George Floyd protests: NYC mayor Bill De Blasio's daughter arrested during demonstrations
The daughter of New York City mayor Bill de Blasio was arrested over the weekend at a protest following the death of George Floyd and police brutality against black Americans.
Mr Floyd died 25 May after Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin, knelt on his neck while detaining him, sparking protests across the US and outcry from politicians, including former president Barack Obama.
Mr Chauvin was arrested and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter on Friday and may face further charges in the future, according to county attorney Mike Freeman.
Protests initially started in Minneapolis last week, but spread to Los Angeles and New York City, among other cities in the US over the weekend.
At a protest in Manhattan on Saturday, Chiara de Blasio was arrested at East 12th Street for “unlawful assembly,” according to NBC News.
Ms de Blasio was arrested at about 10:30pm, after blocking traffic and refusing to move, according to the New York Post.
A source for the Post, said that the area where Ms de Blasio was arrested, was a “real hotspot, police cars were getting burned there, people were throwing and yelling, fighting with cops.
“There were thousands of people in that area at that time,” the source added.
The mayor’s daughter was released from custody, but was arrested alongside at least 345 people, during protests in the city on Saturday.
The outlet reported that she did not tell the authorities that she is the mayor’s daughter.
Mr de Blasio spoke to elected council officials and members of the community over the weekend about his response to the protests.
Structural racism haunts the lives of people of color. What we’re seeing is an overflow due to decades of injustices. I see my own privilege and can only understand so much. I know enough to say that for the Black community every day is pervaded by racism. We will do better. pic.twitter.com/XAK7S0HxoO
— Mayor Bill de Blasio (@NYCMayor)
About an hour before his daughter was arrested, he held a press conference, where he spoke about the death of George Floyd and systemic racism in the US.
He captioned his post on Twitter: “Structural racism haunts the lives of people of color. What we’re seeing is an overflow due to decades of injustices.
“I see my own privilege and can only understand so much. I know enough to say that for the Black community every day is pervaded by racism. We will do better.”
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