'We're sick of it': Anger over police killings shatters US

[Omaha Steve]

Source: AP

By TIM SULLIVAN and STEPHEN GROVES

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Another night of unrest in every corner of the country left charred and shattered landscapes in dozens of American cities Sunday as years of festering frustrations over the mistreatment of African Americans at the hands of police boiled over in expressions of rage met with tear gas and rubber bullets.

Cars and businesses were torched, the words “I can’t breathe” were spray-painted all over buildings, a fire in a trash bin burned near the gates of the White House, and tens of thousands marched peacefully through city streets to protest the death of George Floyd, a black man who died Monday after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee on his neck until he stopped breathing.

His death is one of a litany of racial tragedies that have thrown the country into chaos amid the coronavirus pandemic that has left millions out of work and killed more than 100,000 people in the U.S., including disproportionate numbers of black people.

“We’re sick of it. The cops are out of control,” protester Olga Hall said in Washington D.C. “They’re wild. There’s just been too many dead boys.”



Demonstrators block the path of a Los Angeles Fire Department truck during a public disturbance on Melrose Avenue, Saturday, May 30, 2020, in Los Angeles. Protests were held in U.S. cities over the death of George Floyd, a black man who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers on May 25. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Read more: https://apnews.com/55933b8695e36337a6bfe96728b3e7f3

[marble falls]

1. I'm not happy about the rioting, but I sure do appreciate where it comes from ...

nothing else has worked. No one has been listening. Now they're being heard. They are not showing up with weapons, they're laying their lives on the line.

[KY_EnviroGuy]

2. Osama bin Laden is laughing in his watery grave.

Please refresh my poor memory, but W instituted numerous measures after 9/11 that significantly militarized our local police forces by provided them with heavy equipment and funding their attendance at special "anti-terrorist" schools. There's been numerous cases where cops rolled to drug busts in armored vehicles and some where they literally destroyed people's homes looking for stash.

It's time to de-program our police forces of these wartime methods, practices and attitudes.....

[jimfields33]

6. Not during a pandemic, I do not love it.

So many will fall ill and worse. This is a health disaster in the making.

[RobinA]

8. Seriously?

No good will come of this. It never does.

[Scarsdale]

4. What the protesters SHOULD do

is stay off the streets, let the white supremecists hold their own rallies. Organize Voter Registrations in EVERY black community in the country. The gop would be horrified, if they see black citizens registering, in long lines everywhere. They would know their days in power are coming to an end. Tell the communities, that rather than magats guarding the ballot boxes, the black young men will protect their own voting places. Send a group to Indian Reservations, make it easier for them to vote, rather than having a 100 mile drive. Once the gop gets that message, maybe things will change. None of them want to lose their cushy jobs, so scare the HELL out of them. Vote democratic for EVERY single office, even at local levels. Let's see a change - finally. I understand their frustration, but there are better ways to go about changing things in this country. Begin with removing ALL republicans. Nothing can be gained by violence. Do it the smart way - through the ballot box. With huge numbers of voters, even the Russians will have a hard time meddling with the results. Overwhelm the gop with VOTES for the (D)'s.

[Merlot]

10. Organize voter registration? How does that help when repubs just close voting stations?

When they demand ID and otherwise intimidate voters? When they purge voter roles?

In some states, they've made it hard or even illegal to even register voters.

Many communities already do voter registration, and many people have stood in lines for hours to vote. But that hasn't changed the problems.

Yes, voting is a solution, and no, protests aren't great. But it seems like we've moved beyond the norms.

[Thekaspervote]

5. Going forward in our discussions Let's not forget that it isn't the protesters burning and looting

[LeftInTX]

7. Yep

Our protesters were going home, then all of a sudden hordes of thrill seekers descended on downtown and started smashing windows with skateboards and rocks.

[RobinA]

9. From Just What

I’ve been able to read, that sounds pretty much like what happened in Philadelphia. I think “thrill seekers” is a good word for them.

[MrsCheaplaugh]

11. I will bet...

the "thrill seekers" are actually police.

[ck4829]

12. Kick