Locals hold rally to protest the death of George Floyd
Published at | Updated at
IDAHO FALLS — About 70 eastern Idahoans gathered on the Broadway Bridge in Idaho Falls on Friday to protest the killing of George Floyd.
Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, died Monday after pleading for help as a former Minneapolis police officer used his knee on Floyd’s neck to pin him — unarmed and handcuffed — to the ground for nearly nine minutes. The incident began after Floyd allegedly tried to pay for something with a counterfeit bill.
Video of the death has sparked outrage, protests and even riots across the country on Wednesday and Thursday, and the protests continued Friday.
The Idaho Falls demonstration was organized by the Bonneville County Democratic Party.People who attended brought signs that read, “Black Lives Matter” and “Stop Killing Black People.”
“The Bonneville County Democratic Party has always been in favor of equal rights for all,” Chairwoman Pat Tucker said. “We are not seeing the right to life equally applied to black men. We want to make the point unequivocally that here in Idaho Falls, we care about each and every life.”
Tucker said the rally was held to raise awareness about institutional racism in the United States. She hopes to work with local law enforcement to combat institutional racism even here in eastern Idaho.
“What happened to George Floyd cannot happen again,” she said. “It was murder for a nonviolent crime. Officers need to respond with minimal force.”
Derek Chauvin, the fired Minneapolis police officer seen in a video with his knee on Floyd’s neck, was charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter on Friday.
Click here for more about this case and the protests.