George Floyd Square occupied protest | |||
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Part of George Floyd protests in Minneapolis–Saint Paul | |||
Date | Street occupation: May 26, 2020 – June 20, 2021 (1 year, 3 weeks and 4 days) Protest activity: May 26, 2020 – present | ||
Location | Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States 44°56′03″N 93°15′45″W / 44.9343°N 93.2624°W | ||
Caused by | |||
Goals | List of 24 demands[1] | ||
Methods |
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Status | Vehicular traffic resumed through the street intersection on June 20, 2021, but by mid-2024 the square area remained a gathering place for protest. | ||
Parties | |||
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Casualties | |||
Death(s) | 7 by gunfire 1 by drug overdose | ||
The center of the protest zone in Minneapolis. |
As a reaction to the murder of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, racial justice activists and some residents of the Powderhorn community in Minneapolis staged an occupation protest at the intersection of East 38th Street and Chicago Avenue with a blockade of the streetway lasting over a year.[5][6][7] The intersection is where Derek Chauvin, a white police officer with the Minneapolis Police Department, murdered George Floyd, an unarmed 46-year-old Black man.[8] Activists erected barricades to block vehicular traffic and transformed the intersection and surrounding structures with amenities, social services, and public art depicting Floyd and other racial justice themes.[2][9][7] The community called the unofficial memorial and protest zone at the intersection "George Floyd Square". The controversial[10] street occupation in 2020 and 2021 was described as an "autonomous zone" and a "no-go" place for police,[11] but local officials disputed the extent of such characterizations.[12][13]
Local unrest in Minneapolis–Saint Paul immediately after Floyd's murder was the second-most destructive to property in U.S. history, after the 1992 Los Angeles riots,[14] but peaceful protest gatherings at the intersection in late May 2020 were free of the property destruction, arson, and looting that characterized other local demonstrations.[15][16] The intersection became a place of pilgrimage for people protesting Floyd's murder and other forms of racial injustice.[17] But in the weeks and months after Floyd's murder, the neighborhood surrounding the square, which had previously had a reputation for gang activity, continued to have elevated levels of violent crime and regular gunfire incidents.[17] By August 14, 2022, seven people had been killed by gun violence at or around the square since Floyd's murder,[18][1][19][20][21][22][23] and one person had died there as the result of a drug overdose.[24]
The City of Minneapolis began long-term planning in late 2020 for preservation of public art installments at the square.[5] By March 2021, debate about how to open the intersection persisted as the trial of Derek Chauvin commenced, with some residents expressing support for removing the barricades and others preferring that the occupation continue until community demands were met.[25] After a guilty verdict was reached in the trial on April 20, 2021, organizers of the occupation of the intersection said they would continue to protest and hold the square until their demands were met, which included awaiting the trial outcome for the other three police officers at the scene of Floyd's murder.[26][27] City crews removed cement barricades at the intersection on June 3, 2021, as part of a phased reopening process[13] and vehicular traffic partially resumed on June 20.[9][7]
The activist movement at George Floyd Square persisted into 2024 as the area continued to function as a gathering place for protest.[28]
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