US cities gear for more anti-racism protests
Washington: The US capital girded on Saturday for a big demonstration against police brutality as protesters angry over the death of George Floyd and broader issues of economic and social inequality for black Americans take their nationwide movement into a second boisterous weekend.
With protests in solidarity underway around the world, from Sydney to London, police closed off areas around the White House as they prepared for a noon-time (1600 GMT) demonstration that was expected to draw tens of thousands of people on a hot, sunny day.
Early on Saturday, protesters were already streaming towards the White House for the rally.
Protests were expected around the nation, including in New York, Miami and Minneapolis.
Also on Saturday a remembrance for Floyd was to be held in Raeford, North Carolina, the state where he was born, following an initial ceremony in Minneapolis that was held Thursday.
The protests were sparked by a police officer kneeling on Floyd’s neck for almost nine minutes as he pleaded for his life on May 25 in Minneapolis – the latest case of white law enforcement authorities being blamed for the death of an unarmed black man.
The rage the case triggered has exploded into the most serious civil unrest in America since the assassination of Martin Luther King in 1968.
It also comes during the coronavirus pandemic in which non-whites have been shown to die in disproportionate numbers and also lose their jobs more readily than whites as the economy tanked due to lockdown measures.
On Friday, the mayor of Washington, who has clashed with President Donald Trump over his hardline handling of the unrest, unveiled a street mural that reads “Black Lives Matter” in giant letters on the road leading to the presidential mansion.
Abroad, protesters echoed the rage of the American demonstrators.
Taking a knee, chanting and ignoring social distancing measures, outraged protesters from Sydney to London kicked off a weekend of global rallies against racism and police brutality.
Londoners rallied outside parliament and planned to hold a big demonstration in front of the US embassy on the opposite bank of the Thames River on Sunday.-PUNA
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