‘We’re here to make a difference’: Protesters return to White House Sunday afternoon
WASHINGTON – Hundreds of protesters returned to the White House Sunday, a day after demonstrations turned violent and police used tear gas to dispel the crowds in Lafayette Park.
The park was shuttered Sunday and nearby buildings remained boarded up, but police and members of U.S. Secret Service lined the facade of the White House as demonstrations carried on just outside the entrance at 16th and H streets.
The protest is part of nationwide demonstrations following the death of George Floyd.
Clutching signs that read, “end police brutality” and “peace, but not patience. We need change now,” protesters continued to chant and clap as the crowds swelled in the late afternoon sun. With the backdrop of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, most members in the crowd wore face-coverings.
Bowie State University student Tandria Mason, 23, and her 26-year-old brother Tevin Mason drove from Prince George’s County, Maryland to attend today’s protests. The pair handed out energy bars and water to other protesters and urged for peaceful demonstrations.
“We just want everyone to be safe and work together,” Tandria Mason said as she held an oversized bottle of hand sanitizer.
As Trump continued to rail against demonstrations and called for law and order on Twitter, protesters shouted “No KKK, No fascist USA, No Trump” just outside the White House.
The early-evening demonstrations continue what has been a combative weekend in the nation’s capital and comes after officials announced arrests made the prior night.
Protesters moved closer toward confrontation with police as some members of the crowd knocked down temporary fences that lined Lafayette Park and chants of “black lives matter” grew. One protester appeared to dare approaching police as he tagged a sidewalk inside the park.
Tevin Mason said he believed the demonstrations were getting the president’s attention.
“We want our voices to be heard and if he sees all of us out here and hears what we’re saying maybe he’ll finally stop and think about what’s going on,” the teacher said.
“This is not going on in just our city, this is going on in other cities and other countries around the world,” Tandria Mason added. “We’re here to make a difference.”
Washington D.C. police arrested 17 people after protests Saturday night.
The majority of those arrested were charged with rioting, while three were charged with burglary and simple assault, authorities said Sunday. Dozens of officers, mostly Secret Service personnel, were injured.
Protesters clashed with police outside the White House and throughout the nation’s capital, as the demonstrations grew more confrontational, with President Donald Trump threatening to shut down “mob violence” he said dishonored Floyd, who died Monday while in custody of Minneapolis police.
Unrest in D.C.:Protests over George Floyd escalate near White House, around DC as Trump warns against ‘mob violence’
Floyd’s arrest was captured in a viral video showing him lying face down on the ground while a Minneapolis police officer pressed his knee into Floyd’s neck for several minutes. Floyd, who is black, later died at a hospital. The officer, Derek Chauvin, who is white, has since been arrested and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter. Three other officers who were involved have been fired.
Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police Department Chief Peter Newsham said “agitators” threw bricks, bottles and incendiary devices at police officers. Many looted and vandalized businesses in the downtown area.
‘An enormous red flag’:After George Floyd’s death, some call for a broader federal investigation
Eleven police officers were injured. One officer suffered multiple compound fractures to his leg after he was hit with a brick near Lafayette Park. The officer was undergoing surgery Sunday.
Separately, the U.S. Secret Service said more than 60 uniformed officers and special agents were injured this weekend. Some were assaulted – “kicked, punched and exposed to bodily fluids,” officials said. Eleven were taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
The Secret Service has arrested seven people near Pennsylvania Avenue since demonstrations began Friday. Officials said protesters vandalized six Secret Service vehicles, repeatedly tried to knock over security barriers, and threw bricks, rocks, bottles, fireworks and other items at Secret Service personnel.
Contributing: Nicholas Wu, Maureen Groppe, Matthew Brown
