Protest Erupts In Minneapolis After Officer Kills Black Motorist

Source: Anadolu Agency / Getty

You would think that during the murder trial of ex-cop Derek Chauvin, that police would chill on killing Black people. Nevertheless, on Sunday (April 11), a Black man was killed in Minneapolis during a traffic stop in the Brooklyn Center suburb.

It all started when 20-year-old Daunte Wright was pulled over for the crime of having air fresheners on his rear-view mirror. During the stop, the cops determined he had a warrant for his arrest. At some point, while returning to the car, which his mother says was given to him a couple of weeks ago, Wright was shot and killed.

Reports the New York Times:

A 20-year-old Black man died after a police officer shot him during a traffic stop in a Minneapolis suburb on Sunday, sending hundreds of people into the streets where they clashed with police officers into Monday morning.

The protests in Brooklyn Center came hours before the 11th day of the trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer who has been charged with murdering George Floyd, was set to begin in a courtroom less than 10 miles away.

Outside of the Brooklyn Center Police Department on Sunday night, smoke billowed into the air as a line of police officers fired rubber bullets and chemical agents at protesters, some of whom lobbed rocks, bags of garbage and water bottles at the police. Brooklyn Center’s mayor ordered a curfew until 6 a.m., and the local school superintendent said the district would move to remote learning on Monday “out of an abundance of caution.”

The Twin Cities are still reeling from the murder of George Floyd, and this latest shooting only heightened tensions. Soon after news of the shooting, protesters began assembling at the sight of the incident.

The local police called in the national guard while the cops were already outfitted in riot gear. If the shooting was justified, why would you need all that backup, though.

As details continue to be revealed, it goes without saying that Twitter is furious (see below) at this latest suspect incident involving a Black man’s death at the hands of police under questionable at best circumstances.

This story is developing. 

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