Protests over George Floyd's death convulse the US for a seventh consecutive night

Unrest grips cities from New York to Las Vegas as anger over death of George Floyd continues to boil over on US streets 
David Child2 June 2020

Protests over the death of George Floyd have rocked the United States for a seventh consecutive night, prompting President Donald Trump to threaten deploying the military to quell the growing unrest.

At least 5,600 people have now been arrested during the demonstrations, which have swept through scores of cities in the past week.

Protesters took to the streets again on Monday evening, with thousands marching in New York and smaller demonstrations held in cities from Washington D.C. to Los Angeles.

Four police officers were shot and injured in Missouri amid the continuing unrest, and two people were reported killed in Chicago. The circumstances of both incidents was not immediately clear.

In Las Vegas, a police officer was shot and authorities were responding to another shooting during protests.

Meanwhile, in New York, an 11pm curfew failed to prevent another evening of destruction which witnessed several arrests being made following a break-in at Manhattan’s flagship Macy’s store.

Protesters had earlier marched peacefully through Manhattan and Brooklyn, but as the night progressed police responded to numerous reports of roving groups of people smashing their way into shops and looting merchandise.

George Floyd Protests - In pictures

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A Nike store was ransacked and several shop fronts and bank windows were smashed.

The continued unrest has been fuelled by widespread anger in response to Mr Floyd's death in Minneapolis on May 25. The 46-year-old African-American was filmed gasping for breath as a white police officer knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes.

Protesters have repeatedly defied curfews rolled out by authorities in response to the escalating crisis.

In response, US President Donald Trump on Monday threatened to deploy the military if state governors do not stamp out the demonstrations.

In a charged address in front of the White House Rose Garden, the President said if governors throughout America do not deploy the National Guard in sufficient numbers to “dominate the streets”, the US military would step in to “quickly solve the problem for them”.

And the US leader declared: “We have the greatest country in the world. We’re going to keep it safe.”

A military deployment by Mr Trump to US states would mark a stunning federal intervention rarely seen in modern American history.

Minutes before Mr Trump began speaking, police and National Guard soldiers began aggressively forcing back hundreds of peaceful protesters who had gathered in Lafayette Park, across the street from the White House, where they were chanting against police brutality and Mr Floyd’s death.

As Mr Trump spoke, tear gas canisters could be heard exploding.

Mr Floyd's brother, Terrence, meanwhile urged protesters on Monday to remain peaceful.​

His plea came as a medical examiner classified Mr Floyd’s death as a homicide, saying his heart stopped as police restrained him and suppressed his neck. Footage of the incident has been circulated widely following Mr Floyd's death.

Police said Mr Floyd was reported for allegedly using a counterfeit $20 bill at a grocery store and physically resisted officers as he was being handcuffed.

Video of the incident does not show how the confrontation started, but a police officer​ can be seen with his knee on Mr Floyd's neck, while he is heard saying "please, I can't breathe" and "don't kill me".

Former officer Derek Chauvin, 44, has meanwhile been charged with third-degree murder over Mr Floyd's death.

The three other police officers involved in Mr Floyd's arrest have all been fired.

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