Minneapolis farewells Floyd as police officers appear in court
Washington DC, June 4 (efe-epa).- The city of Minneapolis on Thursday bade farewell to George Floyd 10 days after his death, while a judge set bail at $1 million for three police officers implicated in the case.
Floyd’s funeral will take place in Texas on June 9, but on Thursday a memorial service was held in Minneapolis, the city in which he had lived for the past few years and where he was killed last week, causing the United States’ largest racial justice protests of the 21st century.
“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,” Rev Al Sharpton said in a eulogy.
Floyd died after a white police officer pressed his knee into his neck for nearly nine minutes, three of them even after the African-Amrican man fell unconscious.
“What happened to Floyd happens every day in this country, in education, in health services and in every area of American life. It’s time for us to stand up in George’s name and say: get your knee off our necks,” the reverend said.
While Derek Chauvin, on whom a second-degree murder charge weighs, will not appear before a judge until next week, on Thursday his three former colleagues appeared before a judge.
J. Alexander Kueng, Thomas Lane and Tou Thao face charges of aiding and abetting second-degree murder.
Judge Paul R. Scoggin set bail at $1 million each, or $750,000 under certain conditions, including that they do not work in law enforcement or have contact with Floyd’s family.
On the 10th day of protests in the US, many cities that had experienced nights of violence, chaos and looting, particularly in Washington and Los Angeles, lifted curfew restrictions following largely peaceful protests and no disturbances.
In New York, however, with the curfew still in force, the large deployment of police in the city helped disperse protesters and detain all those who have resisted leaving the streets on a day when the heavy protests reduced a little.
The day, however, was not without incident. In Buffalo, New York, two police personnel were suspended after they pushed a 75-year-old man to the ground and left him bleeding and unconscious.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo called the incident “wholly unjustified and utterly disgraceful,” while the man hospitalized is in a stable condition.
In Salt Lake City, Utah, the authorities detained a man who last week brandished a machete and later a bow and arrow and shouted “Yes, I am American. All lives matter!” in a counterpoint to “Black lives matter,” which is championed in the protests. EFE-EPA
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