Protests turn chaotic last night south of Union Square with reports of trash fires on 3rd Avenue

[Photo by Ed Yoo]

Another day of peaceful George Floyd protests around the city turned destructive late last night. There were reports of damage to businesses and police vehicles south of Union Square as well as trash fires along Third Avenue.

Footage via social media shows several people jumping on an NYPD van and breaking its windows on Fourth Avenue at 13th Street...

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A post shared by Adam Lamb (@chirolamb) on May 31, 2020 at 8:43pm PDT

Ed Yoo shared these photos from last night where police and the protestors faced off on Fourth Avenue at 12th Street around 11:30 ...



The group continued east to Third Avenue...



Police reportedly charged the protestors after someone threw a bottle...



As the group scattered south on Third Avenue, several people set trash fires from 12th Street to Ninth Street... the largest being a stack of cardboard on the curb for recycling outside the H Mart ...


[Screengrab via @chirolamb]

In addition, several stores had their storefronts damaged, such as the CVS on 14th Street and Fifth Avenue...



...with reports of looting, mostly in Soho.

At a Hall press conference yesterday, Mayor de Blasio addressed the violent element of the otherwise peaceful protests. Per CBS New York:

The mayor said the protests have been infiltrated by some outside agitators who are determined to cause violence.

“The X Factor here of a different kind. A small set of men, we’ll call them not just protesters, but people who came to do violence in a systematic organized fashion. That is a different reality we need to grapple with,” de Blasio said.

The mayor said the NYPD would quickly release evidence showing that some people were calling for violent demonstrations.

Yesterday marked the fourth day of protests in NYC and other cities nationwide against racist police violence in the aftermath of George Floyd's death Monday in Minneapolis.

Updated 8:30 a.m.

Photos from Riian Kant-McCormick showing the broken windows at the AMC Village 7 on Third Avenue and 11th Street...





... and outside the Post Office on 11th Street and Fourth Avenue...

Weekend parting shots

Thank you to East Village-based photographer Kyle de Vre for sharing these photos from yesterday, capturing moments from the protest along First Avenue and Second Avenue...

A sign outside Verizon: 'Agitators are not protestors'

A handmade sign arrived some time this morning after 8 outside the damaged Verizon store on Second Avenue and St. Mark's Place...



It reads:

Please know:

1) BLM
2) The protest came here twice peacefully. Hours later a small group of people trashed 2nd & St. Mark's. Agitators are not protestors."

Thanks to Steven for the photos...

Sunday morning around Union Square

Yesterday's peaceful protests turned chaotic in the late-night hours as demonstrators set fire to nearly a dozen NYPD vehicles around Union Square... it marked the end of the third day of protests against racist police violence in the aftermath of George Floyd's death Monday in Minneapolis.

EVG contributor Stacie Joy surveyed the scene this morning around Union Square, including on University Place where many of the police vehicles — specifically the Homeless Outreach vans — had been parked.

A look at last night's damage along 2nd Avenue

Yesterday's mostly peaceful protests turned ugly last night, as demonstrators broke windows along Second Avenue and Broadway, and set fire to multiple police vehicles around Union Square.

Citywide, NBC 4 reported that 345 people were arrested and 33 police officers injured as the protestors and cops clashed late night around several different hotspots, including Union Square.

Along Second Avenue between Houston and 14th Street, windows of each bank branch were smashed ... as well as at the Verizon store and Urban Outfitters. Bus stops and LinkNYC kiosks were also vandalized. In addition, trash cans were upturned and tossed into Second Avenue. There were also reports of several mattress fires ...
















[Photo by Steven]


[TD Bank at 1st Street via Stacie Joy]

Smaller businesses were also hit: The front windows were broken at Kona Coffee and Company between Third Street and Fourth Street, The Gray Mare between Third Street and Fourth Street, Plant Food & Wine at Fourth Street, Cooper's Craft & Kitchen at Fifth Street, Le Fournil Bakery at Seventh Street and B&H between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place.

The protests, which took place in all five boroughs, were in response to the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis while in police custody.




[St. Mark's Place]

[Updated] Thousands march through East Village streets to protest the death of George Floyd

Protestors fanned out across the city today, including two groups who marched through the East Village late this afternoon.

The protests, like others around the country and NYC in recent days, were sparked by the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis this past Monday.

One group, numbering in the hundreds, entered Tompkins Square Park at Ninth Street... and exited on Seventh Street and Avenue B... Steven shared these photos...















Another group, numbering at least 1,000, with a large NYPD presence following along, entered the East Village via Second Avenue.... EVG reader Ben Lebovitz shared these photos on Second Avenue between Fifth Street and Sixth Street...







The blocks-long assemblage turned on Seventh Street, then went south on First Avenue... these reader photos show the size of the crowd on First Avenue ...





... who stopped on Fifth Street, shouting "Black lives matter" and, "No justice, no peace." The NYPD had blocked off Fifth Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue, the location of the 9th Precinct.

Peaceful protestors on 1st Avenue at 5th Street near the 9th Precinct pic.twitter.com/yN9O1bqjyR

— evgrieve (@evgrieve) May 30, 2020

The group then moved on to the north.

There were also reports of protestors outside PS4 on Avenue C and Eighth Street.

While the groups in the East Village early this evening were described as peaceful by passersby, ABC 7 reported that there were at least three dozen arrests in the city today related to the various protests.

The Times has more on today's protests here.

Updated 10 p.m.

There are now reports of broken windows along Second Avenue (the TD Bank location at First Street and Le Fournil Bakery at Seventh Street). There are also reports of several burning vehicles around Union Square.

Another NYPD vehicle taken down in Union Square pic.twitter.com/fWrHkFEQDE

— Jessica Cunnington (@JessicaNews12) May 31, 2020

My photographer Greg Giglione just took this video of two NYPD Vans being lit on fire, near Union Square. A police officer yells that there are bullets inside and for everyone to stay back. We have heard several mini explosions. @CBSNewYork pic.twitter.com/cl9yLCtLkE

— Natalie Duddridge (@NatDuddridgeTV) May 31, 2020

Union Square #GeorgeFlyod pic.twitter.com/yTyoWUkMOt

— NYC Scanner (@NYScanner) May 31, 2020

And there are reports of trash-can fires on Second Avenue between Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place...

Trash can fires along 2nd Avenue... #unionsquareprotest #nyc #newyorkprotest @evgrieve pic.twitter.com/VJVKMlEm0e

— Maximillian Piras (@MaximillianNYC) May 31, 2020

Updated 11:10 p.m.

Broken windows at the Adidas store on Broadway at Houston via Dave on 7th...