At Least 40 Arrests Made At Union Square Protest Over George Floyd's Death
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - Dozens of people were arrested at a large protest against police violence in Union Square on Thursday evening.
Protesters marched to City Hall, shutting down traffic in Lower Manhattan.
Demonstrations were overall orderly but turned tense, with fights breaking out between protesters and police.
Some people threw traffic drums at officers and others tried to take officers' bikes.
At least 40 people were arrested.
Charges include assault of a police officer, criminal possession of a weapon and civil disobedience.
Frustration and pain are stretching across the country over the killing of George Floyd in Minnesota this week.
The city of Minneapolis is still smoldering on its third day of protests.
Demonstrations began peacefully Wednesday but turned violent. At least 30 fires were reported. Looters smashed store windows, and one man was killed by a shop owner.
"It doesn't help anything, but it lets you know they are tired. They're tired of being oppressed, being misused, being abused, being murdered at will," activist Spike Moss said.
The outcry comes over seeing Officer Derek Chauvin's knee pressed into Floyd's neck for seven minutes while the man pleads for help, saying, "I can't breathe, officer."
The four police officers involved in the incident have been fired, but there is mounting anger over the lack of criminal charges against them.
RELATED STORY: High-Profile Racially Charged Viral Videos Are 'Pushing People Psychologically To A Melting Point,' Psychologist Says
Dr. Deirdre Royster studies racial inequities.
"And you know that any other body is not going to receive that level of excessive force. You know that we've hit a breaking point," the NYU sociology professor said.
Among those demanding justice in Minneapolis is Gwen Carr, the mother of Eric Garner, who died in 2014 after an NYPD officer put him in a chokehold during an arrest.
"This is just opening up an old wound and pouring salt into it," Carr said.
One NYPD detective took to social media, saying those Minneapolis police officers have brought shame to the uniform.
"Me and every good cop in the department are different from that heinous act," he said. "We take an oath to serve and protect. I would like to say that that officer failed on both aspects and because he has failed, he is not my friend, he is not my brother, but he is my enemy."
The Minneapolis police chief on Thursday apologized for the officers' actions.
The NYPD commissioner, meanwhile, called the video deeply disturbing.