Some protesters clashed with police in downtown Houston, Texas, with officers deploying tear gas or pepper spray to disperse crowds.
U.S. President Barack Obama (Photo: IANS)
Former US President Barack Obama on Friday expressed the “anguish” of millions of Americans over the death of a black man who was killed by police in Minnesota, saying racism cannot be “normal” in the United States.
“This shouldn’t be ‘normal’ in 2020 America,” Obama said of the death of Minneapolis man George Floyd and several other recent racial incidents in the country.
Obama further said in a statement, “It can’t be ‘normal”.
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On Wednesday, protests erupted in cities across the United States over the deadly arrest of George Floyd, an unarmed black man, who was pinned to the ground by the knee of a white officer in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Some protesters clashed with police in downtown Houston, Texas, with officers deploying tear gas or pepper spray to disperse crowds.
Organisers believe more than 3,000 gathered with Black Lives Matter Houston to protest Floyd’s death with chants of “I can’t breathe” and “No justice, no peace”.
On Friday, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey declared a strict curfew for the US city after three nights of violent protests over the death of a black man.
Earlier in the day, Pesident Donald Trump spoke with the family of Floyd and expressed his grief, saying “I understand the hurt, I understand the pain. People have really been through a lot. The family of George is entitled to justice and the people of Minnesota are entitled to live in safety”.
The police officer who was involved in the incident arrested on Friday.
The protests on Wednesday were reminiscent of those that followed the 2017 death of Philando Castile, who was sitting in his car after a traffic stop in a nearby suburb when an officer shot him.
Last year, in June, a young black man was killed by US marshals in Memphis, Tennessee, whose death sparked clashes with police overnight.
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