Activists do battle with police, BLM protesters
Britain’s Home Secretary condemned the ‘‘thoroughly unacceptable thuggery’’ of far-right activists who attacked police and protesters Saturday, local time.
Some 3000 supporters of groups, including Britain First and the Democratic Football Lads Alliance, descended on London for what they said was a mission to protect the statue of Winston Churchill and the Cenotaph.
From mid-morning, many of the far-right protesters gathered in Parliament Square and began drinking heavily. The statue of Churchill had earlier been boarded up, along with that of Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi and the Cenotaph, on the instructions of London Mayor Sadiq Khan to protect them from damage.
Throughout the afternoon, violence spilled over from Parliament Square to Trafalgar Square and Hyde Park, as the far-right groups sought out Black Lives Matters protesters. Missiles were thrown at riot police and some in the crowd even gave Nazi salutes just yards from the Cenotaph.
The attacks on police around Westminster – which came as Black Lives Matter protesters gathered elsewhere around the country in mainly peaceful protest – were described by Priti Patel as ‘‘thoroughly unacceptable’’. She tweeted: ‘‘Any perpetrators of violence or vandalism should expect to face the full force of the law. Violence towards our police officers will not be tolerated.’’
Police made 100 arrests.
In the United States, antiracism protesters sought to call attention to the deaths of two more black men – one who was found hanging from a tree in California and another who was fatally shot by police outside an Atlanta restaurant.
Atlanta police were called Saturday about a man said to be sleeping in a car blocking a Wendy’s restaurant drive-thru. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation was investigating reports that 27-year-old Rayshard Brooks failed a sobriety test and was shot in a struggle over a police Taser.
A police officer was fired following the fatal shooting and another officer was placed on administrative duty, the police department announced yesterday. The moves follows the Saturday resignation of Atlanta Police Chief Erika Shields, who stepped down as the killing of Brooks sparked a new wave of protests in Atlanta after turbulent demonstrations that followed the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last month had simmered down.
The police department also released body camera and dash camera footage from both officers.
In Palmdale, California, hundreds of people marched to demand an investigation into the death of 24-year-old Robert Fuller, who was found hanging from a tree on Thursday near city hall.
The protesters marched from where the body was found to a sheriff’s station, with many carrying signs that said ‘‘Justice for Robert Fuller.’’ Authorities said the death appeared to be a suicide, but an autopsy was planned. The city said there were no outdoor cameras that could have recorded what happened.
Protesters in New Orleans tore down a bust of a slave owner who left part of his fortune to New Orleans’ schools and then rolled it into the Mississippi River.
Mayor Latoya Cantrell said that the city ‘‘rejects vandalism and destruction of city property. It is unlawful.’’
European protesters sought to show solidarity with their American counterparts. The demonstrations also posed a challenge to policies intended to limit crowds to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
A rally in Paris drew 15,000, led by supporters of Adama Traore, a French black man who died in police custody in 2016. Noone has been charged in his death. Police fired tear gas and blocked people from marching. An enormous portrait showed one face with images of Floyd and Traore. – AP