority populations, deepening a feeling of injustice.
Similar demonstrations were held in other French cities in honor of Adama Traore, who died shortly after his arrest in 2016, and in solidarity with Americans demonstrating against Floyd’s death.
The Traore case has become emblematic of the fight against police brutality in France. The circumstances of the death of the 24-year-old Frenchman of Malian origin are still under investigation after four years of conflicting medical reports about what happened.
The lawyer for two of the three police officers involved in the arrest, Rodolphe Bosselut, said the Floyd and Traore cases “have strictly nothing to do with each other.” Bosselut told The Associated Press that Traore’s death wasn’t linked with the conditions of his arrest but other factors, including a pre-existing medical condition.
Traore’s family says he died from asphyxiation because of police tactics — and that his last words were “I can’t breathe.”
“I can’t breathe” were also the final words of David Dungay, a 26-year-old Aboriginal man who died in a Sydney prison in 2015 while being restrained by five guards.
As 3,000 people marched peacefully through Sydney, many said they had been inspired by a mixture of sympathy for African Americans amid ongoing violent protests in the U.S. and to call for change in Australia’s treatment of its indigenous population, particularly involving police. The mostly Australian crowd at the authorized demonstration also included protesters from the U.S. and elsewhere.
“I’m here for my people, and for our fallen brothers and sisters around the world,” said Sydney indigenous woman Amanda Hill, 46, who attended the rally with her daughter and two nieces. “What’s happening in America shines a light on the situation here.”
A total of 432 indigenous Australians have died in police detention since a 1991 Royal Commission inquiry into Aboriginal deaths in custody, according to The Guardian newspaper. Australia has also never signed a treaty with the country’s indigenous population, who suffer higher-than-average rates of infant mortality and poor health, plus shorter life expectancy and lower levels of education and employment than white Australians.
Even as U.S. President Donald Trump fanned anger by threatening to send in troops on American protesters, Canadian Premier Justin Trudeau refrained from directly criticizing him, and said the protests should force awareness of racism everywhere.
“We all watch in horror and consternation what’s going on in the United States,” he said. “But it is a time for us as Canadians to recognize that we, too, have our challenges, that black Canadians and racialized Canadians face discrimination as a lived reality every single day. There is systemic discrimination in Canada.”
More protests in various countries are planned later in the week, including a string of demonstrations in front of U.S. embassies on Saturday.
The drama unfolding in the U.S. drew increasing diplomatic concern.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell’s remarks in Brussels were the strongest to come out of the 27-nation bloc, saying Floyd’s death was a result of an abuse of power.
Borrell told reporters that “like the people of the United States, we are shocked and appalled by the death of George Floyd.” He underlined that Europeans “support the right to peaceful protest, and also we condemn violence and racism of any kind, and for sure, we call for a de-escalation of tensions.”
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said peaceful protests in the U.S. following Floyd’s death are “understandable and more than legitimate.”
“I can only express my hope that the peaceful protests do not continue to lead to violence, but even more express the hope that these protests have an effect in the United States,” Maas said.
More African leaders are speaking up over the killing of Floyd.
“It cannot be right that, in the 21st century, the United States, this great bastion of democracy, continues to grapple with the problem of systemic racism,” Ghana President Nana Akufo-Addo said in a statement, adding that black people the world over are shocked and distraught.
Kenyan opposition leader and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga offered a prayer for the U.S., “that there be justice and freedom for all human beings who call America their country.”Like some in Africa who have spoken out, Odinga also noted troubles at home, saying the judging of people by character instead of skin color “is a dream we in Africa, too, owe our citizens.” 
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As the US is gradually reopening after many weeks of strict lockdown, hotels are about to start welcoming visitors again. Their owners need to figure out a way to provide traditional hospitality services with health and safety in mind. Medical experts and analysts of the industry believe a lot will change from new cleaning protocols to how room keys are handled. Lesia Bakalets has the story, narrated by Anna Rice.Camera: Aleksandr Bergan
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Police throughout California arrested hundreds of people who refused to heed curfews, chasing some down after they smashed into stores following a weekend of violence that accompanied rage over George Floyd’s death at the hands of Minneapolis police.Monday’s violence and thefts were not on the scale of the weekend, when blocks of stores were devastated, police cars torched and many officers injured.  Most of Monday’s protests were smaller, although an estimated 15,000 people gathered in Oakland and about 5,000 demonstrated in Riverside, east of Los Angeles.  In Sacramento, where two-thirds of the downtown businesses were damaged over the weekend, 500 National Guard troops were deployed and the city declared a Monday night curfew.  Most demonstrations were peaceful and there was sympathy expressed by law enforcement. Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco took a knee at the invitation of demonstrators.  “We support and will protect those who wish to demonstrate peacefully,” Los Angeles U.S. Attorney Nick Hanna said in a statement that announced the FBI will help identify those who commit serious crimes.San Diego Police Chief David Nisleit said Floyd’s death prompted him to revisit department policy and stop using a controversial neck restraint method. Floyd, who was black, was handcuffed and on the ground pleading for air as a white police officer pressed a knee on his neck for several minutes.Los Angeles Police Chief Michel Moore criticized looters as capitalizing on the death of Floyd and said “his death is on their hands.” Moore quickly said he regretted that characterization but added he was not apologizing to those committing violence and destroying livelihoods.”Looting is wrong, but it is not the equivalent of murder and I did not mean to equate the two,” Moore said later. “Let me be clear: the police officers involved were responsible for the death of Mr. George Floyd.”Most of Monday’s demonstrations ended when curfews took effect. But remaining crowds tossed fireworks and bottles in several cities, and authorities responded with tear gas and rubber bullets.Police who had been overwhelmed during the weekend were reinforced by 4,500 National Guard troops.  “Don’t be dumb,” Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti warned before the night’s curfew went into effect.Even so, scattered attacks on stores threatened to overshadow the message of protesters. Televised images showed attacks on stores in Van Nuys and Hollywood. Police said some people carried hammers.At one point, a handful of protesters stopped would-be thieves from entering a Walgreens on Sunset Boulevard.Many of the trashed businesses had only recently reopened following weeks closures because of the coronavirus. Volunteers turned out to help merchants clean up broken glass, board storefronts, and scrub away graffiti.  Alex Rose clutched a garbage-picker as he joined others cleaning up downtown Sacramento.”There’s a very clear distinction between protesters and the looters,” said Rose, who protested during the day Sunday. “I went home last night, and that’s when the criminals came out.”Some leaders blamed outsiders for the violence.Oakland’s acting police chief said organized thieves traveled more than 100 miles (160 kilometers) from other cities.  “Fifteen, 20, 30 cars at a time, hitting as you’ve seen different shopping malls, different areas,” Chief Susan Manheimer said.San Francisco Police Chief Bill Scott said some people “came to this city with crowbars, bolt cutter, tools that were designed specifically to get into businesses, to take property and loot.”
 
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The U.S. remains on edge Tuesday after a seventh day of protests across the country against the death of an African American man in the custody of a white policeman.
 
An official finding of homicide has been announced in the death of George Floyd, who died last week after a white officer, Derek Chauvin, kneeled on his neck for more than eight minutes while he was pinned to the ground in handcuffs and pleading that he could not breathe.  
 
The incident, captured on video, has sparked demonstrations in dozens of American cities, the most widespread outbreak of civil unrest in decades.Tear gas floats in the air as a line of police move demonstrators away from St. John’s Church across Lafayette Park, near the White House, in Washington, June 1, 2020.After protests and violent outbreaks near the White House on Sunday, President Donald Trump threatened in a Rose Garden address Monday to deploy U.S. military troops to cities to stop any further violent protests.  
 
Federal authorities fired rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse peaceful protesters outside the White House during Trump’s remarks, clearing the way for him to walk to a nearby church and pose for photographs with a Bible in hand. That drew condemnation from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Democratic leader Charles Schumer.President Donald Trump holds a Bible as he stands outside St. John’s Church across Lafayette Park near the White House, in Washington, June 1, 2020.Video and photos showed military helicopters in Washington hovering below building height, not far above protestors, snapping branches off trees and stirring up debris.
 
Protesters, who are also demanding an end to generations of racism, took to the streets in other U.S. cities as well, including the Midwestern city of St. Louis, where four police officers were shot early Tuesday.  
 
Peaceful daytime protests turned violent after nightfall and the four officers were shot shortly after midnight. Officials said their injuries are not considered life-threatening.
 
Despite an extraordinary 11 p.m. curfew in New York, the largest city in the U.S., groups of people smashed windows and looted stores including Macy’s flagship store in Manhattan. Police said an officer was hospitalized in critical condition after being struck by a hit-and-run driver in the Bronx.Workers board up the Macy’s store in Herald Square after it was damaged and looted by protesters who rallied against the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in the Manhattan borough of New York City, June 2, 2020.In the northwestern city of Seattle, protesters clashed with police Monday night. NBC News reports that correspondent Jo Ling Kent was struck by a flashbang projectile fired by police but was not injured. There have also been reports in many cities of police injuring journalists who were covering the protests.  
 
A 6 p.m. curfew in the northeastern city of Philadelphia did not stop protestors from marching to City Hall on Monday. Larger crowds shut down traffic earlier in other parts of the city as law enforcers used tear gas and pepper spray to disperse them.
 
In the Midwestern city of Minneapolis, peaceful demonstrators continued to gather at the site of Floyd’s deadly encounter with police. Police arrived at the scene after the 10 p.m. curfew. Police also moved in on peaceful protestors who spent the evening at the Minnesota State Capitol.FILE – People are seen gathered at a memorial featuring a mural of George Floyd, near the spot where he died while in police custody, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, May 31, 2020.Meanwhile, Minnesota officials have said George Floyd suffered from a loss of blood flow due to compression on his neck while being restrained by Minneapolis police.
 
The report from the Hennepin County Medical Examiner Monday said Floyd died of “cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint, and neck compression.” It also says Floyd was suffering from heart disease, fentanyl intoxication and recent methamphetamine use, but it does not list those factors in the cause of death.  
 
The report overturns preliminary county findings, which found that Floyd’s death was the combined result of being restrained by police as well as underlying health conditions and potential intoxicants in his system.  
 
It comes hours after an autopsy commissioned by the family of Floyd found his death was caused by asphyxiation and also ruled it a homicide. The family-appointed medical examiner, Michael Baden, said no underlying medical conditions caused or contributed to Floyd’s death.  State patrol officers clear an area after a curfew went into effect in Minneapolis, Minnesota, May 30, 2020.Nearly 40 other U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami and Detroit, have imposed nighttime curfews. The governors of Texas and Virginia have imposed states of emergency.   
 
Protests across the United States have followed a similar pattern in dozens of cities with thousands of people turning out to peacefully protest, but with elements in those crowds later turning to violence. Police have used shields, batons and tear gas while some demonstrators have set fires and smashed storefronts.   
 
The marchers say they are protesting not just harsh police treatment of black men and women, but also systemic racism in the United States.   
   
Chauvin, the officer who held down Floyd, and three other officers who were present and did not intervene, were fired last Tuesday. Chauvin has been charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter in the case.  
 
Protesters have been joined by statements of support from a variety of entities, from corporations to professional sports teams.  
 
“We will no longer tolerate the assassination of people of color in this country,” the players from the Washington Wizards of the National Basketball Association said.  
 
Facebook announced a $10 million pledge for unspecified “efforts committed to ending racial injustice.”  
 
Trump, who is also grappling with the coronavirus crisis as he seeks re-election, has blamed most of the violence during protests on “Antifa (anti-Fascist) and other radical left-wing groups,” and offered federal military assistance to Minnesota.   
    
More than 5,600 people have been arrested across the country during the past two days of protests, according to an Associated Press tally.   
  
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St. Louis police said four officers were hit by gunfire after protests that started peacefully Monday became violent overnight, with protesters smashing windows and stealing items from businesses and fires burning in the downtown area.The police department said on Twitter early Tuesday that the officers were taken to an area hospital with injuries that were not believed to be life-threatening. It was unclear who had fired the shots.The chaos in St. Louis followed continued protests Monday in Missouri over the death of George Floyd and police treatment of African Americans, with gatherings also held in Kansas City and Jefferson City. The nationwide protests were sparked by the May 25 death of Floyd, a handcuffed black man who pleaded for air as a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee against Floyd’s neck until he stopped breathing.Monday’s protests came after peaceful daytime protests Sunday led to spurts of chaos overnight into Monday, with vehicles and buildings damaged and officers firing tear gas after being pelted with rocks, fireworks and Molotov cocktails.On Monday afternoon, several hundred people rallied peacefully outside the justice center in downtown St. Louis, including Mayor Lyda Krewson and St. Louis Public Safety Director Jimmie Edwards. Protestors later walked to the Gateway Arch National Park and then onto nearby Interstate 64.But later Monday, protesters gathered in front of police headquarters, where officers fired tear gas. Some protesters smashed windows at a downtown 7-11 store and stole items from inside before the building was set on fire. Moments later a car was set on fire and other businesses broken into and looted.On Monday afternoon, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas and Police Chief Rick Smith kneeled with protesters gathered at the Country Club Plaza entertainment district and had what police spokesman Sgt. Jake Becchina later described as a good conversation with the crowd.A man holds a sign with a target as he joins other protesters during a protest against the death in Minneapolis police custody of African-American man George Floyd, in St Louis, Missouri, May 29, 2020.Not long after, Becchina said items were thrown at police and pepper spray was used. More people began to arrive later in the evening and he said about “half a dozen”people had been detained, some who had sacks of rocks and bags of urine.Nearly 2,000 protesters gathered early Monday evening on the Capitol grounds in Jefferson City, carrying signs reading “white silence is violence” and “say their names.”Police estimated that more than 1,500 people turned out in O’Fallon, about 35 miles (56.33 kilometers) west of St. Louis. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that Police Chief Tim Clothier locked arms and marched with protesters, saying he wanted to show support for their cause.“We do not agree with what happened. We do not want to condone the behavior of that one officer,” Clothier said.Republican Gov. Mike Parson said Monday that the Missouri National Guard and the Missouri State Highway Patrol are ready if violence persists.“We support peaceful protesters and we are committed to protecting the lawful exercise of these rights,” Parson, a former sheriff, said. “But violence and destruction will never be the answer. It does not help us achieve justice or peace. Instead it terrorizes innocent people and families, destroys our communities and creates more anger and pain.”Tensions boiled over Sunday in Kansas City and Ferguson, the city in St. Louis County that became synonymous with the Black Lives Matter movement after the August 2014 killing of Michael Brown, a black 18-year-old, by a white police officer.Just as in 2014, the Ferguson Police Department was a focus of demonstrators on Sunday for a second night. Police began dispersing the crowd shortly after 10 p.m., but some people damaged windows at Ferguson Brewing Co. just down the street. Minutes later, after someone threw a Molotov cocktail at a police car, officers responded with tear gas and ordered protesters to clear the area.St. Louis County police reported that two officers suffered minor injuries. One was hit by fireworks, the other by a rock. Six people were arrested, police spokesman Benjamin Granda said.Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt said Marcus Marvin Hunt was arrested Saturday in St. Louis and accused of distributing information on making explosives and destructive devices. Schmitt said a person in St. Louis was charged with organizing and promoting a riot. The second suspect’s name wasn’t released.
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One man was the beloved owner of a Louisville barbecue restaurant who made sure to provide free meals to officers. Another was a man known as “Mr. Indianapolis,” a former star football player. Yet another was a federal officer working security during a protest. They are among the people who have been killed as protests roiled American cities in the week since 46-year-old George Floyd died when a white officer jammed his knee into the back of the black man’s neck. The deaths have at times been overshadowed by the shocking images of chaos engulfing cities across America, from heavy-handed riot police tactics to violence, vandalism and arson. Tens of thousands have marched peacefully in demonstrations against police brutality and racism. Protesters listen to a man speak as they gather peacefully in front of the Ohio Statehouse in Downtown Columbus, Ohio, June 1, 2020, to protest the death of George Floyd.Many of the people killed were African Americans, compounding the tragedy for black families to lose more members of their community amid the unrest. Dozens more have been hurt in various altercations — vehicles plowing into crowds, police officers suffering head injuries and broken bones and protesters ending up in emergency rooms with a variety of injuries from the melees. The death toll and circumstances surrounding the killings are still being sorted out in many cities, but here is what we know about the cases so far: Louisville As local police and the National Guard sought to disperse a crowd early Monday, they heard gunshots and returned fire, killing the owner of a barbecue restaurant, David McAtee. The mayor has since terminated the city’s police chief after finding out that officers on the scene did not activate their body cameras. The state police and the U.S. attorney also are investigating. The 53-year-old McAtee was an African American man known for offering free meals to officers who stopped by. “We lost a wonderful citizen named David McAtee,” Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said. “David was a friend to many, a well-known Barbecue man.” The protests in Louisville have centered not just on Floyd’s killing but also the death of Breonna Taylor, a black woman killed in her home in Louisville in March. The 26-year-old EMT was shot eight times by narcotics detectives who knocked down her front door as they attempted to enforce a search warrant. No drugs were found in the home. Oakland A federal law enforcement officer was providing security at the federal courthouse in Oakland during a protest when someone fired shots from a vehicle. Dave Patrick Underwood, 53, died and another officer was critically injured in the shooting. It was not immediately clear if the drive-by shooting was related to the protests, though the federal building’s glass doors were smashed and the front entrance was sprayed with anti-police graffiti. Several thousand demonstrators gather in Oakland, Calif., on June 1, 2020, to protest the death of George Floyd.Underwood, who was black, and the other officer were contracted security officers and employed by the Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Protective Service; they were monitoring a nearby protest. No one has been arrested and a motive for the shooting has not yet been determined. Underwood was the brother of Angela Underwood Jacobs, recently a Republican candidate to fill a vacant U.S. congressional district north of Los Angeles. Indianapolis Two people were killed over the weekend amid unrest in Indianapolis, including 38-year-old Chris Beaty, a former offensive lineman for Indiana University. Beaty was known as “Mr. Indianapolis” and remained involved with the Hoosiers long after his graduation. He also was a prominent businessman in the city and ran multiple nightclubs. “I am at a loss for words. The news of the passing of Chris Beaty is just devastating,” coach Tom Allen said in a statement. “Since I returned home to coach at Indiana, Chris embraced me, encouraged me and supported me! His passion for life and Indiana Football energized me every time we were together.” The circumstances of his shooting weren’t immediately clear but some media reports said it happened near an apartment where he lived. It also occurred the same night that an 18-year-old man also was fatally shot as protests broke out in the city. Minneapolis In what is believed to be the first killing since the protests broke out, a 43-year-old black man was fatally shot outside a pawn shop as rioting broke out last week in Minneapolis and then spread nationally. The owner of the pawn shop, who is white, was arrested in the death of Calvin L. Horton Jr. Police say they are investigating the circumstances surrounding the killing, including whether it was related to protests in the neighborhood. The shop was described as having been significantly damaged during unrest. Handwritten messages can be seen at a memorial for George Floyd that has been created at the place where he was taken into police custody and later died in Minneapolis, Minnesota, June 1, 2020.Omaha, NebraskaA 22-year-old black man was killed after authorities said he tussled with the owner of two bars in downtown Omaha. Surveillance video of the strip of bars shows a group of people, including James Scurlock, approach bar owner Jake Gardner. Two people are seen on the video tackling Gardner, who ended up on his back and fired shots in the air. Seconds later, Scurlock is seen tackling Gardner, who then fires the gun over his shoulder, striking Scurlock. Authorities have declined to press charges, calling the shooting self-defense. Detroit A 21-year-old man was killed in downtown Detroit after someone fired shots into a vehicle during a protest. According to a police report, the man was sitting in the driver’s seat of a car in a parking lot with two others when someone fired shots into the vehicle and then fled on foot.  Chicago suburbTwo people were killed during unrest Monday in the Chicago suburb of Cicero, according to a town official. Spokesman Ray Hanania did not provide details about those who were killed but said it happened amid protests there. 
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A popular black restaurateur was fatally shot in Kentucky early on Monday as police and National Guard troops fired weapons while dispersing a crowd protesting against police killings of African Americans. The chief of police in Louisville was fired and two officers placed on administrative leave after authorities learned the officers had fired their weapons without using body cameras to record what happened, Mayor Greg Fischer said at a press briefing on Monday. “We had a horrible tragedy last night at 26th and Broadway,” Fischer said. “We lost a wonderful citizen named David McAtee.” The death of McAtee, who owned YaYa’s BBQ near the site of the shooting, marked the second time Louisville police did not use their body cameras during a shooting incident in which an unarmed black resident was killed. Like protesters across the country, the Louisville marchers were incensed by the treatment of George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man who died in Minneapolis police custody after being pinned beneath a white officer’s knee for nearly nine minutes. But they were also protesting against the Louisville officers who shot 26-year-old Breonna Taylor while serving a “no knock” search warrant at her apartment. Protests over racial inequality have engulfed the nation’s major cities for a week, as officials extended curfews in hopes of preventing a seventh night of looting and vandalism over the death of Floyd. Details were not immediately available about the circumstances of McAtee’s death, Fischer said. He added, however, that authorities know two Louisville police officers and two National Guard soldiers had fired their weapons. The officers say they returned fire after someone shot at them, Fischer said. Kentucky Governor Andy Bashear, a Democrat, promised an exhaustive investigation. “My pledge is that we will give you the truth, no matter what the truth is,” he told a news conference. 
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Anger over the death in police custody of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, has exceeded fear of COVID-19 infection, as thousands have crowded into city streets across the country to protest. But public health officials are worried that these demonstrations may have given the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 the upper hand.  More than 100,000 people in the United States have died of the disease so far.  People in close proximity transmit the virus through droplets they release when they breathe, talk, cough and sneeze.  For months, officials have canceled concerts, theater performances and large gatherings of all kinds to avoid creating conditions that spread the coronavirus.  Some states and cities have been slowly reopening, as the number of new cases has seen a slow decline overall despite pockets were the number of cases is increasing. While many expressed empathy for the protesters’ anger, officials say the past several days of crowds have been just what they have been trying to avoid.  “How many super-spreaders were in that crowd?” New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo asked Monday. “How many young people went home and kissed their mother hello? Or shook hands with their father, or hugged their father, or their grandfather, or their grandmother, or their brother, or their sister, and spread a virus?” “Protest, just be smart about it,” Cuomo said. “With this virus, you can do many things now, as long as you’re smart about it.”New York Governor Andrew Cuomo speaks to reporters during a news conference at the National Press Club after meeting with President Donald Trump about response to the coronavirus disease pandemic at the White House, May 27, 2020.The New York City health department’s official Twitter account posted tips for protesters to lower their risk of spreading the virus, including wearing face coverings, staying 6 feet from other groups, and not yelling.  “Use signs & noise makers instead,” the post says.Many protesters came out, despite the risks. “George Floyd was killed like an animal. And we’re tired. This is the norm. This is not something that’s new,” demonstrator Diedre O’Brien told VOA from behind a mask during a protest outside the White House this weekend. Studies show that African Americans are roughly three times as likely to die in a police encounter as white people.  As an African American woman with asthma, O’Brien added, “I am definitely in the reach of COVID, which has been killing black people at a disproportionate rate, as well.” African Americans make up roughly a quarter of COVID-19 deaths but only 13% of the U.S. population, according to The COVID Tracking Project. While “there’s no doubt in my mind” that large demonstrations “can become breeding grounds for this virus,” Harvard University epidemiologist Michael Mina said, “the one benefit is that they tend to be outside,” where virus transmission seems to be lower. Many demonstrators are keeping some distance apart, which is helpful, and wearing masks, which offer some protection. “Will they be sufficient to stop any transmission? Probably not,” Mina said. Standing next to a highly infectious person for a long period of time will still put someone at risk. On the plus side, testing capacity is better than it was at the beginning of the outbreak, Mina said.  “I think (virus) spread that occurs within groups of protesters probably will not overwhelm the laboratory system at this point,” at least in larger cities, he said. When someone tests positive for coronavirus infection, health officials try to track down everyone they have been in contact with recently. That is going to be extremely difficult if they attended a protest with thousands of people, he added. If infections do spike, Mina noted, it may be hard to pin it on the protests. Many businesses are reopening at the same time, and people are moving around more than they have in months.  “It’s another one of these things that we have to balance as a society,” he said — disease prevention against economic damage. Or “in this case, balancing freedom of speech and freedom to protest against the epidemic” and public health. 
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A white Fort Lauderdale police officer was suspended Monday after he was captured on video shoving a black woman to the ground when she was already on her knees.Witnesses say fellow officers instantly jumped in and pulled him away.Fort Lauderdale Police Chief Rick Maglione says the officer has been relieved of duty while the incident is investigated.He also praised other officers, including Krystle Smith, for moving in.”She did what you are supposed to do. When you see either adrenaline or emotion or some kind of interaction going south … that is our job to do, is intervene,” Maglione said.He said if any disciplinary action is needed, it will be “swift and corrective in nature.”Protesters gather during a rally in response to the recent death of George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis, at Fort Lauderdale Police Department in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, May 31, 2020.The incident took place Sunday after what had been a peaceful demonstration turned violent, with small groups of demonstrators breaking windows and spraying graffiti on buildings.One group of marchers surrounded an officer, while another group began jumping on a police car. The African American woman was already on her knees when Officer Steven Pohorence walked by and shoved her head, pushing her to the ground.The woman was not hurt, but those who saw the shove became enraged, and two fellow officers immediately pushed Pohorence away from the scene. Soon afterward, police fired tear gas to break up the crowd.Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis said he is “offended” by Pohorence’s actions.”I thought that was something that should have never happened,” the mayor said. The Fort Lauderdale police union has not commented.’Animals’ commentAlso Monday, the state’s attorney’s office in Fort Lauderdale fired a prosecutor who called protesters “animals” in a Facebook post.The Florida State Attorney’s Office said prosecutor Amy Bloom’s remarks were “entirely inconsistent with its ideals and principles.”Bloom said she was referring to all demonstrators, regardless of race. She said she deleted her post within seconds, but not before someone read and reported it.  
 
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Minnesota officials have ruled George Floyd’s death a homicide, saying he suffered from a loss of blood flow due to compression on his neck while being restrained by Minneapolis police. Floyd, a 46-year-old African American man, died last week while in handcuffs after a white officer, Derek Chauvin, kneeled on his neck for several minutes. His death, captured on video, has sparked chaotic demonstrations in dozens of American cities, some of which have turned violent. The report from the Hennepin County Medical Examiner on Monday said Floyd died of “cardiopulmonary arrest complicating law enforcement subdual, restraint and neck compression.” It also says Floyd was suffering from heart disease, fentanyl intoxication and recent methamphetamine use, but it does not list those factors in the cause of death.  The report overturns preliminary county findings, which found that Floyd’s death was the combined result of being restrained by police as well as underlying health conditions and potential intoxicants in his system.  It comes hours after an autopsy commissioned by the family of Floyd found his death was caused by asphyxiation and also ruled it a homicide. The family-appointed medical examiner, Michael Baden, said no underlying medical conditions caused or contributed to Floyd’s death.  Floyd’s death has led to protests across the United States, which continued Monday evening.Demonstrators in front of a line of police officers during a protest for the death of George Floyd,
June 1, 2020, near the White House in Washington.In Washington, police set off tear gas bombs to disperse protesters outside the White House before President Donald Trump addressed the nation from the Rose Garden. Trump threatened to deploy the U.S. military to cities to stop violent protests, calling himself “the president of law and order” and said he will “fight to protect” the American people.” Earlier Monday, Trump lambasted the nation’s governors as “weak,” demanding they crack down on violent protesters and arrest them. Police in Philadelphia also fired tear gas Monday along with nonlethal bullets at hundreds of protesters who were blocking an interstate before an evening curfew was set to begin.  New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and state Governor Andrew Cuomo announced a curfew beginning at 11 p.m., joining nearly 40 other cities, including Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami and Detroit, that have imposed nighttime curfews. The governors of Texas and Virginia have imposed states of emergency.   Protests across the United States have followed a similar pattern in dozens of cities with thousands of people turning out to peacefully protest, but later some in the crowds turn to violence. Police have used shields, batons and tear gas while some demonstrators have set fires and smashed storefronts.   Floyd’s brother, Terrence, pleaded with protesters Monday not to use violence, saying it is “not going to bring my brother back at all.” Speaking in Minneapolis, where George Floyd died, Terrence Floyd said, “Let’s switch it up, y’all. Let’s switch it up. Do this peacefully, please.”  There have also been reports in many cities of police injuring journalists who were covering the protests.  The marchers say they are protesting not just harsh police treatment of black men and women, but also systemic racism in the United States.   Philadelphia police and Pennsylvania National Guard take a knee at the suggestion of Philadelphia Police Deputy Commissioner Melvin Singleton, unseen, outside Philadelphia Police headquarters in Philadelphia, June 1, 2020.Chauvin, the officer who held down Floyd, and three other officers who were present and did not intervene, were fired last Tuesday. Chauvin has been charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter in the case.  “We are pursuing justice, we are pursuing it relentlessly,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said.   Protesters have been joined by statements of support from a variety of entities, from corporations to professional sports teams.  “We will no longer tolerate the assassination of people of color in this country,” the players from the Washington Wizards of the National Basketball Association said. “We will no longer accept the abuse of power from law enforcement. We will no longer accept ineffective government leaders who are tone-deaf, lack compassion or respect for communities of color. We will no longer shut up and dribble.”  Facebook announced a $10 million pledge for unspecified “efforts committed to ending racial injustice.”  Attorney General William Barr called for calm in a statement Sunday.   “The continued violence and destruction of property endangers the lives and livelihoods of others, and interferes with the rights of peaceful protesters, as well as all other citizens,” he said.  “It also undercuts the urgent work that needs to be done – through constructive engagement between affected communities and law enforcement leaders – to address legitimate grievances.”   Trump has blamed most of the violence during protests on “Antifa (anti-Fascist) and other radical left-wing groups,” and offered federal military assistance to Minnesota.   Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee against Trump in the November election, spoke to black community leaders in Delaware Monday, promising if elected to “deal with institutional racism” and to set up a police oversight body in his first 100 days in office.  At least 4,400 people have been arrested across the country during the past two days of protests, according to an Associated Press tally.   Numerous Minneapolis businesses suffered extensive property damage Friday as protesters randomly looted stores in a neighborhood near the site where Floyd died. Somali American business owner Ahmed Siyad Shafi’i told VOA that vandals attacked all his of his stores overnight.    “They broke the glass, the doors, the windows,” he said via Skype, “and take whatever they can take.”Shafi’i, the owner of a restaurant and clothing store in South Minneapolis, called it “unacceptable” for anyone to destroy personal property and suggested peaceful protests. VOA Somali Service contributed to this report.
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