BLM is hate: Trump
Floyd transcript reignites anger
NEW York City on Thursday painted a huge Black Lives Matter sign on the pavement outside Trump Tower on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue, replicating similar murals supporting the movement in the United States.
President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly assailed the Black Lives Matter movement, did not immediately comment on the sign, done in giant block lettering in school-bus yellow, which filled the pavement outside his flagship hotel.
But when the plan was floated last month he accused the city’s Democratic leaders of “denigrating” the famous street with a “symbol of hate”. Around a dozen volunteers from different organisations painted the slogan, with civil rights leader Al Sharpton and Mayor Bill de Blasio picking up paint rollers to add some touches of their own.
“A painting is a nice symbol, but it doesn’t address systemic racism in any way. So as cool as it is, it’s important to focus on that,” said Francie Brewster, a 17-year-old who had come to watch.
It comes as a transcript of George Floyd’s final minutes revealed he said “I can’t breathe” more than 20 times and begged for his life.
Similar murals have been painted in other American cities in support of the BLM movement, which has been at the forefront of public consciousness following weeks of anti-racism protests.
The demonstrations were sparked by the killing by Mr Floyd, an unarmed black man, in Minneapolis in May.
Washington Mayor Muriel Bowser renamed an area on her city’s 16th Street, a block from the White House, as Black Lives Matter Plaza, unveiling a giant yellow mural on that street.
Trump Tower, a luxury skyscraper near Central Park, is where Mr Trump lived before leaving for the White House. He stays there when he visits his hometown, although such visits have grown rare. Residents in overwhelmingly Democratic New York remain largely hostile to his presidency.
Mr Trump has frequently clashed with Mr De Blasio, a Democrat, as well as with New York’s Democratic governor, Andrew Cuomo.
The president changed his official residence to Florida last year.