After Six Days of Violent Protests, US Leaders Look for Answer
2020-06-02
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1After six days of unrest, many cities and neighborhoods across the United States face damage from violence and stealing.
2Political leaders are struggling to contain the nation-wide anger over the killing of a black man by police in Minnesota.
3There are curfews in some cities and National Guard troops have been deployed to keep order.
4But, peaceful daytime protests again have turned to violence at night.
5In Washington, D.C. protesters set fires, overturned cars and threw an American flag into the flames near the White House on Sunday.
6Police fired tear gas and stun grenades to control a crowd of more than 1,000 people across the street in Lafayette Park.
7Protesters threw rocks and burning bottles at police in Philadelphia as public transportation and city streets were closed.
8Police shot tear gas to control the protests in many cities, including Atlanta, Georgia and Austin, Texas.
9A man was killed when police and national guard soldiers returned fire after being shot at first early on Monday morning in Louisville, Kentucky.
10Two were reported dead over the weekend in Indianapolis, Indiana, adding to deaths recorded in Detroit and Minneapolis.
11Looters smashed their way into stores selling expensive goods like Chanel perfume and Rolex watches in New York City.
12Others walked away with boxes of shoes and clothes in Los Angeles.
13Many shops were just beginning to open after the coronavirus shutdowns.
14Some police officers tried to calm tensions by marching and kneeling with demonstrators in several cities, including Des Moines, Iowa and Spokane, Washington.
15The demonstrations were incited by the death of George Floyd, a black man, on May 25 in Minneapolis.
16A video recorded at the time shows a white police officer, Derek Chauvin, kneeling on Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes as he lay on the street.
17Floyd who was handcuffed, repeatedly said, "I can't breathe," and, "Please, I can't breathe," as the crowd asked the officer to stop.
18Chauvin has been arrested and charged with murder.
19At a protest in Boston, 15-year-old Mahira Louis told the Associated Press, "They keep killing our people. I'm so sick and tired of it."
20Recent incidents also increased racial tensions in the U.S.
21Two white men shot and killed Ahmaud Arbery, a black man in Georgia who was running on the streets, in February.
22And police in Louisville, Kentucky shot a black woman Breonna Taylor to death in her own home in March.
23The incidents happened as the country was under stay-at-home orders to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
24The disease has killed over 100,000 Americans and put 40 million people out of work.
25It has also affected minorities more than the general population in job losses and deaths.
26As the unrest spread across the country, U.S. President Donald Trump, a Republican, denounced an anti-fascist movement called ANTIFA.
27He also blamed the media, Democratic mayors and governors and his opponent for the upcoming November election, Joe Biden.
28During a conference call with governors and law enforcement officials Monday, Trump called them "weak."
29He said, "You've got to arrest people, you have to track people, you have to put them in jail for 10 years and you'll never see this stuff again."
30Former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential candidate, visited the site of protests in his hometown of Wilmington, Delaware on Sunday.
31He talked to demonstrators and wrote on Twitter, "We are a nation in pain right now, but we must not allow this pain to destroy us."
32In Salt Lake City, Lex Scott, a founder of Black Lives Matter Utah, condemned the destruction of property.
33But, he said breaking into buildings is not the same as killing a black man like Floyd.
34"Maybe the next time a white police officer decides to pull the trigger, he will picture cities burning," he said.
35I'm John Russell.
1After six days of unrest, many cities and neighborhoods across the United States face damage from violence and stealing. Political leaders are struggling to contain the nation-wide anger over the killing of a black man by police in Minnesota. 2There are curfews in some cities and National Guard troops have been deployed to keep order. But, peaceful daytime protests again have turned to violence at night. 3In Washington, D.C. protesters set fires, overturned cars and threw an American flag into the flames near the White House on Sunday. Police fired tear gas and stun grenades to control a crowd of more than 1,000 people across the street in Lafayette Park. 4Protesters threw rocks and burning bottles at police in Philadelphia as public transportation and city streets were closed. Police shot tear gas to control the protests in many cities, including Atlanta, Georgia and Austin, Texas. 5A man was killed when police and national guard soldiers returned fire after being shot at first early on Monday morning in Louisville, Kentucky. Two were reported dead over the weekend in Indianapolis, Indiana, adding to deaths recorded in Detroit and Minneapolis. 6Looters smashed their way into stores selling expensive goods like Chanel perfume and Rolex watches in New York City. Others walked away with boxes of shoes and clothes in Los Angeles. Many shops were just beginning to open after the coronavirus shutdowns. 7Some police officers tried to calm tensions by marching and kneeling with demonstrators in several cities, including Des Moines, Iowa and Spokane, Washington. 8The demonstrations were incited by the death of George Floyd, a black man, on May 25 in Minneapolis. A video recorded at the time shows a white police officer, Derek Chauvin, kneeling on Floyd's neck for nearly nine minutes as he lay on the street. 9Floyd who was handcuffed, repeatedly said, "I can't breathe," and, "Please, I can't breathe," as the crowd asked the officer to stop. Chauvin has been arrested and charged with murder. 10At a protest in Boston, 15-year-old Mahira Louis told the Associated Press, "They keep killing our people. I'm so sick and tired of it." 11Recent incidents also increased racial tensions in the U.S. Two white men shot and killed Ahmaud Arbery, a black man in Georgia who was running on the streets, in February. And police in Louisville, Kentucky shot a black woman Breonna Taylor to death in her own home in March. 12The incidents happened as the country was under stay-at-home orders to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The disease has killed over 100,000 Americans and put 40 million people out of work. It has also affected minorities more than the general population in job losses and deaths. 13As the unrest spread across the country, U.S. President Donald Trump, a Republican, denounced an anti-fascist movement called ANTIFA. He also blamed the media, Democratic mayors and governors and his opponent for the upcoming November election, Joe Biden. 14During a conference call with governors and law enforcement officials Monday, Trump called them "weak." He said, "You've got to arrest people, you have to track people, you have to put them in jail for 10 years and you'll never see this stuff again." 15Former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential candidate, visited the site of protests in his hometown of Wilmington, Delaware on Sunday. He talked to demonstrators and wrote on Twitter, "We are a nation in pain right now, but we must not allow this pain to destroy us." 16In Salt Lake City, Lex Scott, a founder of Black Lives Matter Utah, condemned the destruction of property. But, he said breaking into buildings is not the same as killing a black man like Floyd. 17"Maybe the next time a white police officer decides to pull the trigger, he will picture cities burning," he said. 18I'm John Russell. 19Hai Do wrote this story for VOA Learning English based on Associated Press reports. Mario Ritter Jr. was the editor. 20________________________________________________________________ 21Words in This Story 22stun grenade(s) -n. a device that makes an extremely loud sound and that flashes light which is designed to temporarily surprise and disorient people 23handcuff -v. to place restraints on a person's wrists, which prevent them from moving