Protests, riots, and demonstrations against police brutality began in Minneapolis in the United States on May 26, 2020 as reactions to the murder of George Floyd, a 46-year-old unarmed African American man, by city police during an arrest. They spread nationally and internationally. Veteran officer Derek Chauvin was recorded as kneeling on Floyd's neck for 9 minutes and 29 seconds; Floyd complained of not being able to breathe, but three other officers looked on and prevented passersby from intervening. Chauvin and the other three officers involved were fired and later arrested. In April 2021, Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. In June 2021, Chauvin was sentenced to 22+1⁄2 years in prison.
The George Floyd protest movement began hours after his murder as bystander video and word of mouth began to spread. Protests first emerged at the East 38th and Chicago Avenue street intersection in Minneapolis, the location of Floyd's arrest and murder, and other sites in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area of Minnesota. Protests quickly spread nationwide and to over 2,000 cities and towns in over 60 countries in support of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. Polls in the summer of 2020 estimated that between 15 million and 26 million people had participated at some point in the demonstrations in the United States, making the protests the largest in U.S. history.
While the majority of protests were peaceful, demonstrations in some cities escalated into burning of cars, looting, and street skirmishes with police and counter-protesters. Some police responded to protests with instances of violence, including against reporters. In the U.S., authorities responded more forcefully to BLM protesters and left-wing protesters than anti-mask protesters and right-wing protesters. When responding to BLM protesters, authorities responded with force 51% of the time compared to 33% for right-wing protesters. At least 200 cities in the U.S. had imposed curfews by early June 2020, while more than 30 states and Washington, D.C. activated over 96,000 National Guard, State Guard, 82nd Airborne, and 3rd Infantry Regiment service members. The deployment, when combined with preexisting deployments related to the COVID-19 pandemic and other natural disasters, constituted the largest military operation other than war in U.S. history.
By the end of June 2020, at least 14,000 people had been arrested. By June 2020, more than 19 people had died in relation to the unrest. A report from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project estimated that between May 26 and August 22, 93% of individual protests were "peaceful and nondestructive" and research from the Nonviolent Action Lab and Crowd Counting Consortium estimated that by the end of June, 96.3% of 7,305 demonstrations involved no injuries and no property damage. However, arson, vandalism, and looting that occurred between May 26 and June 8 caused approximately $1–2 billion in insured damage nationally, the highest recorded damage from civil disorder in U.S. history, and surpassing the record set during the 1992 Los Angeles riots.
The protests precipitated a worldwide debate on policing and racial injustice that has led to numerous legislative proposals on federal, state, and municipal levels in the U.S. intended to combat police misconduct, systemic racism, qualified immunity and police brutality. The protests led to a wave of monument removals, name changes, and societal changes throughout the world and occurred during the early part of the COVID-19 pandemic and amid the 2020 U.S. presidential election season. Protests continued through 2020 and into 2021, most notably in Minneapolis at the 38th and Chicago Avenue street intersection where Floyd was murdered that activists have referred to as George Floyd Square. Several demonstrations coincided with the criminal trial of Chauvin in March and April 2021 and the one-year anniversary of Floyd's murder in May 2021. Officials in Minnesota and elsewhere proactively mobilized counter-protest measures for Chauvin's trial, but it did not result in unrest like what happened immediately after Floyd's murder.
Local officials in Minneapolis–Saint Paul prepared counter-protest measures in early 2022 for the start of the federal trial for the other three police officers at the scene of Floyd's murder. Relatively small protests took place during the trial and after the verdict announcement. On May 25, 2021, the one-year anniversary of Floyd's murder, a number of protests took place; most of these were short-lived, with calm being restored on the early hours of May 26, 2021. While the nationwide protests ended, the occupation of George Floyd Square in Minneapolis–Saint Paul persisted into 2024, however as of 2022 vehicular traffic was finally allowed to pass through it. On May 2, 2023, Tou Thao was found guilty of aiding and abetting manslaughter—the last federal or state court case related to Floyd's murder. The conviction fulfilled a key demand of protesters that all four police officers be held legally accountable for murdering George Floyd.
Protests, riots, and demonstrations against police brutality began in Minneapolis in the United States on May 26, 2020 as reactions to the murder of George Floyd, a 46-year-old unarmed African American man, by city police during an arrest. They spread nationally and internationally. Veteran officer Derek Chauvin was recorded as kneeling on Floyd's neck for 9 minutes and 29 seconds; Floyd complained of not being able to breathe, but three other officers looked on and prevented passersby from intervening. Chauvin and the other three officers involved were fired and later arrested. In April 2021, Chauvin was found guilty of second-degree murder, third-degree murder, and second-degree manslaughter. In June 2021, Chauvin was sentenced to 22+1⁄2 years in prison.
The George Floyd protest movement began hours after his murder as bystander video and word of mouth began to spread. Protests first emerged at the East 38th and Chicago Avenue street intersection in Minneapolis, the location of Floyd's arrest and murder, and other sites in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area of Minnesota. Protests quickly spread nationwide and to over 2,000 cities and towns in over 60 countries in support of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. Polls in the summer of 2020 estimated that between 15 million and 26 million people had participated at some point in the demonstrations in the United States, making the protests the largest in U.S. history.
While the majority of protests were peaceful, demonstrations in some cities escalated into burning of cars, looting, and street skirmishes with police and counter-protesters. Some police responded to protests with instances of violence, including against reporters. In the U.S., authorities responded more forcefully to BLM protesters and left-wing protesters than anti-mask protesters and right-wing protesters. When responding to BLM protesters, authorities responded with force 51% of the time compared to 33% for right-wing protesters. At least 200 cities in the U.S. had imposed curfews by early June 2020, while more than 30 states and Washington, D.C. activated over 96,000 National Guard, State Guard, 82nd Airborne, and 3rd Infantry Regiment service members. The deployment, when combined with preexisting deployments related to the COVID-19 pandemic and other natural disasters, constituted the largest military operation other than war in U.S. history.
By the end of June 2020, at least 14,000 people had been arrested. By June 2020, more than 19 people had died in relation to the unrest. A report from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project estimated that between May 26 and August 22, 93% of individual protests were "peaceful and nondestructive" and research from the Nonviolent Action Lab and Crowd Counting Consortium estimated that by the end of June, 96.3% of 7,305 demonstrations involved no injuries and no property damage. However, arson, vandalism, and looting that occurred between May 26 and June 8 caused approximately $1–2 billion in insured damage nationally, the highest recorded damage from civil disorder in U.S. history, and surpassing the record set during the 1992 Los Angeles riots.
The protests precipitated a worldwide debate on policing and racial injustice that has led to numerous legislative proposals on federal, state, and municipal levels in the U.S. intended to combat police misconduct, systemic racism, qualified immunity and police brutality. The protests led to a wave of monument removals, name changes, and societal changes throughout the world and occurred during the early part of the COVID-19 pandemic and amid the 2020 U.S. presidential election season. Protests continued through 2020 and into 2021, most notably in Minneapolis at the 38th and Chicago Avenue street intersection where Floyd was murdered that activists have referred to as George Floyd Square. Several demonstrations coincided with the criminal trial of Chauvin in March and April 2021 and the one-year anniversary of Floyd's murder in May 2021. Officials in Minnesota and elsewhere proactively mobilized counter-protest measures for Chauvin's trial, but it did not result in unrest like what happened immediately after Floyd's murder.
Local officials in Minneapolis–Saint Paul prepared counter-protest measures in early 2022 for the start of the federal trial for the other three police officers at the scene of Floyd's murder. Relatively small protests took place during the trial and after the verdict announcement. On May 25, 2021, the one-year anniversary of Floyd's murder, a number of protests took place; most of these were short-lived, with calm being restored on the early hours of May 26, 2021. While the nationwide protests ended, the occupation of George Floyd Square in Minneapolis–Saint Paul persisted into 2024, however as of 2022 vehicular traffic was finally allowed to pass through it. On May 2, 2023, Tou Thao was found guilty of aiding and abetting manslaughter—the last federal or state court case related to Floyd's murder. The conviction fulfilled a key demand of protesters that all four police officers be held legally accountable for murdering George Floyd.
The murder of George Floyd sparked mass protests and calls for police reform in the face of ongoing police violence against African-Americans. Large companies such as Nike and Walmart aimed to express their support for the movement through branding themselves as antiracist. Despite some politicians expressing backlash for the Black Lives Matter protests, politicians such as Republican Senator Mitt Romney participated. The movement sought to express their understanding of police brutality as a result of anti-black sentiment, which is seen as structural in nature.
Murder of George Floyd
According to a police statement, on May 25, 2020, at 8:08 p.m. CDT, Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) officers responded to a 9-1-1 call regarding a "forgery in progress" on Chicago Avenue South in Powderhorn, Minneapolis. MPD Officers Thomas K. Lane and J. Alexander Kueng arrived with their body cameras turned on. A store employee told officers that the man was in a nearby car. Officers approached the car and ordered George Floyd, a 46-year-old African American man, who according to police "appeared to be under the influence", to exit the vehicle, at which point he "physically resisted". According to the MPD, officers "were able to get the suspect into handcuffs, and noted he appeared to be suffering medical distress. Officers called for an ambulance." Once Floyd was handcuffed, officers Kueng and Lane attempted to help Floyd to their squad car, but at 8:14 p.m., Floyd stiffened up and fell to the ground. MPD Officers Derek Chauvin and Tou Thao then arrived and made more failed attempts to get Floyd into the squad car.
Floyd, who was still handcuffed, went to the ground face down. Officer Kueng held Floyd's back and Lane held his legs. Chauvin placed his left knee in the area of Floyd's head and neck. A Facebook Livelivestream recorded by a bystander showed Officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on Floyd's neck. Floyd repeatedly tells Chauvin "Please" and "I can't breathe", while a bystander is heard telling the police officer, "You got him down. Let him breathe." After some time, a bystander points out that Floyd was bleeding from his nose while another bystander tells the police that Floyd is "not even resisting arrest right now", to which the police tell the bystanders that Floyd was "talking, he's fine". A bystander replies saying Floyd "ain't fine". A bystander then protests that the police were preventing Floyd from breathing, urging them to "get him off the ground ... You could have put him in the car by now. He's not resisting arrest or nothing." Floyd then goes silent and motionless. Chauvin does not remove his knee until an ambulance arrives. Emergency medical services put Floyd on a stretcher. Not only had Chauvin knelt on Floyd's neck for about seven minutes (including four minutes after Floyd stopped moving) but another video showed an additional two officers had also knelt on Floyd while another officer watched.
The police report stated that medical services were requested prior to the time Floyd was placed in handcuffs, with Emergency Medical Services arriving at the scene with George Floyd already showing no signs of life. Medics were unable to detect a pulse, and Floyd was pronounced dead at the hospital. A May 26 autopsy conducted by the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office found that there were "no physical findings that support a diagnosis of traumatic asphyxia or strangulation"; the preliminary findings stated that underlying health conditions, the police restraint, and potential intoxicants likely contributed to Floyd's death.
On June 1, a private autopsy commissioned by the family of Floyd found the death to be a homicide and that Floyd had died due to asphyxiation from sustained pressure, which conflicted with the original autopsy report done earlier that week. Shortly after, the official post-mortem declared Floyd's death a homicide. Video footage of Officer Derek Chauvin applying 8 minutes 15 seconds of sustained pressure to Floyd's neck generated global attention and raised questions about the use of force by law enforcement. On June 25, 2021, Chauvin was sentenced to 22 years and 6 months in prison with the possibility of supervised release after serving two-thirds of his sentence or 15 years for second-degree murder.
Protests
In Minneapolis–Saint Paul
Organized protests began in Minneapolis on May 26, the day after George Floyd's murder and when a video of the incident had circulated widely in the media. By midday, people had gathered by the thousands and set up a makeshift memorial. Organizers of the rally emphasized keeping the protest peaceful. Protesters and Floyd's family demanded that all four officers at the scene of his arrest and killing be charged with murder and that judicial consequences be swift. That evening, the protest rally turned into a march to the Minneapolis Police Department's third precinct station where the officers were believed to work. After the main protest group disbanded on the night of May 26, a much smaller group, numbering in the hundreds, spray-painted the building, threw rocks and bottles, broke a window at the station, and vandalized a squad car. A skirmish soon broke out between the vandals and protesters trying to stop them. At around 8 p.m., police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at demonstrators, some of whom had thrown water bottles at police officers.
Protests were held at several locations throughout the Minneapolis–Saint Paul metropolitan area in subsequent days. The situation escalated the nights of May 27 to 29 where widespread arson, rioting, and looting took place, which were noted as a contrast to daytime protests that were characterized as mostly peaceful events. Some initial acts of property destruction on May 27 by a 32-year-old man with ties to white supremacist organizations, who local police investigators said was deliberately inciting racial tension, led to a chain reaction of fires and looting. The unrest, including people overtaking the Minneapolis third precinct police station and setting it on fire the night of May 28, garnered significant national and international media attention. After state officials mobilized Minnesota National Guard troops in its largest deployment since World War II, the violent unrest subsided and mostly peaceful protests resumed. However, the violence by early June 2020 had resulted in two deaths, 604 arrests, an estimated $550 million in property damage to 1,500 locations, making the Minneapolis–Saint Paul events alone the second-most destructive period of local unrest in United States history, after the 1992 Los Angeles riots. About 60% of the local financial losses were uninsured.
In Minneapolis, protesters barricaded the street intersection at East 38th Street and Chicago Avenue where Floyd was murdered and transformed it into a makeshift memorial site, which was adorned with public art installments and described as like a "shrine". Thousands of visitors protested and grieved at the site. When Minneapolis city officials attempted to negotiate the re-opening of the intersection in August 2020, protesters demanded that before removing cement barricades the city meet a list of 24 demands, which included holding the trial for the four officers present during Floyd's murder.
On September 11, 2020, hundreds rallied outside a downtown Minneapolis court building where a pretrial hearing was held for the four police officers involved in Floyd's murder. On October 7, 2020, several protests were held in Minneapolis to express anger over Chauvin's release from jail pending trial after he posted bond for his $1 million bail. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz deployed 100 National Guards troops, 100 Minnesota state police troops, and 75 conservation officers. Fifty-one arrests were reported that night, mostly for misdemeanor offenses, such as unlawful assembly.
In early 2021, Minneapolis and Hennepin County officials spent $1 million on fencing and other barricades for police stations and other government buildings to prepare for potential civil unrest during the trial of Derek Chauvin in March. State and local officials also made plans to deploy thousands of police officers and National Guard soldiers. In early March, in the days preceding Chauvin's trial, local organizers staged peaceful protests with thousands of people marching in the streets. The situation at George Floyd Square in Minneapolis grew tense when a person was fatally shot inside the protester-held "autonomous zone" during an altercation on March 6, 2021. In March and April 2021, groups of protesters gathered at George Floyd Square and outside Hennepin County Government Center in Minneapolis during Chauvin's trial, but the streets of Minneapolis were largely empty of mass demonstrations like those in late May and early June 2020.
In April 2021, 3,000 National Guard troops and law enforcement officers were called from neighboring states in preparation for potential unrest over the outcome of the Derek Chauvin trial. On April 20, 2021, Derek Chauvin was found guilty of murdering George Floyd. By then, Floyd's murder had resulted in one of the largest civil rights protest movements in recent decades, and the Minneapolis–Saint Paul region had experienced a prolonged series of protests and intermittent unrest over issues of police brutality and racial injustice. As news of the Chauvin's guilty verdict spread on April 20, 2021, a crowd of one-thousand people marched in downtown Minneapolis and others gathered at 38th and Chicago Avenue to celebrate the outcome. Demonstrations in Minneapolis during Chauvin's criminal trial and verdict announcement were largely peaceful.