On Thursday, over 10,000 people packed a downtown Brooklyn plaza as Terrence Floyd led a memorial service for his older brother George Floyd. The crowd erupted in boos and jeers as Mayor Bill de Blasio took the microphone.
Protesters: “De Blasio, go home! De Blasio, go home! De Blasio, go home!”
Mayor Bill de Blasio: “George Floyd cannot have been allowed to die in vain. We have to make a change in this city and this country.”
Protesters: “Resign! Resign! Resign! Resign! Resign! Resign!”
As Mayor de Blasio left the stage, many of the protesters turned their backs and chanted for him to resign. Speaking a short time later, New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams called on the mayor to address protesters’ “pain and anger” rather than responding with more police and curfews.
Jumaane Williams: “I hear the mayor and the governor say we have to do what we have to do to protect property. I want to say this as a citywide elected official: We must protect property. We must make sure people feel safe. But where is the same energy for Black lives?”