DENVER – Denver’s mayor issued an 8 p.m. curfew Saturday as demonstrations protesting the death of George Floyd entered their third day.
Thousands of people were expected to join the protest Saturday, though Denver city officials halted public transportation service into the downtown area.
Floyd died after a Minneapolis officer pressed his knee into his neck for several minutes even after he stopped moving and pleading for air, leading to the protests in Denver and cities across the U.S.
Mayor Michael Hancock said in a news conference the curfew will be in place from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. each night until Friday. The Colorado National Guard will help enforce the curfew, he said.
Downtown Denver has been the scene of clashes between protesters and police the past two nights.
On Friday, what began as a peaceful demonstration during the day turned destructive after the sun went down. Some protesters broke windows and police fired tear gas, flash grenades and pepper pellets.
Tay Anderson, a protest organizer and a Denver school board member, said people who claimed to be allies of their cause “insisted on throwing rocks, bottles, etc., at police.” He urged people to be safe on Saturday.
“If you’re coming to agitate, please do not put others in harm’s way with your actions,” Anderson wrote in a tweet. “The last two days we’ve had innocent people gassed and shot at. Yesterday Black folks in Denver explicitly asked NOT TO AGITATE, because it would be us that would get the blame.”
Denver police spokesman Kurt Barnes said authorities were asking for everyone to be peaceful on Saturday.
