Riots erupt in response to George Floyd death while in police custody
MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota—Protests erupted in Minneapolis on Tuesday following the controversial death of George Floyd. Police arrested Floyd Monday at Cup Foods, where they were investigating an alleged counterfeit $20 bill. Widely circulated videos of the incident show a handcuffed Floyd on the ground with an officer's knee on the back of his neck. “I can’t breathe,” Floyd told the officer. The 46-year-old black man died later at the Hennepin County Medical Center. Less than 24 hours after the incident, Police Chief Medaria Arradondo fired Officer Derek Chauvin and three other officers who had responded to the initial forgery report. “Being black in America should not be a death sentence. This officer failed in the most basic human sense,” Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey said in a press conference the day following the incident. Community members organized a protest in response. Video by Chris Juhn