ATLANTA (AP) — Demonstrators marched, stopped traffic and in some cases lashed out violently at police as protests erupted Friday in dozens of U.S. cities following the killing of George Floyd after a white officer pressed a knee into his neck while taking him into custody in Minnesota. In Phoenix, Denver, Las Vegas, Los Angeles and beyond, thousands of protesters carried signs that said: “He said I can’t breathe. Justice for George.” They chanted ”“No justice, no peace” and “Say his name. George Floyd.”
After hours of peaceful protest in downtown Atlanta, some demonstrators suddenly turned violent, smashing police cars, setting one on fire, spray-painting the iconic logo sign at CNN headquarters, and breaking into a restaurant. The crowd pelted officers with bottles, chanting “Quit your jobs.”
At least three officers were hurt and there were multiple arrests, Atlanta police spokesman Carlos Campos said in an emailed statement. Campos said protesters shot BB guns at officers and threw bricks, bottles and knives at them. People watched the scene from rooftops, some laughing as skirmishes broke out.
Demonstrators ignored police demands to disperse. Some protesters moved to the city’s major interstate thoroughfare to try to block traffic.
Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms passionately addressed the protesters at a news conference: “This is not a protest. This is not in the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr.”
“You are disgracing our city,” she told protesters. “You are disgracing the life of George Floyd and every other person who has been killed in this country. We are better than this. We are better than this as a city. We are better than this as a country. Go home, go home.”
Bottoms was flanked by rappers T.I. and Killer Mike, as well as King’s daughter, Bernice King.
Killer Mike cried as he spoke.
“We have to be better than this moment. We have to be better than burning down our own homes. Because if we lose Atlanta what have we got?” he said.
After Mayor Bottoms appealed for calm, the violence continued. More cars were set on fire, a Starbucks was smashed up, the windows of the College Football Hall of Fame were broken, and the iconic Omni Hotel was vandalized.
In Minneapolis, a curfew did little to stop protesters and others from gathering in several areas of the city, including the battered Lake Street neighborhood where a police precinct was burned the night before. There were scattered small fires and some stores in a strip mall were being broken into near the city’s 5th Precinct.
An initially peaceful demonstration in New York City spiraled into chaos as night fell, as protesters skirmished with officers, destroyed police vehicles and set fires.
In Brooklyn, activists who had marched from Manhattan chanted insults at officers lined up outside the Barclays Center and pelted them with water bottles. Police sprayed an eye-irritating chemical into the largely diverse crowd multiple times, then cleared the plaza.
Video posted to social media showed officers using batons and shoving protesters down as they took people into custody and cleared streets.
Demonstrators rocked a police van, set it ablaze, then scrawled graffiti across its charred hulk and set it on fire a second time as officers retreated from the area. Blocks away, protesters used a club to batter another police vehicle.
Numerous people were arrested and police brought in buses to take away prisoners.
“We have a long night ahead of us in Brooklyn,” Mayor Bill de Blasio tweeted. “Our sole focus is deescalating this situation and getting people home safe. There will be a full review of what happened tonight. We don’t ever want to see another night like this.”
The police department said numerous officers were injured, including one who had a tooth knocked out.
The names of black people killed by police, including Floyd and Eric Garner, who died on Staten Island in 2014, were on signs carried by those in the crowd, and in their chants.
“It’s my duty to be out here,” said Brianna Petrisko, among those at Foley Square in lower Manhattan, where most were wearing masks amid the coronavirus pandemic. “Our country has a sickness. We have to be out here. This is the only way we’re going to be heard.”
In Houston, where George Floyd grew up, several thousand people rallied in front of City Hall. Police had apparently taken into custody a woman who had a rifle and had tried to use it to incite the crowd.
Jimmy Ohaz, 19, came from the nearby city of Richmond, Texas.
“My question is how many more, how many more? I just want to live in a future where we all live in harmony and we’re not oppressed.”
See updates from earlier in the evening below (all times ET). Warning: Posts may contain profanity.
11:07 p.m.
San Jose, Calif.
10:56 p.m.
10:55 p.m.
San Francisco
10:44 p.m.
Sacramento, Calif.
10:33 p.m.
Bakersfield, Calif.
10:21 p.m.
New York City
10:09 p.m.
Louisville, Ky.
9:57 p.m.
Atlanta
9:53 p.m.
Chicago
9:48 p.m.
Las Vegas
9:47 p.m.
Atlanta
9:40 p.m.
San Jose, Calif.
9:30 p.m.
9:25 p.m.
Columbus, Ohio
Protests turned violent once again Friday with police using pepper spray after protesters threw objects, including glass, at officers.
Peaceful protests in Columbus turned violent Thursday night when a few demonstrators threw objects at police, destroyed city property and broke into the Ohio Statehouse.
9:20 p.m.
Minneapolis
9:17 p.m.
Minnesota governor apologizes for CNN arrest
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz apologized to CNN for the arrest of a network crew covering the violent protests in Minneapolis following the death of George Floyd. Correspondent Omar Jimenez and two colleagues were handcuffed and led away by the Minnesota State Patrol while reporting live on the network Friday morning. Walz said that CNN chief executive Jeff Zucker had called him demanding to know why the crew had been detained. The crew was released within an hour. Walz said he took full responsibility and that keeping journalists safe as they cover the story is a top priority. The National Association of Black Journalists and others condemned the arrests.
9:12 p.m.
San Jose, Calif.
9:06 p.m.
Louisville, Ky.
8:51 p.m.
Fort Wayne, Ind.
Several hundred activists gathered in downtown Fort Wayne Friday afternoon to protest in the wake of the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Fort Wayne Police fired gas to disperse the crowd.
The protest was one of two planned in downtown Fort Wayne Friday and Saturday.
Many held signs calling for justice, with other signs saying “Make Racists Afraid Again” and “Black Lives Matter.”
8:19 p.m.
Brooklyn, N.Y.
8:17 p.m.
Washington D.C.
8:11 p.m.
“No physical findings that support a diagnosis of traumatic asphyxia or strangulation.”
Charging papers for Derek Chauvin said that an autopsy revealed nothing to support strangulation as the cause of death. The exam concluded that the combined effects of being restrained, potential intoxicants in George Floyd’s system and his underlying health issues, including heart disease, likely contributed to his death. Floyd’s family was seeking an independent autopsy.
8:05 p.m.
Boston protester collapses after clash with police
7:54 p.m.
U.S. Customs and Border Patrol says it dispatched a drone to Minneapolis following three nights of violent protests there but ended up sending it back to its base because the unmanned aerial vehicle wasn’t needed.
The agency, which typically patrols the nation’s border and ports of entry, said the drone was going to provide live video to assist law enforcement in Minneapolis as they responded to protests that have left dozens of stores burned and looted.
A CBP statement issued Friday says the drone would have provided “situational awareness” to local law enforcement. It said it routinely conducts such operations if needed to help other agencies or during natural disasters.
The drone returned to its base in Grand Forks, North Dakota, after “the requesting agency determined that the aircraft was no longer needed for operational awareness.” CBP did not identify the agency that requested the assistance.
7:52 p.m.
CNN Center in Atlanta
7:41 p.m.
New York City protesters reach CNN
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
