Anti-racism protests swell as Democrats draft legislation to overhaul police accountability
People's Daily
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Demonstrators interact during a protest against racial inequality in the aftermath of the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, at Grand Army Plaza in the Brooklyn borough of New York, US, June 7, 2020. [Photo/Agencies]

WASHINGTON - A new wave of mass protests swept across the United States and Europe over the weekend as Democrats are proposing to overhaul legal protections for police following the death of African American George Floyd in police custody on May 25.

In New York, protest marches against racism and police brutality began at Barclays Center on Saturday night and made a 8-mile loop through the center of Brooklyn. Holding posters that read "Defund the Police, Fund Schools," protesters marched through midtown Manhattan on Sunday afternoon before gathering at Bryant Park.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio lifted the city's curfew on Sunday, a day ahead of schedule, since protests have turned predominantly peaceful, a far cry from scenes of clashes and looting earlier.

In the US capital city of Washington, President Donald Trump ordered the National Guard recently deployed to cope with the protests to start the process of withdrawing.

"They will be going home, but can quickly return, if needed. Far fewer protesters showed up last night than anticipated!" he tweeted.

US Senator and former presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Sunday joined a march in Washington D.C. to express support for the Black Lives Matter movement.

Romney marched with protesters along Pennsylvania Avenue and posted a picture of himself participating in the rally on his Instagram account.

DRAFT FOR CHANGE

As protesters in the United States began turning their initial outrage over the death of Floyd into demands for police reform and social justice, Democrats are proposing to overhaul legal protections for police and to fight systemic racism in the law enforcement.

Floyd, a 46-year-old black man in Minneapolis, died after being pinned by the neck for nine minutes by a white officer's knee while pleading "I can't breathe."

With the Trump administration proposing no specific policy changes in response to the widespread outrage, members of the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) said they would introduce legislation in the House of Representatives on Monday to make policing more accountable.

"We're in a real moment in our country," Rep. Karen Bass, CBC chairwoman, told CNN.

She said the package from House and Senate Democrats will be bolder than any law enforcement changes before.

"It is time for police culture in many departments to change," she said, voicing her belief that the legislation will make "a major step forward" in that direction.

According to the draft document, the proposed legislation will revise the federal criminal police misconduct statute to make it easier to prosecute officers who are involved in misconduct.

The legislation will also make it easier to prosecute police officers over deadly incidents, to ban police choke holds and to establish a national database to record police misconduct.

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, a co-author with Bass and the Democratic senators, will convene a hearing on the legislation this week although it is unclear if congressional Republicans will join the move.

In the latest development, the Minneapolis City Council voted to dismantle the city's police department, of which four former officers were charged over their involvement in the killing of Floyd.

Nine members -- a veto-proof supermajority -- of the 13-member council voted to disband the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD), which has long been accused of racism.

"We committed to dismantling policing as we know it in the city of Minneapolis and to rebuild with our community a new model of public safety that actually keeps our community safe," Council President Lisa Bender said.

PROTESTS ELSEWHERE

Nearly two weeks of US demonstrations have fuelled anti-racism marches around the world, with protesters in Europe also embracing the Black Lives Matter message.

In Brussels, more than 10,000 people demonstrated on Sunday at Place Poelart in the city center. Protesters of all ages and ethnic backgrounds chanted "Black Lives Matter," "No Justice, No Peace."

"The murder of George Floyd has visibly awakened many people," Brussels Times newspaper quoted Ange Kazi, spokesperson of the Belgian Network for Black Lives Matter, which called for the protest, as saying. "Many people are fed up with police violence, which systematically affects Blacks," she said.

More than 15,000 protesters gathered peacefully in front of the US embassy in the Danish capital of Copenhagen, shouting slogans and holding banners as part of the Danish "Black Lives Matter" demonstration.

Across the English Channel, tens of thousands of people joined a second day of protests in British cities, including London, Manchester, Cardiff, Leicester, Bristol and Sheffield, despite government advice against mass gatherings due to coronavirus.

Thousands of people gathered in London, with the majority donning face coverings and many wearing gloves, BBC reported.

In one of the protests which took place outside the US embassy in central London, protesters dropped to one knee and raised their fists in the air, chanting "silence is violence" and "color is not a crime," the report said.