page_title: George Floyd protests in New York City
section_title: Curfew
hierarchical_section_title: George Floyd protests in New York City / Government response / Curfew
caption_attribution_description: English: vehicular traffic merging lanes in front of a police checkpoint on Queens Plaza right before the Queensboro Bridge, which crosses into Manhattan; metal barriers reducing the roadway to one lane; police officers speaking to drivers before allowing passage; police cruisers nearby
context_page_description: New York City has been the site of several protests against the killing of George Floyd since May 28, 2020, with demonstrations taking place in all of the city's five boroughs. Most of the events have been peaceful, while some involved protester and/or police violence, as well as looting. As a result, and amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the city was put under a curfew on June 1 through June 7. The protests catalyzed efforts at police reform, leading to the criminalization of chokeholds during arrests and other legislation.
context_section_description: On June 1, de Blasio announced he was considering imposing a curfew. Following a meeting with Governor Cuomo, the two declared a curfew for New York City starting at 11 pm that night, lasting until 5:00 am Tuesday morning. It was the first city-wide curfew imposed in New York since the Harlem riot of 1943, which also followed a white police officer shooting an African American.
  There was still some looting and vandalism the first night of the curfew, but most of the conflicts were between police and protesters out after curfew. According to the New Yorker's Emily Witt, "the Mayor appeared to have given the  carte blanche to arrest whomever it wanted after nightfall, and process them through a crowded Central Booking, which raised some questions: Whose health? And whose safety? And whose city, exactly, was protected by the order?"
  The following day, on June 2, the governor criticized handling of demonstrations the night before: "The NYPD and the mayor did not do their job last night" calling the video evidence of the looting "a disgrace". Cuomo offered to send in the National Guard, but de Blasio opposed the idea. The mayor signed a Declaration of Emergency, Executive Order No. 119, imposing an even earlier curfew of 8:00 pm, in effect from June 3 through June 8. The order exempts from the curfew "police officers, peace officers, firefighters, first responders and emergency medical technicians, individuals traveling to and from essential work and performing essential work, people experiencing homelessness and without access to a viable shelter, and individuals seeking medical treatment or medical supplies". The curfew also stopped Citi Bike rentals, ride shares, scooters, and restricted car traffic in Manhattan below 96th Street.
  The New York Times criticized the NYPD's use of kettling as a policing tactic against peaceful protesters after curfew, as in Cadman Plaza on June 3 and in the South Bronx on June 4. The Times' Ali Watkins called it "among the most unsettling symbols of its use of force against peaceful protests". De Blasio defended the approach as necessary to address the persistent looting problem.
  The curfew ended on Sunday, June 7, a day earlier than expected.
caption: Police checkpoint for vehicles entering Manhattan via the Queensboro Bridge during curfew
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