People donated money to black-led political groups, especially bail funds. Bail funds provide money to help people who have been arrested get out of jail before their trials. The National Bail Fund Network got $75 million in two weeks. The Minnesota Freedom Fund got $20 million in four days. The Bail Project got more than $15 million. There was so much that some groups could not count it all. Black Lives Matter got $5 million from one petition alone. Some groups received so much money that they did not need more and told donors to go to other groups.
As of June 9, 2020, nineteen people have died because of the protests:
According to Pew Research, two thirds of American adults thought the protests were good: 60% of white adults, 86% of black adults, 75% of Asian adults and 77% of Hispanic adults.
Some said the Floyd protests showed America was losing its place as a leader of other countries. French journalist Pierre Haski said on June 1, "Beijing could not have hoped for a better gift. The country that designates China as the culprit of all evils is making headlines around the world with the urban riots."
Governor of Minnesota Tim Walz wanted change: "It is time to rebuild. Rebuild the city, rebuild our justice system, and rebuild the relationship between law enforcement and those they're charged to protect. George Floyd's death should lead to justice and systemic change, not more death and destruction."
On June 2, 2020, Governor Walz said the Minnesota Department of Human Rights would investigate the Minneapolis Police Department. Governor Walz said, "The investigation will review MPD's policies, procedures and practices over the last 10 years to determine if the department has utilized systemic discriminatory practices towards people of color."
Human Rights Commissioner Rebecca Lucero said the Department could have the results of its report in "several months."
President Donald Trump spoke about his sympathy for George Floyd and his family, but also called the protesters "thugs" and said "when the looting starts, the shooting starts." Twitter hid the post because it broke their rules about presenting violence as good. Trump blamed the protests on "weak" Democratic mayors and governors and on the anti-fascist movement antifa, saying he would declare it a terrorist organization.
Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, who is black and a Republican (the same as Trump), called Trump's tweets "not constructive."
On June 1, Trump told the cities and states with protests that they must stop the trouble or else he would send the military to do it. The law that allows Trump to do this, the Insurrection Act of 1807, was last used in 1992 for the Rodney King riots in Los Angeles.
Also on June 1, just before 7:00 p.m., when people had been ordered to stay off the street, police and Secret Service fired flash-bangs and tear gas at protesters near the White House. They did this to make the protesters leave St. John Church. Then President Trump walked to St. John Church, held up a Bible, and had his picture taken. Bishop Mariann E. Budde, the Episcopal religious leader for Washington D.C., said Trump did not say any prayers or talk about George Floyd. The next day, several Democrats and two Republicans said Trump was wrong to do this. Nebraska Senator Ben Sasse, a Republican, said. "But there is a fundamental — a constitutional — right to protest, and I'm against clearing out a peaceful protest for a photo op that treats the word of God as a political prop."
Officials from the Minneapolis announced on June 5 that the police were no longer allowed to use chokeholds on people. On June 7, the city council voted to take apart the police department and replace it with something else.
The Minnesota state legislature attempted to write a new law that would redesign all police departments in Minnesota. In 2020, Minnesota's state legislature is the only one in the United States in which one political party controls one house and the other party controls the other. The United States Democratic Party has the majority of people in the Minnesota House of Representatives and the United States Republican Party has the majority of people in the Minnesota State Senate. The Democrats wanted large changes to policing in Minnesota, like letting the state attorney general investigate police killings and restoring voting rights to felons. The Republicans wanted small changes, like making a rule against using chokeholds like the one Chauvin used to kill George Floyd. Democrats said they did not like the Republican plan because it was mostly things that police departments had already tried. At midnight on Friday June 19, the Minnesota state legislature ran out of time. Their session ended, and no neither plan became law.
Many American cities and states removed statues of Confederate soldiers and officers during the George Floyd protests. Sometimes the protesters pulled the statues down and sometimes the city councils decided to remove them. On June 5, the United States Marine Corps announced they would not allow Confederate flags at their bases. The Confederates were the pro-slavery side of the American Civil War in the 1800s. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, Confederate statues and flags support white supremacy. Protesters also damaged or pulled down statues of Christopher Columbus in at least seven cities, including Miami, Boston, Baltimore, Maryland, Richmond, Virginia and Columbus, Ohio.
Universities renamed buildings. Columbia University's medical school was founded by Samuel Bard, a doctor who knew George Washington. He also owned slaves. In 1931, Columbia named a dormitory building Bard Hall after him. Columbia's Teacher's College took the name Edward L. Thorndike off a building. Thorndike had hated Jews and supported sexism and eugenics. Princeton University renamed Wilson College because the man it was named after, President Woodrow Wilson had racist policies.
In June, the United States Senate ordered the military to change the names of all military bases named after Confederates, such as Fort Bragg. They have three years to pick new names.
In Bristol, England, a crowd pushed down a statue of slave trader Edward Colston and threw it in the harbor. On July 15, people put up a statue of Jen Ried, a Black Lives Matter protester. The next day, the government of the city took the statue down because no one had asked permission to put it up. The city officials took the statue to a museum. The statue is called "A Surge of Power (Jen Reid)" and it was made by Marc Quinn.
Yogesh (lyricist)
Yogesh Gaur, commonly credited as Yogesh, (March 19, 1943 – May 29, 2020) was an Indian writer and lyricist. He worked in Bollywood and was best known for composing the music scores for "Anand.
Yogesh died on May 29, 2020 in Mumbai at the age of 77.
Ernest W. Gibson III
Ernest W. Gibson III (September 23, 1927 – May 17, 2020) was an American lawyer and politician. Gibson was a member of the Vermont House of Representatives from 1961 to 1963. He was an Associate Justice of the Vermont Supreme Court from 1983 to 1997. He was a member of the Republican Party.
Gibson was born in Brattleboro, Vermont. His father was Governor Ernest W. Gibson Jr.. His grandfather was United States Senator Ernest Willard Gibson.
Gibson died at his home in Northfield, Vermont on May 17, 2020 at the age of 92.
Northfield, Vermont
Northfield is a town in Washington County, Vermont, United States. It has the village of Northfield, where over half of the population lives. The town's total population was 6,207 at the 2010 census.
Northfield (village), Vermont
Northfield is a village in the town of Northfield in Washington County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,101 at the 2010 census.
Ernest W. Gibson Jr.