'Take A Knee' Marchers Continue Marching Through Downtown Minneapolis After Curfew
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) - A group of peaceful protestors, organized by athletes, marched through downtown Minneapolis to the Hennepin Bridge, where they took a knee in remembrance of George Floyd.
And as of 8:30 p.m., the marches continued in downtown Minneapolis even after the mandatory curfew went into effect, with large groups marching down streets like Washington and Chicago Avenues.
The march was organized by Minneapolis-born former NBA athlete Royce White and former football player Darrell Thompson.
Over 1,000 protesters started at U.S. Bank Stadium, but the crowd soon moved on, walking through downtown Minneapolis. When they reached Hennepin Bridge, they shut down traffic and took a knee. They then moved to the 35W bridge, where they blocked southbound traffic.
Taking a knee in protest started in 2016, when Colin Kaepernick knelt during the national anthem at a San Francisco 49ers game. The action started a wave of protests to raise awareness about police brutality against the Black community.
Kaepernick announced Friday his organization, the Know Your Rights Campaign, will pay for legal assistance for those protesting in Minneapolis.
The Minneapolis protests started Tuesday, the day after George Floyd - an unarmed Black man - died while in police custody. Derek Chauvin, the officer who pinned his neck to the ground for over eight minutes, was arrested and charged for third-degree murder Friday afternoon.
The three other officers involved, Tou Thao, Thomas Lane, and J Alexander Kueng, have yet to be charged.
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