The first of a series of memorials for George Floyd was held Thursday in Minneapolis, the city where he died at the hands of police, held at a sanctuary at North Central University.
Civil rights activist Reverend Al Sharpton delivered a fiery eulogy, saying, "George Floyd’s story has been the story of black folks. Because ever since 401 years ago, the reason we could never be who we wanted and dreamed to be is you kept your knee on our neck. It’s time for us to stand up in George’s name and say, ‘Get your knee off our necks!" Sharpton also vowed that the protests that have been taking place across the country will become a movement to, quote, "change the whole system of justice." Floyd's family members also spoke at the service, which included everyone standing silently for eight minutes and 46 seconds, the amount of time a police officer kneeled on Floyd's neck.
Floyd's body will now be brought to Raeford, North Carolina, where he was born, for a two-hour public viewing and private service for the family on Saturday. Finally, a public viewing will be held Monday in Houston, where Floyd was raised and lived most of his life. A service will be held on Tuesday at The Fountain of Praise church, followed by a private burial.
Floyd's body will now be brought to Raeford, North Carolina, where he was born, for a two-hour public viewing and private service for the family on Saturday. Finally, a public viewing will be held Monday in Houston, where Floyd was raised and lived most of his life. A service will be held on Tuesday at The Fountain of Praise church, followed by a private burial.
“George Floyd’s story has been the story of black folks,” Rev. Al Sharpton said while eulogizing Floyd at a memorial service in Minneapolis, Minn. “The reason we could never be who we wanted -- and dreamed of being -- is you kept your knee on our neck.”https://t.co/B15GJs2g52 pic.twitter.com/0y9hP15Zkt— CBS Evening News (@CBSEveningNews) June 4, 2020
Officers' Bail Set: Bail was set at $750,000 yesterday for three fired Minneapolis police officers who were charged with aiding and abetting second degree murder in Floyd's death. Defense lawyers for two of the officers, Thomas Lane and J. Keung, said they were rookies who'd just recently finished probation. Attorney Earl Gray said Lane had no choice but to follow instructions from Officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes and has been charged with second-degree murder, saying, "What was my client supposed to do but follow what his training officer said?" Gray also said that Lane asked Chauvin twice if they should roll Floyd over and expressed concern that Floyd might be in delirium.
Protests: Protests continued to be largely peaceful yesterday and last night, even as some demonstrators once more stayed out past the 8 p.m. curfew in New York City, including at a rally in Brooklyn attended by an emotional Terrence Floyd, one of George Floyd's brothers. There was a much reduced law enforcement presence in Washington, D.C, last night compared to the night before, according to AP, and after thousands marched from near the White House to the Lincoln Memorial, the protests ended before dark because of heavy rain. In Buffalo, New York, local TV station WBFO recorded video of an officer shoving an older man who walked up to police, causing him to fall backward and hit his head on the pavement and begin bleeding. The city's police commissioner suspended two officers over the incident, and the injured man was reportedly hospitalized and stable.
ACLU Sues Over Clearing of Lafayette Park: The American Civil Liberties Union filed suit yesterday claiming President Trump, Attorney General Bill Barr and other administration officials violated the civil rights of protesters when they were forcefully removed from Lafayette Park near the White House Monday evening by police using smoke bombs and pepper spray before Trump walked to a church to take a photo of him holding a Bible. The suit was filed on behalf of the group Black Lives Matter D.C. and individual protesters. But Barr defended the decision yesterday, saying it was necessary to extend a security perimeter around the White House to protect officers and federal property.
Dial said that the McMichaels and another man who's also charged, William "Roddie" Bryan, used their pickup trucks to chase down and box in Arbery after seeing him running in their neighborhood. Dial said Arbery repeatedly reversed directions and ran into a ditch while trying to escape, and Travis then got out of his truck and confronted him. Travis told police he shot in self-defense after Arbery refused his order to get on the ground. Bryan reported Travis' use of the racial slur, with Dial saying, "Mr. Bryan said that after the shooting took place before police arrival, while Mr. Arbery was on the ground, that he heard Travis McMichael make the statement, "f***ing n***er." Cellphone video recorded by Bryan showed the fatal shooting of Arbery. The McMichaels grabbed guns and chased Arbery in a truck when they saw him running, telling police they believed he looked like a burglar who'd been seen on surveillance video.
CDC HEAD WORRIED PEOPLE NOT FOLLOWING CORONAVIRUS GUIDANCE: CDC Director Robert Redfield said Thursday (June 4th) that he’s, quote, "very concerned" that the agency's message about the coronavirus isn't "resonating" with Americans and that their guidance isn't being followed, as the number of cases in the U.S. continues to rise. In testimony before the House Appropriations Committee, Redfield spoke about seeing a lot of people not wearing masks in Washington, D.C., crowds gathering over the Memorial Day holiday and at other recent events, such as the SpaceX launch, and the protests over George Floyd's death. He warned the protests could be a, quote, "seeding event" for more outbreaks, and encouraged people who have protested to get tested for the virus in the next few days. His testimony came as the number of deaths in the U.S. reached more than 108,200 as of early this morning, according to the Johns Hopkins University count, and the total number of confirmed cases was more than 1,872,000.
BREES APOLOGIZES, SAYS 'MISSED THE MARK' WITH KAEPERNICK COMMENTS: New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees apologized yesterday for reaffirming his opposition a day earlier to Colin Kaepernick's kneeling protests during the national anthem, saying, "I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States."
BILLS ROOKIE QB APOLOGIZES FOR 'ELITE WHITE PEOPLE' TEXT: Buffalo Bills rookie quarterback Jake Fromm, who the Bills chose in the fifth round of the 2020 draft, apologized yesterday after screenshots surfaced of a 2019 text conversation about guns in which he referred to, quote, "elite white people." In the conversation between Fromm and a friend, he texted, "But no guns are good. They need to let me get suppressors. Just make them very expensive so only elite white people can get them haha." Later in the conversation, Fromm said he wasn't an "elite white person." The 21-year-old said in his apology: "I am extremely sorry that I chose to use the words 'elite white person' . . . Although I never meant to imply that I am an 'elite white person,' as later stated in the conversation, there's no excuse for that word choice and sentiment. I stand against racism 100%. I promise to commit myself to being part of the solution in this country."
NBA'S 22-TEAM RETURN PLAN APPROVED: The NBA's Board of Governors approved a 22-team format for returning to play next month at the Walt Disney World resort in a 29-1 vote yesterday. The Players Association is set to vote today on the plan, under which teams will play an eight-game slate of games starting July 31st at the ESPN Wide World of Sports complex that will help determine playoff seeding. There could then be a play-in tournament for the final spot in the Eastern and Western Conferences for the postseason. The teams will stay, practice and play at Disney and the NBA Finals will likely go into October.
UNION: MLB PLAYERS WON'T TAKE ANOTHER PAY CUT, REJECT LEAGUE'S PLAN: Executive Director Tony Clark of the Major League Baseball players union said Thursday that players won't take another pay cut and, quote, "resoundingly rejected" the league's plan to start the coronavirus-delayed season that includes further concessions from players. MLB had proposed an 82-game season with a sliding scale of pay cuts, and the players countered with a 114-game season with no cuts beyond the pro-rated salaries they agreed to in March. The league in turn rejected that, and said there may instead only be some 50 games.
No comments:
Post a Comment