NYC marks 1 year since murder of George Floyd with solemn observances, protests
NEW YORK (WABC) -- The life of George Floyd - and his death seen on video around the world - is being remembered and acknowledged Tuesday in New York City and across the country.
A full day of protests were scheduled for Tuesday, marking one year since the murder of Floyd during an arrest in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Floyd's family says despite the conviction of former officer Derek Chauvin, they are calling on the fight for justice to continue.
"How can I be numb, and I'm trying to help with the youth of today?" said Floyd's brother Terrence, who lives in Brooklyn. "We got the verdict, we are waiting for others. But keep it peaceful."
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Debris thrown onto roadway by demonstrators
The NYPD tweeted photos Tuesday night of debris thrown onto the roadway in New York City.
"We encourage everyone to exercise their constitutional right to protest and everyone's right to self-expression but throwing debris into the roadway only creates a dangerous and hazardous condition to the public."
George Floyd activists reflect on BLM movement in NYC 1 year after his murder
A year after the death of George Floyd, many routinely describe the protests that followed last summer as a singular, racially transformative moment.
White support of the Black Lives Matter movement reached an all-time high. But what about those to took to the streets? Those who marched and rallied to demand racial justice - have they seen evidence of fundamental change?
Barclays protest
Civil Rights organizations and community groups gathered outside the Barclays Center to mark once year since George Floyd's murder.
A few hundred people marched in Floyd's name to demand reforms in NYC.
"Call on speaker Johnson, Mayor de Blasio, the City Council to reallocate resources from the police," said Yehuda Webster with Jews for Racial & Economic Justice. "To under-resourced communities who desperately need social services that'll actually help us to not just survive, but really thrive."
Grief, smiles 1 year after Floyd death as family meets Biden
They mourned together and laughed together in the Oval Office - and spoke of what President Joe Biden called "the hard reality that racism has long torn us apart."
The first anniversary of George Floyd's death was supposed to be a milestone moment in Washington, a time to mark the passage of a policing law to make criminal justice more just. Instead, Floyd's family met with Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris at the White House on Tuesday to commemorate their loss and continue to push for legislation.
"It was a remembrance of what happened to my brother," Philonise Floyd said of the meeting with Biden, calling the president "a genuine guy."
Biden told them "he just wants the bill to be meaningful and that it holds George's legacy intact," said George Floyd's nephew Brandon Williams. Williams said Biden showed "genuine concern" for how the family is doing.
Biden took time during the meeting to play with George Floyd's young daughter Gianna, who enjoyed some ice cream and Cheetos, the president said, after she told him she was hungry.
Gunshots heard near Floyd square on anniversary of death
The Minneapolis intersection where George Floyd died was disrupted by gunfire Tuesday, just hours before it was to be the site of a family-friendly street festival marking the anniversary of his death at the hands of police.
Associated Press video from 38th Street and Chicago Avenue - informally known as George Floyd Square - showed people running and seeking cover as shots rang out. Police said a man later showed up at a nearby hospital with a gunshot wound. Police spokesman John Elder said authorities believe he was injured in the shooting at the square. He was in critical condition but was expected to survive.
The big question George Floyd's family has for President Biden ahead of meeting
Bittersweet. That's how one of the brothers of George Floyd described the feeling of going to the White House to meet President Joe Biden, one year after Floyd's murder.
"You always dream as a little kid, 'I want to go there. I want to meet the president. I want to witness what goes on in the White House,'" said Terrance Floyd. "To be going to the White House under these circumstances is kind of bittersweet. You get in your dream of being a kid from the hood actually going to the White House, but you got to go have this talk about your brother, his murder, his demise."
But beyond the upcoming talk, Biden has yet to offer concrete action for the family of the man whose murder at the hands of a white Minneapolis police officer sparked a global reckoning over systemic racism and movement for police reform. The path forward on Capitol Hill for Floyd's namesake bill, the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act, remains unclear, but negotiators say they've made progress and expressed optimism this week about its prospects.
Mayoral candidate arrested during protest
Mayoral candidate Shaun Donovan joining clergy, Black Lives Matter activists, and the Crisis Action Center to march to the Holland Tunnel shortly after 9 a.m.
Donovan was arrested during that protest. The arrest was captured on video by NewsCopter 7 overhead.
Port Authority police are aware they will attempt to block the tunnel, as protesters have done in the past.
Donovan was later released from police custody at the 1st Precinct in Lower Manhattan. He was charged with blocking vehicle traffic, and was issued a summons.
Five people were arrested in this protest.
De Blasio and activists take a knee
Mayor Bill de Blasio, Rev. Al Sharpton and other local activists took a knee at the National Action Network observance in Harlem.
"We will continue to fight injustice wherever it creeps its ugly head across this country," said the National Action Network's Derek Perkinson.
The local events are taking place on the same day that the family of George Floyd is set to meet privately with President Biden at the White House this afternoon.
"He wanted this meeting to be private in order to have a real conversation and preserve that with the family," said White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki of President Biden. "He has a genuine relationship with them. And the courage and grace of this family, and especially his daughter Gianna Floyd, has really stuck with the President, as you have seen him talk about Kelly and others, many times over the past several months."
Police reform comes to Paterson after murder of George Floyd
The mayor of Paterson, New Jersey, Andre Sayegh, signs an executive order today making a police officer's Use of Force record a key factor in determining whether they are eligible for promotion. The order also establishes the Mayor's Task Force on De-Escalation and Police Practices.
NYPD reflects on handling George Floyd protests 1 year later
Tuesday marks one year since the murder of George Floyd and the NYPD is reflecting both on how they handled last year's protests that followed and how they have changed their ways.
'Turning mourning into dancing': Festival to remember George Floyd
The intersection where George Floyd took his final breaths was to be transformed Tuesday into an outdoor festival exactly one year after his murder, with food, children's activities and a long list of musical performers.
"We're going to be turning mourning into dancing," rapper Nur-D tweeted. "We're going to be celebrating 365 days of strength in the face of injustice."
ALSO READ: George Floyd rally held in New York City Sunday
Tri-State politicians remember George Floyd
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy: "One year ago today, George Floyd was murdered, and the ensuing calls for justice following his death galvanized our nation. While some measure of justice was ultimately delivered for George Floyd and his family, it does not bring him, nor the many other victims of injustice, back. He, and they, should all be alive today. Over the past year, millions of Americans from every possible background have marched, protested, advocated, and prayed together. Together, we have come face-to-face with America's long history of inequality and systemic racism. We will not accept this as just another part of our national condition. Instead, we have focused our energies on eliminating deep-seated racial inequities in wages, health care, housing, education, and in treatment by law enforcement."
"In New Jersey we have enacted new laws to require that body cameras be worn by members of law enforcement and for the Attorney General to independently investigate officer-involved deaths and to present evidence before a grand jury. We are updating use-of-force guidelines for the first time in a generation. And we support efforts to enhance transparency in making the disciplinary records of law enforcement public.
"Today is our moment to look back at the steps we have taken to right centuries-old wrongs. But today we also look ahead to the hard work that still remains, and we recommit to moving forward in George Floyd's name and in the names of all who have been victims of injustice."
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio: "We've got to change the fundamental culture. We made a lot of progress in the first six or seven years, ending stop and frisk, de-escalation training, implicit bias training. many fewer arrests, less incarceration, neighborhood policing. But we've got to keep changing the culture. We've got to bring the community into the work of policing more deeply. I think the culture change can be done, but it's going to need focused efforts, obviously continuing to diversity the police force. All of these things matter."
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo: "When George Floyd was murdered in Minnesota over a $20 bill, one year ago today, it stunned our senses and demeaned our decency. It was a spark that ignited over 400 years of kindling - the injustice of our justice system, the inherent racism and pervasive discrimination that date back to before this nation was even forged. The violation, the pain, the hypocrisy cannot be overstated, and the frustration and anger that flowed afterward was indisputably justified. But our history is one of people coming together and mobilizing, demanding change and effectuating reform - of striving for and realizing a more perfect union. As Mr. Floyd's daughter Gianna said, her daddy changed the world. For the last year, our mandate has been to use the energy sparked to make real, positive, and long-overdue progress happen. We can, and we will, because until the community-police relationship is rebuilt, public safety cannot be renewed, and our country cannot fully, truly recover. My prayers today are with George Floyd's family and his children, and all those who so deeply and personally felt his loss."
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Our America: A Year of Activism
"Our America: A Year of Activism" is an exclusive streaming special roundtable of social impact experts discussing the evolution of activism over the course of the last year following the murder of George Floyd. The panel conversations feature prominent artists, activists and commentators, all highlighting the union of art and activism in the social justice space. This special programming is a collaboration between ABC Owned Television Stations and Participant.
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