– Police Joins Protesters To Pray Amid George Floyd Unrest In Miami
While some of the demonstrations turned violent on Saturday night, there were also powerful moments of unity. In Coral Gables, Miami, hundreds peacefully protesting included a question-and-answer session with police, and concluded with a moment of prayer.
The protest which started since Tuesday in honor of slain African American man, George Floyd who died in the hands of cops in Minneapolis as led to the destruction of many malls and stores across many states and city in the nation saw an improvement in approach by both citizens and police in various states as protesters and police came together for a solemn moment of peace and prayer session on Saturday in Miami.
The Miami-Dade Chiefs of Police Association, in an act of solidarity with protesters, took a knee while someone led the group in prayer. The demonstrators, speaking out against the death of George Floyd, held signs, chanting “Black lives matter!” As well as “No justice, no peace. No racist police.”
Following the protest, Mayor of Miami-Dade County, Carlos Jimenez and organizers have since committed to continue discussions this week via a Zoom call to listen to the community’s concerns while so far 57 people have been arrested in Miami-Dade County Saturday night, most of which were charged with violating curfew or county ordinances.
Other states also joined in the prayer session across the nation, protesters in Boston, Myrtle Beach, Fostoria and other city also observed the prayer session in honor of George Floyd.
Spokesman for Miami-Dade Corrections, Juan Diasgranados, while talking to the press said “As leaders of this profession, we (chiefs and community) must all do better at improving on our training and protocols so that our efforts towards building and maintaining community trust are not lost or overshadowed,
“Transparency during this time is key to demonstrating law enforcement’s commitment to serving and protecting our residents with dignity, humanity, and respect.”