George Floyd protests in Richmond, Virginia

George Floyd protests in Richmond, Virginia
Part of George Floyd protests in Virginia
Black Lives Matter protesters by the graffitied Robert E. Lee Monument on May 31, 2020.
Date	May 29 – August 16, 2020[1][2] (2 months, 2 weeks and 4 days)
Location	Richmond, Virginia, United States
Caused by	Murder of George Floyd White Supremacy Police brutality in the United States Confederate monuments
Goals	Abolition and defunding of the Richmond Police Department Citizens review board of the Richmond Police Department Community-controlled policing Community alerts of police activity Marcus Alert for social workers to respond to emergencies Removal of the confederate monuments Resignation of Levar Stoney as mayor Resignation of William C. Smith as Richmond Police chief
Methods	Arson Civil resistance Vandalism Demonstrations Internet activism Rioting Silent protests Social media activism
Resulted in	One percent budget cut to the Richmond Police Department for FY22[3] Initial damage to monuments along Monument Avenue Removal of the Jackson, Lee, Maury, and Stuart monuments Removal and relocation of the Richmond Police Memorial Resignation of William C. Smith as Richmond Police chief Resignation of Jody Blackwell as Interim Richmond Police chief Retrofitting of the Lee Circle as a community park named in honor of Marcus-David Peters Toppling of Columbus, Davis, Howitzer, Sons of Virginia, and Wickham statues United Daughters of the Confederacy interior burned
Parties
ASH Black Lives Matter DSA Richmond Industrial Workers of the World Our Revolution RVA Food Not Bombs Communist League of Richmond Richmond Mutual Aid Government of Richmond, Virginia Richmond Police Chesterfield Police Hanover County Sheriff Henrico Police VCU Police Virginia Capitol Police Virginia National Guard Virginia Defense Force Third Party Affiliations: Monument Avenue Preservation Commission Oath Keepers Virginia Flaggers Confederate Knights of the Ku Klux Klan
Lead figures
Humberto Cardounel Mark Herring David R. Hines Jeffrey S. Katz Ralph Northam Anthony S. Pike Levar Stoney William C. Smith John Venuti
Casualties
Injuries	At least 25
Arrested	400–500

Richmond, Virginia, experienced a series of riots in the wake of the murder of George Floyd. Richmond was the first city in the Southeastern United States to see rioting following Floyd's murder. Richmond, formerly the capital of the short-lived Confederate States of America, saw much arson and vandalism to monuments connected with that polity, particularly along Monument Avenue.

Riots began in late May 2020 and gradually subsided by mid-August 2020. Given the city's Confederate roots, many of the areas of attack by rioters were the statues along Monument Avenue, near The Fan neighborhood of Richmond. During the first wave of Floyd riots, all major monuments (except the Arthur Ashe Monument) were defaced and sprayed with graffiti. Five statues were toppled by rioters. Some of the statues toppled included the Jefferson Davis Memorial, statues of Christopher Columbus and Confederate General Williams Carter Wickham, and the Howitzer Monument.