Posted on May 28, 2020
Crews respond to roughly 30 fires overnight in Minneapolis
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I wish I could share e private video from Facebook because it had a good view.
What do you think of this?
What do you think of this?
Crews respond to roughly 30 fires overnight in Minneapolis
Posted from kstp.com
Riots
Racism
Equality
Justice
Posted >1 y ago
Responses: 3
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As I live nearby and work at the Federal Building only a few blocks away, I can give you more perspective than most of you probably get.
We started with conventional protests on Tuesday. A steady rain probably helped with that. By Tuesday night though, the protests were very much centered on the Minneapolis third police precinct, and several vehicles were damaged and all the windows broken. The cops showed up in riot gear, and managed to disperse that crowd.
Wednesday was another story. With better weather, the crowd was both larger and better organized. Some showed up at one of the involved former officer's house, and several were arrested. But the action centered around where the incident occurred and nearby Lake Street businesses became targets of opportunity when night fell. They looted a Target and a Cub Foods (supermarket), and set fire to an Autozone and a nearby apartment building under construction. There were smaller fires too, but those were the big ones.
The community then did something that made me proud this morning. Volunteers showed up and started to help Target and Cub Foods clean up after the previous evening's chaos. No pay, just doing something for their own community anchors - ones that until this week were the only ones open.
Alas, it didn't stay that way. This time the looting was organized. A group of 60 cars, stripped of license plates, drove down to the Midway (busy area in St Paul between the two downtowns) and systematically attacked the Target, TJ Max, Furniture Barn, and NAPA auto parts stores, among others. It should be pointed out that with both of these Targets out of commission and the transit system now shut down, there are very few options for local residents to get groceries. According to the police, the people that they've arrested doing looting and arson have tended to not be local to the area.
Social media has been trying to organize hits in a couple of suburbs now, and the Governor called out the National Guard.
This could get ugly. My own wife, who is black, wanted to go down there herself to protest, but the loons and instigators have made it a dangerous place to be indeed.
There are loosely three groups - gawkers, protesters, and these non-local looters using the protests as cover to make snatch and grabs.
It is going to take two things to quell this, in my opinion. The cops involved in Floyd's death need to be arrested and charged, and the remaining police need to get connected with community leaders to take their neighborhoods back from the bands of looters. Do that, and we can start to heal. Don't do that, and it will continue to be some long nights around here.
We started with conventional protests on Tuesday. A steady rain probably helped with that. By Tuesday night though, the protests were very much centered on the Minneapolis third police precinct, and several vehicles were damaged and all the windows broken. The cops showed up in riot gear, and managed to disperse that crowd.
Wednesday was another story. With better weather, the crowd was both larger and better organized. Some showed up at one of the involved former officer's house, and several were arrested. But the action centered around where the incident occurred and nearby Lake Street businesses became targets of opportunity when night fell. They looted a Target and a Cub Foods (supermarket), and set fire to an Autozone and a nearby apartment building under construction. There were smaller fires too, but those were the big ones.
The community then did something that made me proud this morning. Volunteers showed up and started to help Target and Cub Foods clean up after the previous evening's chaos. No pay, just doing something for their own community anchors - ones that until this week were the only ones open.
Alas, it didn't stay that way. This time the looting was organized. A group of 60 cars, stripped of license plates, drove down to the Midway (busy area in St Paul between the two downtowns) and systematically attacked the Target, TJ Max, Furniture Barn, and NAPA auto parts stores, among others. It should be pointed out that with both of these Targets out of commission and the transit system now shut down, there are very few options for local residents to get groceries. According to the police, the people that they've arrested doing looting and arson have tended to not be local to the area.
Social media has been trying to organize hits in a couple of suburbs now, and the Governor called out the National Guard.
This could get ugly. My own wife, who is black, wanted to go down there herself to protest, but the loons and instigators have made it a dangerous place to be indeed.
There are loosely three groups - gawkers, protesters, and these non-local looters using the protests as cover to make snatch and grabs.
It is going to take two things to quell this, in my opinion. The cops involved in Floyd's death need to be arrested and charged, and the remaining police need to get connected with community leaders to take their neighborhoods back from the bands of looters. Do that, and we can start to heal. Don't do that, and it will continue to be some long nights around here.
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SSG (Join to see)
Thanks for the update. I saw a FB video this morning and this young lady was trying to get close to the rioting but her mother was with her and told her that's as close as you're going to get. She was near the Autozone. I think she mentioned that particular store always gets hit when there's a disturbance.
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Cpl Jeff N.
Thanks for the local perspective Jerry. I have been to Minneapolis hundreds of times. Target was a very large account for me for 15 years of my career. I stayed mostly downtown near their HQ but did get around a lot to other areas as well. It is a very nice city albeit to cold for me to live in.
The tape of the police pinning George Floyd down with a knee to his neck with what appears to be full force/pressure on that knee to his neck is horrific. Clearly the outcome was as bad as it could get and there need to be people held to account. We need to allow for due process though too. Every American in entitled to it. Cops as well.
We cannot allow a mob to drive the justice system. There is nothing, NOTHING, wrong with protesting peacefully and demanding action. We are, of course, well past that point. Looting, arson, destruction of public property is NEVER acceptable as a response, period. I hope cooler heads will finally prevail.
The tape of the police pinning George Floyd down with a knee to his neck with what appears to be full force/pressure on that knee to his neck is horrific. Clearly the outcome was as bad as it could get and there need to be people held to account. We need to allow for due process though too. Every American in entitled to it. Cops as well.
We cannot allow a mob to drive the justice system. There is nothing, NOTHING, wrong with protesting peacefully and demanding action. We are, of course, well past that point. Looting, arson, destruction of public property is NEVER acceptable as a response, period. I hope cooler heads will finally prevail.
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I hate to see rioting and looting. However, that whole episode caught on tape was absolutely despicable. When a man says he is in distress, believe him. He was already in handcuffs.
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