The west sidewalk of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco opened Saturday for pedestrians during the Black Lives Matter protest.
June 6 George Floyd protest news
By Helen Regan, Brett McKeehan, Rob Picheta, Peter Wilkinson, Fernando Alfonso III and Amir Vera, CNN
Updated 0437 GMT (1237 HKT) June 7, 2020
58 Posts
Sort by
Golden Gate Bridge opens sidewalk for Black Lives Matter protests
From CNN's Alisha Ebrahimji
DC mayor joined protesters Saturday
From CNN's Nicky Robertson and Alexander Marquardt
One day after Washington DC Mayor Muriel Bowser requested President Donald Trump remove additional law enforcement and out-of-city National Guard, Bowser joined thousands of protesters on the streets of the nation's capital on Saturday.
“We should all be watching what’s happening in Washington DC because we don’t want the federal government to do this to any other Americans,” Bowser remarked while she walked through downtown DC with protesters.
Bowser said the additional units are "inflaming" and "adding to the grievances" of people protesting the death of George Floyd.
On Friday, Bowser commissioned “BLACK LIVES MATTER” to be written in large yellow paint on two blocks of 16th Street, a central axis that leads southward straight to the White House. Additionally, Bowser renamed the square in front of Lafayette Park, steps from the White House, “Black Lives Matter Plaza.”
Washington DC’s Metropolitan Police Department did not make any arrests Friday night in relation to the protests, a spokeswoman for Bowser told CNN.
Looting during protests was an 'intelligence failure,' on behalf of the NYPD, police official says
From CNN's Mark Morales
The looting that occurred across New York City, prompting a curfew to be put in place, was an "intelligence failure" on behalf of the New York Police Department, said John Miller, deputy commissioner of intelligence and counter-terrorism, during a briefing.
If a couple of hundred people knew to be in a certain place at a certain time for criminal activity and we didn’t detect that, that’s on me," Miller said.
Officials have gone back through social media accounts they monitor for illegal activity and haven’t such a post or calls for looting, according to Miller.
“So there’s a question in intelligence gathering, if you will, as to was that done through word of mouth? Is there a social media piece that we missed? Was it done on direct messages between individuals that became a game of telephone and expanded, but that only goes for the first night in Soho. When it started we responded and kept responding and responding,” Miller said.
Miller went on to say that looting was a feature of this protesting they weren’t anticipating and normally isn’t seen during these kinds of movements.
“We believe it was an opportunist action by regular criminal groups who decided to exploit this. And we hear that increasingly from the groups that are marching that they have nothing to do with that and are trying to disassociate themselves,” Miller said.
Washington's new Black Lives Matter street mural is captured in satellite image
From CNN's Leah Asmelash
Washington's new BLACK LIVES MATTER street mural is so huge, you can see it from space.
New satellite images from Planet Labs clearly show the bright yellow message amid the gray Lego-looking buildings on the street leading to the White House, its grandeur minimized by the distance.
At least 5,000 protesters gather in Chicago
From CNN’s Bill Kirkos
At least 5,000 protesters have now stopped marching and are peacefully listening to speakers in the heart of the city’s historic Cabrini Green housing project.
Over the past 10 years most of the high-rise apartments here have been bulldozed and the neighborhood has been largely gentrified, but several low-rise apartment buildings remain.
Phoenix police chief marches with protesters
From CNN's Alex Medeiros
Phoenix police Chief Jeri Williams joined a group marching in the city Friday evening and told protesters that the department is listening to their demands, according to CNN affiliate KNXV.
Williams also posted to her Twitter account that she was invited to walk with protesters as part of ongoing meetings "to find viable solutions to their genuine concerns."
"I'm confident our community can come together and be stronger," Williams tweeted.
There is no curfew in Washington, DC, tonight
From CNN's Alex Marquardt
There is no curfew Saturday night in Washington, DC, according to a spokesperson for Mayor Muriel Bowser
The last night there was a curfew in the District was Wednesday evening.
A curfew was put into effect beginning Monday evening after there were some confrontations and looting last weekend.
Demonstrator in Washington, DC, says change is going to take more than just protests
Olivia Butler, a demonstrator in Washington, DC, said she is thankful for the multitudes of people across the country coming together to speak out against racial injustice, but hopes that the nation is really ready for change.
"I think it is great they're out here now but I am a little skeptical about if it is authentic," she told CNN during a march on Saturday. "Once things do change, it impacts all groups so it is going to be interesting to see what happens."
Solving systematic issues of racism will take more than just protests, Butler added.
"It is something that has to be solved through legislation, through new precedents being set in the legal system, and social change so people's mindsets change so we don't keep fostering the sense of... underlying racial bias in the country. It cannot be solved with a couple marches," she said.
University cancels Ivanka Trump's commencement address over President's response to Floyd's death
From CNN's Kristen Holmes and Jason Hoffman
Administrators from Wichita State University and WSU Tech in Kansas cancelled Ivanka Trump’s virtual graduation speech following backlash over President Trump’s response to George Floyd’s death.
The school announced she would be the commencement speaker last Thursday and abruptly cancelled it the same day after criticism, according to a statement from the WSU Tech President.
“The invitation was extended in February and Ms. Trump offered to record a congratulatory message to graduates to be played during our event. In light of the social justice issues brought forth by George Floyd’s death, I understand and take responsibility that the timing of the announcement was insensitive,” Dr. Sheree Utash, president of WSU Tech said. “For this, I’m sorry that was never the intent, and I want you to know I have heard you and we are responding.”
Ivanka Trump tweeted the nearly 10 minute prerecorded address anyway and spoke out about “cancel culture.”
“Our nation’s campuses should be bastions of free speech. Cancel culture and viewpoint discrimination are antithetical to academia. Listening to one another is important now more than ever!," she wrote on Twitter.
In the video: Trump focused on coronavirus and said that her “heart goes out” to the graduates on this day, adding “changes and hardships do not predict failure in fact they can be the greatest impetus for success… You are a wartime graduate.”
Trump never mentioned George Floyd or the hundreds of thousands of people who are peacefully protesting across the country.