Night of violence across America leaves streets scarred, outrage simmering

[webfact]

Night of violence across America leaves streets scarred, outrage simmering

By Brendan O'Brien and Carlos Barria

 

Protestors demonstrate outside an entrance to the White House over the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in Washington, May 31, 2020. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas

 

MINNEAPOLIS (Reuters) - Another night of outrage left stores looted and cars smoldering in many U.S. cities on Sunday as curfews failed to quell violence that replaced peaceful daytime demonstrations over the death of a black man seen on video gasping for breath as a white Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck.

 

In Salt Lake City, a man aimed a bow and arrow at protesters and was attacked by the crowd. Fires burned in the streets of Los Angeles. Protesters ripped apart an American flag in Raleigh, North Carolina.

 

Police fired rubber bullets and tear gas in many cities.

 

In New York City, police arrested about 350 people overnight and 30 officers suffered minor injuries. Mayor Bill de Blasio said police conduct was being investigated, including widely shared videos showing a police sports utility vehicle in Brooklyn lurching forward into a crowd of protesters who were pelting the car with debris.

 

De Blasio said he had not seen another video showing an officer pulling down the mask of a black protester who had his hands in the air, then spraying a substance in his face.

 

The sight of protesters flooding streets fueled a sense of crisis in the United States after weeks of lockdowns due to the coronavirus pandemic, which has seen millions thrown out of work and has disproportionately affected minority communities.

 

The closely packed crowds and many demonstrators not wearing masks sparked fears of a resurgence of COVID-19, which has killed more than 100,000 Americans.

 

Violence spread overnight despite curfews in several major cities rocked by civil unrest in recent days, including Atlanta, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Denver, Cincinnati, Portland, Oregon, and Louisville, Kentucky.

 

Protests also flared in Chicago, Seattle, Salt Lake City, Cleveland, and Dallas, where rioters were seen on video beating a store owner who chased them with a large machete or sword. Police said on Sunday that the man was in a stable condition.

 

'DESTRUCTIVE AND UNACCEPTABLE'

The clashes in Minneapolis marked the fifth night of arson, looting and vandalism in parts of the state's largest city, and its adjacent capital, St. Paul. The state's governor said on Saturday that he was activating the full Minnesota National Guard for the first time since World War Two.

 

About 170 stores have been looted and some burned to the ground in St. Paul, its mayor said on Sunday.

 

"We are seeing in St. Paul and obviously around the country this level of rage and anger that frankly is legitimate, as we see this horrific video of George Floyd being just suffocated to death," Mayor Melvin Carter told CNN. "Unfortunately, it's being expressed right now, over the past week, in ways that are destructive and unacceptable."

 

Minnesota officials said Friday's outbreak of violence across the country went beyond normal protesters and was the work of 'outside agitators' like white supremacists. Conway G. Gittens reports.

 

While covering the protests in Minneapolis on Saturday night, two members of a Reuters TV crew were hit by rubber bullets and a Reuters photographer's camera was smashed as attacks against journalists covering civil unrest in U.S. cities intensified.In response to the protests, Target Corp announced it was closing 100 stores, with about 30 in Minnesota.

 

The administration of President Donald Trump, who has called protesters "thugs", will not federalize and take control of the National Guard for now, national security adviser Robert O'Brien said on Sunday.

 

Demands for an end to police brutality have spread globally.

 

In London, hundreds of protesters took to Trafalgar Square on Sunday chanting "no justice, no peace." On Saturday, a crowd descended on the U.S. Embassy in Berlin calling for the police officers to face justice.

 

The arrest on murder charges on Friday of Derek Chauvin, the police officer seen kneeling on Floyd's neck, has failed to satisfy protesters. Three officers who stood by as Floyd died have yet to be charged.

 

Floyd's name is only the latest to be chanted by protesters over the perceived lack of police accountability for violent encounters that resulted in the death of black men.

 

The issue ignited in 2014 with the shooting death of a black 18-year-old, Michael Brown, by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, where police fired tear gas at protesters on Saturday night.

 

(Reporting Brendan O'Brien and Carlos Barria in Minneapolis; Additional reporting by Peter Szekely, Maria Caspani and Sinead Carew in New York, Susan Heavey in Washington, and Brad Brooks in Austin; Writing by Lisa Shumaker; Editing by Daniel Wallis)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2020-06-01

 

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[pegman]

 Systemic inequity + systemic racism = burn the place down. This will likely help Trump in the election. Similar to Nixon in 1968.

[johnmell]

Economy ruined, Pandemic still raging, now this. Trumps America in tatters.

[fasteddie]

What a country, violent to the core, the American Nightmare!

[tribalfusion001]

I'm surprised the gun nuts are not out on the streets again, maybe this week. This could spread into Europe, already protests in Berlin and London. Mix in lockdowns, unemployment, racism and far right/left, perfect storm for summer.

[TopDeadSenter]

I am having trouble with the logic in play at these riots. Black people want to be respected more by others, so to achieve that they burn down city centers, violently attack and threaten people, and run amok in scenes resembling war zones for many days on the flimsiest of excuses. I will admit my attitude has changed from complete indifference to a persons skin color to now where I would be considerably more wary around a group of black people. Well done guys!

[mikebike]

9 minutes ago, TopDeadSenter said:

I am having trouble with the logic in play at these riots.

Here's a hint: start with the fact that systemic change does not happen at the ballot box, then go and read the histories of the French and American revolutions.

[TopDeadSenter]

3 minutes ago, mikebike said:

Here's a hint: start with the fact that systemic change does not happen at the ballot box, then go and read the histories of the French and American revolutions.

The basic fact that most of these riots are happening in democrat states proves your post wrong. This is nothing to do with ancient history or the French revolution, surprised to see events of the late 1700s being blamed for this. IMO this is a variation on the theme of socialism(rewarding mediocrity or below and hammering the concepts of family, responsibility and entrepreneurship) causing hopelessness and then mayhem. Next time they should vote for the GOP, get back to work and feel some pride in themselves and community. After a hard days graft people are too tired to go out burning and stealing widescreen TVs, plus thanks to earning a wage they have a nice TV at home already.

[pegman]

28 minutes ago, tribalfusion001 said:

I'm surprised the gun nuts are not out on the streets again, maybe this week. This could spread into Europe, already protests in Berlin and London. Mix in lockdowns, unemployment, racism and far right/left, perfect storm for summer.

As a general rule the gun nuts are cowards. They will come out to protest only when their allies in blue are there to protect them. 

[impulse]

Meanwhile, even more significantly IMO, due to lack of funding for infrastructure, 2 dams in Michigan collapsed, flooding tens of thousands.  And I don't think the nice folks in Flint have non-toxic drinking water even yet.

 

https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/epa-says-flints-water-is-safe-scientists-arent-so-sure/

 

Covid19 and George Floyd and racism may have been the matches that lit the fuse.  But that's just the tip of the inequality iceberg.  All the while, billionaires are getting tax breaks and CEOs are making obscene bonuses for laying people off.  People have been warning for years of the pitchforks coming out.  This may just be the start.

 

[PatOngo]

2 minutes ago, TopDeadSenter said:

The basic fact that most of these riots are happening in democrat states proves your post wrong. This is nothing to do with ancient history or the French revolution, surprised to see events of the late 1700s being blamed for this. IMO this is a variation on the theme of socialism(rewarding mediocrity or below and hammering the concepts of family, responsibility and entrepreneurship) causing hopelessness and then mayhem. Next time they should vote for the GOP, get back to work and feel some pride in themselves and community. After a hard days graft people are too tired to go out burning and stealing widescreen TVs, plus thanks to earning a wage they have a nice TV at home already.

So, where is the leader who is supposedly Making America Great Again. Remember that? MAGA?

[MaxYakov]

18 minutes ago, mikebike said:

29 minutes ago, TopDeadSenter said:

I am having trouble with the logic in play at these riots.

Here's a hint: start with the fact that systemic change does not happen at the ballot box, then go and read the histories of the French and American revolutions.

Not with these people. They're not capable at several levels, in several important ways. Not to mention their opposition is well-armed and they are not. It doesn't look as if they could assemble a simple Molotov cocktail, but I wouldn't want to, ahem, underestimate some of the creative contributors to this mayhem.

[rvaviator]

15 minutes ago, mikebike said:

Here's a hint: start with the fact that systemic change does not happen at the ballot box, then go and read the histories of the French and American revolutions.

To give you a glimpse of the future ... Understand the past. 

[simple1]

9 minutes ago, TopDeadSenter said:

I am having trouble with the logic in play at these riots. Black people want to be respected more by others, so to achieve that they burn down city centers, violently attack and threaten people, and run amok in scenes resembling war zones for many days on the flimsiest of excuses. I will admit my attitude has changed from complete indifference to a persons skin color to now where I would be considerably more wary around a group of black people. Well done guys!

Nearly all of the violence and crime will be driven by those who were are already in that milieu. Numerous reports of African Americans appealing for the cessation of crime and violence as it diverts from their core message in response to the murder of fairness and justice for the black community. Both white right and leftist extremists will also be stirring the pot. trump has called for Antifa to be labelled a terrorist organisation although he doesn't have the authority to name a domestic group 'terrorist' as he does with foreign groups. Again trump is throwing red meat to his supporters rather than coming up with actionable solutions to reduce tensions. 

[pegman]

5 minutes ago, TopDeadSenter said:

The basic fact that most of these riots are happening in democrat states proves your post wrong. This is nothing to do with ancient history or the French revolution, surprised to see events of the late 1700s being blamed for this. IMO this is a variation on the theme of socialism(rewarding mediocrity or below and hammering the concepts of family, responsibility and entrepreneurship) causing hopelessness and then mayhem. Next time they should vote for the GOP, get back to work and feel some pride in themselves and community. After a hard days graft people are too tired to go out burning and stealing widescreen TVs, plus thanks to earning a wage they have a nice TV at home already.

The poorest states in the USA are GOP controlled. 

[Mama Noodle]

Just now, pegman said:

The poorest states in the USA are GOP controlled. 

 

Thats not true, depending on how you rank the states. The states that generate the least income are rural states but that does not mean they are the poorest. The highest poverty rate adjusted by cost of living and inflation are largely Democrat controlled. NY, Connecticut, California, Jersey, Hawaii. This is a much more accurate way of judging poor/poverty. 30k/year in Kentucky goes alot farther than it would in California or New York.

[thaibeachlovers]

12 minutes ago, simple1 said:

Again trump is throwing red meat to his supporters rather than coming up with actionable solutions to reduce tensions. 

and your solutions would be? Easier to say that than come up with anything within the bounds of reality. Appears to be just more anti Trump rhetoric.

 

America is broken, and has been for decades, IMO. It's an uneasy alliance between the liberal coasts and the middle states, and all they can do is paper over the cracks as best they can. Meanwhile a huge underclass waits for an opportunity to break loose with what we see. Happened many times in my lifetime. Only took the electric power going off in N Y to unleash the mob ( the mob has been with us since the Romans ruled the known world ).

 

I doubt any politician working within the law is able to fix what ails the US.

 

BTW, far as I know state police are not under control of the Federal government.

 

 

[Mama Noodle]

3 minutes ago, simple1 said:

Seems you have missed trump does not represent the future for the disenfranchised and hope, but continuance of voter suppression and the power structures of the so called 'elites'.

????

 

Yes, A democrat president would be so much better. Never mind most of the areas being wrecked by violence are democrat managed areas, Floyd was murdered in Democrat presidential candidate Amy Klobushar's state, which is managed by Democrats, and the spark that started most of this began decades ago with the 1994 Crime bill that Democrat presidential candidate Joe Biden helped to write and which put hundreds of thousands of black Americans in prison. 

 

But but but Trumps America  ????

[Cryingdick]

31 minutes ago, pegman said:

As a general rule the gun nuts are cowards. They will come out to protest only when their allies in blue are there to protect them. 

 

The "gun nuts" do protest and because of the fact they are armed maintain a minimum amount of decorum. Also reds don't have their businesses burned down because they will defend their homes and businesses. Go to a state with castle doctrine and try this. 

 

This happens in blue urban areas because they know those are the weakest places. 

[simple1]

1 minute ago, Mama Noodle said:

But but but Trumps America  ????

Who's in power now, has done nothing to ease US social tensions and continues to pour oil on the flames throughout his Presidency? but, but but democrats - LOL

[metisdead]

Some off topic posts about South Africa have been removed.

[Cryingdick]

1 minute ago, simple1 said:

Who's in power now, has done nothing to ease US social tensions and continues to pour oil on the flames throughout his Presidency? but, but but democrats - LOL

 

The dems fan the flames with their pandering and race baiting. It's a two way street. Because you think Trump is bad for the blacks doesn't mean the dems are good. 

[Mama Noodle]

6 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

I doubt any politician working within the law is able to fix what ails the US.

 

Not any single politician, no.

 

It could be fixed but it has to start and be focused on in a 100% bipartisan manner, beginning in congress. Small minded people blame the president, when local and state reps hold all the cards. 

 

Hyper-partisanship is so rife that nothing will ever change. It doesn't matter how bad or horrible something is, there will be politicians that benefit and others that lose, instead of looking at it like a loss across the board. 

[Cryingdick]

2 minutes ago, Mama Noodle said:

 

Not any single politician, no.

 

It could be fixed but it has to start and be focused on in a 100% bipartisan manner, beginning in congress. Small minded people blame the president, when local and state reps hold all the cards. 

 

Hyper-partisanship is so rife that nothing will ever change. It doesn't matter how bad or horrible something is, there will be politicians that benefit and others that lose, instead of looking at it like a loss across the board. 

 

Only the black community can actually fix what is broken with in it. 

[Mama Noodle]

6 minutes ago, simple1 said:

Who's in power now, has done nothing to ease US social tensions and continues to pour oil on the flames throughout his Presidency? but, but but democrats - LOL

 

Yeah decades long democrat race-baiting, lies, and policy didn't have anything to do with the current state of the United States ????

[Mama Noodle]

2 minutes ago, Cryingdick said:

Only the black community can actually fix what is broken with in it. 

 

Thats kind of like saying that the arab community is the only thing that can fix extremism, which I agree with sort-of. 

 

Something has to be done to stimulate ecumenic growth and responsibility in impoverished communities, otherwise it'll always be drugs, crime, and prison. 

[Cryingdick]

1 minute ago, Mama Noodle said:

 

Thats kind of like saying that the arab community is the only thing that can fix extremism, which I agree with sort-of. 

 

Something has to be done to stimulate ecumenic growth and responsibility in impoverished communities, otherwise it'll always be drugs, crime, and prison. 

 

The violence in their neighborhoods is the biggest problem. Low house prices, low amounts of property taxes leading to poorly funded schools. Look at some hoods and you see lovely old houses and then you see a price for a mansion fixer upper for like $40,000. You already know what's wrong with it.

 

The thing is they are as racist as anybody they accuse of being racist. The average working black guy isn't but you don't think the gang bangers aren't completely racist? There are more racist gangbangers then there are racist cops. 

 

Don't like cops? Neither do I so I do not do the things that bring them around me. I grew up in poor areas and lived in some black ghettos myself. Went to the same schools. 

 

I would love to see a figure of how many cops were killed by minorities this year. 

[simple1]

4 minutes ago, Mama Noodle said:

 

Yeah decades long democrat race-baiting, lies, and policy didn't have anything to do with the current state of the United States ????

IMO It really is a waste of time going on about what the Dems did / didn't do in the past. As I posted it is clear to me right now trump is only contributing to further fault lines within US society, whilst tweeting nonsense from the WH. Moving along no more response in this topic to you as we will not agree.

[thaibeachlovers]

13 minutes ago, Cryingdick said:

 

Only the black community can actually fix what is broken with in it. 

I have to disagree. The black community is as divided as the rest of the US population, IMO. It doesn't function as a united demographic.

[cyril sneer]

just seen the photos from the uk protest, so cringe worthy