It’s one thing to protest the unjust death of an innocent man peacefully. It’s another to use this protest as an excuse to burn, loot, and destroy, which is exactly what the Minneapolis rioters have done.
For the third night in a row, violent unrest and chaos reigned in Minneapolis on Thursday as protesters demanding justice for George Floyd clashed with law enforcement. The rioters set fire to the Minneapolis Police Department’s 3rd Precinct headquarters and torched about 90% of the small businesses along the Lake Street corridor, many of which are owned by minorities, according to the Minnesota Star Tribune. Videos of the protests showed rioters running away with stolen goods from Target and other department stores they had raided. One man was spotted smashing a boulder into an ATM, and another resident witnessed a random shooting in the middle of the riot yesterday.
This is unlawful, dangerous behavior that completely undermines the purpose of the original protest, which was to put an end to the excessive use of force shown by some officers and hold law enforcement accountable for its failure to protect the citizens it agreed to serve. It’s a bit hypocritical to argue against violence and excessive force while simultaneously throwing projectiles at officers and setting fire to local businesses that had nothing to do with Floyd’s death.
The city and state governments must condemn and put an end to this rioting, and that might mean using reasonable but forcible measures to protect Minneapolis’s community members. Police have not just the right but also the responsibility to quash these riots forcefully. And if they cannot do this themselves, President Trump said Thursday morning that he would use the full force of the federal government to restore order. This might indeed become necessary, but, per usual, Trump’s warning was unhelpful.
“These THUGS are dishonoring the memory of George Floyd, and I won’t let that happen,” Trump tweeted. “Just spoke to Governor Tim Walz and told him that the Military is with him all the way. Any difficulty and we will assume control but, when the looting starts, the shooting starts. Thank you.”
The president of the United States should not be threatening citizens with violence. His job is to preserve order and lead by example. Instead, he’s further agitating relationships between Minneapolis and its citizens.
Floyd and his family deserve justice, but this is not the way to go about it. Protests are understandable and even necessary, especially in this case. But the moment these protests descended into violence, they became unacceptable and unjust. The Minneapolis rioters aren’t protesters at all. They’re criminals. And they’re exhibiting the very same behavior they claim to hate.
