A restaurant that was set on fire during the riots rocking Minneapolis expressed solidarity with protesters in a social media post.
Visitors to the Facebook page of Gandhi Mahal, located near the city’s Third Police Precinct, were met with a message calling for justice after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was allegedly involved in the death of George Floyd. Owner Ruhel Islam’s daughter, Hafsa Islam, took to the restaurant’s Facebook page to note the blaze.
“Thank you to everyone for checking in. Sadly Gandhi Mahal has caught fire and has been damaged. We won’t loose hope though, I am so greatful for our neighbors who did their best to stand guard and protect Gandhi Mahal, Youre efforts won’t go unrecognized,” she said, noting that the family would “rebuild and recover.”
Saying that she was sitting next to her father while he watched the news, Hafsa added, “I hear him say on the phone; ‘let my building burn, Justice needs to be served, put those officers in jail.’ Gandhi Mahal May have felt the flames last night, but our firey drive to help protect and stand with our community will never die! Peace be with everyone.”
Minneapolis has seen three days of protests and rioting. The demonstrations began after footage emerged showing Floyd lying on his stomach with his neck was compressed by a police officer’s knee. Floyd, a black man, is heard pleading for his life. According to the police, Chauvin held Floyd down for about eight minutes, during almost three of which Floyd was unresponsive. Chauvin has been charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter.
Police have indicated that further charges might be forthcoming. In addition to Chauvin, three other officers have been fired after Floyd’s death, including Tou Thao, who is seen in the video keeping guard. The other two officers have been identified as Thomas Lane and J. Alexander Keung. A second video from the scene appears to show not only Chauvin, but other officers, kneeling on Floyd’s body.
