Photos: Police Use Force to Quell Protests Nationwide as Trump Threatens Martial Law

Photos: Police Use Force to Quell Protests Nationwide as Trump Threatens Martial Law

Protests against systemic racism and brutality by police departments around the country ignited by the May 25 Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd are being met with tear gas, rubber bullets, riot shields, and worse as the president threatens to impose martial law.

Shortly after Donald Trump addressed the nation from the White House on Monday evening, federal police fired rubber bullets and tear gas at peaceful protesters in nearby LaFayette Park — around 20 minutes before a city-wide curfew went into effect. Trump threatened that unless governors across the country dispersed demonstrations and stop late-night looting with their own police and National Guard units, he was prepared to invoke the Insurrection Act and deploy the U.S. military to fight “antifa.” He then walked to a nearby church that had suffered fire damage over the weekend for a photo-op with a Bible, using the jaw-dropping levels of force on protesters as cover.

Shortly after, between 200-500 military police deployed from Fort Bragg, North Carolina into the nation’s capital. Military helicopters were filmed descending below the tops of buildings to disperse crowds of protesters that occupied streets well after the 7 p.m. curfew. Others demonstrators dispersed into D.C. neighbourhoods, drawing a heavy police presence. D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, meanwhile, demanded that Arlington police who had assisted in the crackdown near the White House leave town.

https://twitter.com/a/status/1267648584482258946

In countless U.S. cities, police stepped up efforts to disrupt protests after days of widespread accounts of indiscriminate force and assaults on protesters and journalists. Other acts of lawlessness by police caught on camera have indisputably added fuel to the fire. In New York, where a curfew was scheduled to begin at 11:00 p.m., authorities said double the number of police were deployed and ready to enforce it. Philadelphia police fired tear gas into a crowd of hundreds of protesters occupying a highway, forcing them to scramble up a nearby embankment. Mostly white vigilantes reportedly took to the streets in Philly’s Fishtown neighbourhood as police reportedly looked the other way. The group, armed with baseball bats and other makeshift weapons, claimed to be a neighbourhood self-defence force even as a WHYY producer captured them dropping racial slurs.

With the National Guard’s help, Atlanta police used tear gas to clear crowds downtown after a 9:00 p.m. curfew. Police in Richmond, Virginia used tear gas on peaceful protesters, saying it was necessary to stop others from allegedly trying to pull statutes down.

In contrast, Detroit protesters reportedly dispersed after curfew without the violence seen in other cities. Demonstrations in St. Louis were mostly peaceful, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, but sundown after police threw tear gas at protesters throwing fireworks.

Riot police fire rubber bullets on protesters outside the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Jose Luis Magana, AFP via Getty Images)
Riot police fire rubber bullets on protesters outside the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Jose Luis Magana, AFP via Getty Images)

Riot police use tear gas to push back protesters outside the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Jose Luis Magana, AFP via Getty Images)
Riot police use tear gas to push back protesters outside the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Jose Luis Magana, AFP via Getty Images)

Heavily armed riot police during the operation to remove protesters by force from the White House area on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Roberto Schmidt , AFP via Getty Images)
Heavily armed riot police during the operation to remove protesters by force from the White House area on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Roberto Schmidt , AFP via Getty Images)

Police attacking protesters near the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Jose Luis Magana, AFP via Getty Images)
Police attacking protesters near the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Jose Luis Magana, AFP via Getty Images)

Officers form a riot wall near the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Jose Luis Magana, Getty Images)
Officers form a riot wall near the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Jose Luis Magana, Getty Images)

Military trucks deploy throughout downtown DC on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Mandel Ngan, AFP via Getty Images)
Military trucks deploy throughout downtown DC on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Mandel Ngan, AFP via Getty Images)

Police using tear gas and force to push protesters away from the White House; June 1, 2020. (Photo: Jose Luis Magana, Getty Images)
Police using tear gas and force to push protesters away from the White House; June 1, 2020. (Photo: Jose Luis Magana, Getty Images)

Military police form a riot line in coordination outside the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Jose Luis Magana, Getty Images)
Military police form a riot line in coordination outside the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Jose Luis Magana, Getty Images)

Protesters being taken into custody near the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Alex Brandon, AP)
Protesters being taken into custody near the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Alex Brandon, AP)

A demonstrator being taken into custody by police near the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Alex Brandon, AP)
A demonstrator being taken into custody by police near the White House on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Alex Brandon, AP)

Protesters fleeing clouds of tear gas in Philadelphia's Centre City neighbourhood on June 1, 2020.  (Photo: Mark Makela, Getty Images)
Protesters fleeing clouds of tear gas in Philadelphia’s Centre City neighbourhood on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Mark Makela, Getty Images)

Protesters march in Philadelphia's Centre City neighbourhood on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Mark Makela, Getty Images)
Protesters march in Philadelphia’s Centre City neighbourhood on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Mark Makela, Getty Images)

Protesters scramble in Centre City, Philadelphia after police launched tear gas at them near a tunnel exit. (Photo: Mark Makela, Getty Images)
Protesters scramble in Centre City, Philadelphia after police launched tear gas at them near a tunnel exit. (Photo: Mark Makela, Getty Images)

Protesters scramble in Centre City, Philadelphia after police launched tear gas at them near a tunnel exit. (Photo: Mark Makela, Getty Images)
Protesters scramble in Centre City, Philadelphia after police launched tear gas at them near a tunnel exit. (Photo: Mark Makela, Getty Images)

A police officer readies a grenade launcher in Atlanta, Georgia on June 1, 2020. (Photo: John Bazemore, AP)
A police officer readies a grenade launcher in Atlanta, Georgia on June 1, 2020. (Photo: John Bazemore, AP)

A riot line in Atlanta, Georgia on June 1, 2020. (Photo: John Bazemore, AP)
A riot line in Atlanta, Georgia on June 1, 2020. (Photo: John Bazemore, AP)

A protester being arrested by police in Atlanta, Georgia on June 1. (Photo: John Bazemore, AP)
A protester being arrested by police in Atlanta, Georgia on June 1. (Photo: John Bazemore, AP)

Protesters in Louisville, Kentucky on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Darron Cummings, AP)
Protesters in Louisville, Kentucky on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Darron Cummings, AP)

Protesters in Los Angeles' Van Nuys neighbourhood on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Robyn Beck, AP)
Protesters in Los Angeles’ Van Nuys neighbourhood on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Robyn Beck, AP)

Officers mobilizing in Van Nuys, Los Angeles on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Robyn Beck, AP)
Officers mobilizing in Van Nuys, Los Angeles on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Robyn Beck, AP)

Police arrest a protester in New York on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Timothy A. Clary, AFP via Getty Images)
Police arrest a protester in New York on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Timothy A. Clary, AFP via Getty Images)

A broken window in New York's Chelsea neighbourhood on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Craig Ruttle, AP)
A broken window in New York’s Chelsea neighbourhood on June 1, 2020. (Photo: Craig Ruttle, AP)

Protesters on the Brooklyn Bridge, June 1, 2020. (Photo: Wong Maye-E, AP)
Protesters on the Brooklyn Bridge, June 1, 2020. (Photo: Wong Maye-E, AP)

Protesters on the Brooklyn Bridge, June 1, 2020. (Photo: Wong Maye-E, AP)
Protesters on the Brooklyn Bridge, June 1, 2020. (Photo: Wong Maye-E, AP)


The Cheapest NBN 50 Plans

It’s the most popular NBN speed in Australia for a reason. Here are the cheapest plans available.

At Gizmodo, we independently select and write about stuff we love and think you'll like too. We have affiliate and advertising partnerships, which means we may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page. BTW – prices are accurate and items in stock at the time of posting.