Following the fourth night of unrest in Minneapolis, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz activated the Minnesota National Guard.
The activation represents the largest domestic deployment in the Minnesota’s National Guard’s 164-year history.
The move was in response to escalating tension in protests occurring in Minneapolis--as well as in several other U.S. cities—following the death of George Floyd, a black man who died while being detained by a white officer on Memorial Day. Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman announced Friday afternoon that ex-officer Derek Chauvin has been taken into custody and charged with 3rd degree murder, as well as manslaughter.
The family of Floyd are still calling for the arrest of three other officers involved in Floyd's detainment. The death of Floyd was caught on several videos, that have since gone viral.
The Minnesota National Guard announced it is activating more than 1,000 additional Citizen-Soldiers and Airmen on Saturday, according to a tweet from the organization.
This is in addition to the 700 that were on duty as of late last night,” the tweet reads.
Minnesota @GovTimWalz has announced the full mobilization of the @MNNationalGuard for the first time since World War II. We are "all-in" to restore order and maintain and keep the peace in Minnesota.
— MN National Guard (@MNNationalGuard) May 30, 2020
Thousands of protesters took to the streets of Minneapolis Friday night, ignoring an 8 p.m. curfew that had been announced earlier that day. Businesses were burned and vandalized, as the rioting continued.
Gov. Walz acknowledged in a Saturday morning press conference that there wasn’t enough manpower to contain the chaos that erupted.
“So, let’s be very clear. The situation in Minneapolis is no longer, in any way, about the murder of George Floyd,” the governor said Saturday. “It is about attacking civil society, instilling fear and disrupting our great cities.”
Gov. Walz called the riots “extremely dangerous.”
Demonstrations also took place in several U.S. cities on Friday. Although many were peaceful, some resulted in clashes with authorities. Police cars and windows were smashed in Atlanta, Georgia and the police headquarters in Portland, Oregon was broken amid large during protests in those cities. Georgia’s governor declared a state of emergency early Saturday to active the state’s National Guard. Portland’s mayor also declared an emergency and implemented a nighttime for curfew for the city.
Watch Live: Gov. Walz holds a press conference Saturday afternoon with community leaders, urging protesters to keep the peace in the city amid riots.
