Today, close to 50,000 protesters, of all races and ages, marched through Hollywood to protest the murder of George Floyd, an African American man who died in Minneapolis after police officer Derek Chauvin brutally pinned him down for 8 minutes. It has now been confirmed that for three of those minutes, the unarmed and handcuffed man was unconscious.
Led by students, thousands have also taken to the streets in Beverly Hills, Venice, Manhattan Beach, and at Cal State Northridge. This is quickly shaping up to be one of the largest marches to hit LA County this week.
Early in the day, the demonstrations remained a show of peace less than 24 hours after violent looting rocked the Southland. Watch below:
Other photos from today’s March. (Photo Credit: Colin Costello)
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With a convoy of National Guard vehicles within breathing distance and a military helicopter hovering overhead, protesters chanting, “I can’t breathe,” “George Floyd, Rest in Power,” “Justice for George Floyd,” “Black Lives Matter,” and “No Justice, No Peace.”
The group eventually splintered off into two groups, walking along Hollywood Boulevard and Las Palmas.
Police blocked entrances to the Hollywood (101) Freeway to prevent protesters from going onto the freeway, as some did Monday on the San Diego (405) Freeway near Wilshire Boulevard.
LA Metro announced that Red and Purple Line trains were skipping the Civic Center, Hollywood/Vine, Hollywood/Western, Hollywood/Highland and Pershing Square Stations due to the ongoing protests.
For the fourth day in a row, Los Angeles County has nstituted a 6 p.m. curfew in an effort to curb looting after three straight days of violence and chaos.
Colin Costello is the West Coast Editor of Reel 360. Contact him at colin@reel360.com or follow him on Twitter at @colinthewriter1
