An ongoing wave of in the United States, triggered by the murder of George Floyd during his arrest by Minneapolis police officers on May 25, 2020, has comprised protests and riots against systemic racism towards African Americans in the United States, such as in the form of police violence. It is partly facilitated by the nationwide Black Lives Matter movement. Following the murder of Floyd, broke out in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area on May 26, and quickly spread across the country and the world. Within Minneapolis, widespread property destruction and looting occurred, including a police station being overrun by demonstrators and set on fire, causing the Minnesota National Guard to be activated and deployed on May 28. After a week of riots, over $500 million in property damage was repo
An ongoing wave of in the United States, triggered by the murder of George Floyd during his arrest by Minneapolis police officers on May 25, 2020, has comprised protests and riots against systemic racism towards African Americans in the United States, such as in the form of police violence. It is partly facilitated by the nationwide Black Lives Matter movement. Following the murder of Floyd, broke out in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area on May 26, and quickly spread across the country and the world. Within Minneapolis, widespread property destruction and looting occurred, including a police station being overrun by demonstrators and set on fire, causing the Minnesota National Guard to be activated and deployed on May 28. After a week of riots, over $500 million in property damage was reported in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area, with two deaths linked to the riots. quickly spread throughout the United States, sometimes including rioting, looting, and arson. By early June, at least 200 American cities had imposed curfews, while more than 30 states and Washington, D.C, had activated over 62,000 National Guard personnel in response to riots. By the end of June, at least 14,000 people had been arrested at protests. Polls have estimated that between 15 million and 26 million people have participated at some point in the demonstrations in the United States, making them the largest protests in United States history. It was also estimated that between May 26 and August 22, around 93% of protests were "peaceful and nondestructive". According to several studies and analyses, protests have been overwhelmingly peaceful. At some protests, counter-protesters or police instigated or escalated violence. According to a September 2020 estimate, arson, vandalism and looting caused about $1–2 billion in insured damage between May 26 and June 8, making this initial phase of the George Floyd protests the civil disorder event with the highest recorded damage in United States history. There has also been a large concentration of riots around Portland, Oregon, which has led to the Department of Homeland Security deploying federal agents in the city from June onward. The move was code named Operation Legend, after four-year-old LeGend Taliferro, who was shot and killed in Kansas City. Federal forces have since also been deployed in other cities which have faced large amounts of riots, including Kansas City and Seattle. More localized riots reemerged in several cities following incidents involving police officers, notably following the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin, which led to protests and riots in the city. The protests have led to requests at the federal, state and municipal levels intended to combat police misconduct, systemic racism, qualified immunity and police brutality in the United States. A wave of monument removals and name changes has taken place throughout the world, especially in the United States. This itself has sparked conflict, between left-wing and right-wing groups, often violent. Several far-right groups, including civilian militias and white supremacists, have fought with members of "a broad coalition of leftist anti-racist groups" in street clashes. The racial riots precipitated a national American cultural reckoning on topics of racial injustice. Public opinion of racism and discrimination quickly shifted in the wake of the protests, with significantly increased support of the Black Lives Matter movement and acknowledgement of institutional racism. Demonstrators revived a public campaign for the removal of Confederate monuments and memorials as well as other historic symbols such as statues of venerated American slaveholders and modern display of the Confederate battle flag. Public backlash widened to other institutional symbols, including place names, namesakes, brands and cultural practices. Anti-racist self-education became a trend throughout June 2020 in the United States. Black anti-racist writers found new audiences and places on bestseller lists. American consumers also sought out Black-owned businesses to support. The effects of American activism extended internationally, as global protests destroyed their own local symbols of racial injustice. Multiple media began to refer to it as a national reckoning on racial issues in early June.