George Floyd death triggers Black Lives Matters protest in Holland, with social distancing

Support has been pouring in for George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement from different parts of the globe even as the world battles the deadly coronavirus pandemic. Violent protests have rocked various parts of the USA with rioters ransacking stores, vandalizing property, and squaring off with the police. The heated protests have also reached the White House, with President Donald Trump being escorted to his bunker and the lights of the iconic structure being put out. 

However, in Hauge in the Netherlands, protestors lending their voice to the Black Lives Matter movement demonstrated peacefully while also maintaining social distancing. In a picture shared on social media, the agitators are seen maintaining adequate distance between each other while also wearing masks as they protest in an open field. Protestors and rioters in the US, however,  gave coronavirus safety measures a skip as they expressed their dissent and demanded justice sans social distancing and wearing masks. 

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Social distancing observed at protest in Hauge

READ | Arrests During Protest Following The Death Of George Floyd

Protest outside White House turns violent

US President Donald Trump was rushed to a White House bunker after protest intensified outside the executive mansion on May 29, with some protesters resorting to stone-pelting. According to AP sources, the US President spent nearly an hour in the bunker which has been designed for emergency situations like terror attacks. The protests outside the White House turned violent and sparked one of the highest alerts since the 9/11 attack, prompting Secret Service agents to move Trump to the bunker.

Trump reportedly confided to his advisers that he worries about his safety but the next day he tweeted that he “couldn’t have felt more safe”. In a series of tweets, Trump said that protesters outside the White House would have been "greeted with vicious dogs had they come closer". He also hailed the Secret Services for their professionalism and for efficiently clamping down on protesters who were demonstrating outside the White House.

READ | Thousands March For George Floyd In Los Angeles

George Floyd death

George Floyd died in police custody and his tragic death has angered millions across the world. Demonstrators reportedly said that the focus of the protests is the alleged institutional bigotry in American police forces. In viral footage, the police officer, who has now been arrested, could be seen kneeling over Floyd’s neck while he was struggling for breath while being handcuffed. All four police officers involved in 46-year-old’s arrest have been fired and the Federal Bureau of Investigation has launched a federal civil rights inquiry. After the death of Floyd, Americans have hit the streets in protests, which have taken a turn for the worse with incidents of vandalism, rioting and looting in the name of the protests.

READ | Protest Near White House Stays Calm After Curfew