George Floyd protests in Minneapolis–Saint Paul

A protest march in Minneapolis on May 26, and a sign with the words "I can't breathe"

Protests emerged during midday on May 26, the day after Floyd's death and after video of the arrest had been widely circulated in the media.[12] A makeshift memorial was created at East 38th Street and Chicago Avenue where the incident with Floyd and the Minneapolis police took place. Some protesters that gathered there chanted, "I can't breathe, I can't breathe", words repeated multiple times by Floyd in the video.[13] As thousands of people flooded the same intersection, organizers emphasized keeping the protest peaceful.[14]

By the middle of the afternoon, Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo had fired the city's four officers at the scene of Floyd's arrest and death, a moved supported by Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey. However, Floyd's family and protesters called for murder charges for all four officers involved and swift judicial consequences, as the FBI and Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension opened investigations of the incident. Bob Kroll, president of the Minneapolis police officer's union, said the firing of the officers came without due process and offered "full support of the officers" while investigations be completed in full.[15][16][17]

The evening, the protest rally at the location of Floyd's death turned into a march to the Minneapolis Police Department's third precinct police station where the four officers involved were believed to work. At the station, a group of protesters began vandalizing the building, shattering a window, and spray painting squad cars. Some also breached the station’s parking lot. Officers in riot gear emerged and fired tear gas and flash grenades; in response protesters hurled rocks, water bottles, and anything they could get their hands on towards the officers. The unruly crowd clashing with the police was measured in the hundreds, and noted as a contrast from the peaceful group at the start of the protest.[13][14]

A separate group of protesters gathered outside the Oakdale home of Derek Chauvin that night.[13]

Police and protesters stand off outside the third precinct station in Minneapolis on May 27

Protests in Minneapolis resumed on May 27 at locations throughout the city. At the location where Floyd died, protesters were led through prayer and a series of chants. By late morning, a group of protesters blocked the nearby intersection as they chanted, “Whose streets? Our streets.” Some protesters left memorials by the Cup Foods store, while some spray painted the words “Justice for Floyd” and “Black Lives Matter” on the street surface. No police were present and the scene was peaceful.[18]

The tone of protests shifted that afternoon when a crowd gathered at the third precinct station two miles (3.2 km) from the spot were Floyd died. Police fired rubber bullets and chemical irritants as some protesters began breaking the precinct's windows. Some activists tried to stop people from vandalizing it further. As police advanced with force and tear gas, protesters scattered throughout the area.[19] Later in the evening, an AutoZone store on East Lake Street was set on fire just steps away from the third police precinct station. The situation worsened when a nearby Target store was extensively looted by a crowd of about 100 people.[20] One mile (1.6 km) from the main protest site, Calvin Horton Jr., a 43-year old man from Minneapolis, was fatally shot by a pawnshop owner who believed he was burglarizing his business. The shop's owner, a 59-year-old man from Galesville, Wisconsin, was arrested on possible murder charges.[21][3]

Violence continued overnight, as rioters ignited fires and looted stores across the city, which stood as a stark contrast to the mostly peaceful protests earlier that day. Dozens of buildings were looted or destroyed along the city's busy north and south side business corridors, with most incidents occurring in the vicinity of the third precinct station.[22] Among the losses was Minnehaha Commons, an under-construction, $30 million redevelopment project for 189 units of affordable housing, which was destroyed by fire after being torched.[23]

A rioter breaks windows of a business in Saint Paul on May 28

By the morning, more than 30 businesses in Minneapolis had been damaged or destroyed by rioters.[24] Arradondo remarked that in his view the majority of protests the previous day were peaceful, but that public displays were “hijacked” by some who were looting and vandalizing businesses.[25]

To quell rioting behavior, Frey declared a state of emergency to have more flexibility in the city's response, while Minnesota Governor Tim Walz activated 500 Minnesota National Guard troops at the request of leaders in Minneapolis and Saint Paul and deployed them to the Twin Cities area. Frey and Walz expressed sympathy for the community's sense of anger and the right to protest for systematic change, but condemned the destruction of property by some protesters.[26][27]

Businesses across the Twin Cities spent the day boarding up windows and doors to prevent looting. Among them, the Target Corporation announced closures for all of its area stores. Saint Paul police officers armed with batons and gas masks kept an eye the city's busiest commercial coordinator and kept looters out of a Target store while other business windows were smashed. Minneapolis preemptively shut down its light-rail system and bus service through Sunday out of safety concerns. Officials pleaded with metro area residents to stay home that night to prevent further property destruction. Saint Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, who is black, said, “Please stay home. Please do not come here to protest. Please keep the focus on George Floyd, on advancing our movement and on preventing this from ever happening again.”[28]

Thousands of peaceful protesters marched the streets and called for justice for Floyd during the day. However, that evening, hundreds of demonstrators in Minneapolis returned to the area near city's the third precinct police station, where looting of a nearby Target store resumed and a vehicle and building were set on fire. The focus of demonstrators shifted to the third precinct police station. Protesters tore down fencing surrounding the precinct and police responded with tear gas. As tensions and fires in the area mounted, Frey gave the order to evacuate the third precinct station, a tactic he later said was to deescalate the situation and prevent further loss of life. The third precinct station was then overrun by protesters and the police station building itself set on fire.[29][28] There were no police, fire, or emergency medical services presence in the area where the riots occurred after 10:00 p.m. CDT on May 28 as live television news broadcast scenes of escalating destruction.[30] State officials later remarked that abandoning the precinct station was a misjudgment, allowing demonstrators to create a situation of “absolute chaos”, in the words of Walz.[31]

In neighboring Saint Paul, which had been spared from widespread property destruction on Wednesday night, 170 businesses were damaged or looted and dozens of fires had been started, with the largest ones near Snelling and University avenues, but no major injuries were reported.[32]

External video

Press conference with Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, May 29, 2020 at 10:30 a.m. CDT, C-SPAN

A building burns during riots in Minneapolis on May 29

Frey address the media at 1:30 a.m. CDT as the city was battling multiple fires and violence. Frey acknowledged the pain of the community over Floyd's death, but condemned the actions of rioters and looters. In defense of his decision Thursday night to have police withdraw from the third precinct station, he said, "Brick and mortar is not as important as life".[33]

That afternoon, Walz imposed a curfew for the cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul that would run from 8:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. on Friday, May 29 and Saturday, May 30. The order prohibited travel in streets or gathering at public places. Frey also issued a similar curfew in Minneapolis.[34] The Target Corporation expanded its closure of stores to 73 in Minnesota due to the rioting.[35]

In the late afternoon, Hennepin County Attorney Michael O. Freeman charged Derek Chauvin, the officer who knelt on Floyd's neck as he died, with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter, but he left the matter ongoing about chargers for officers Lane, Kueng, and Thao who were at the scene of Floyd's death. Protesters, who had demanded immediate murder charges against all four officers, were disappointed after waiting four days since Floyd's death and made the criminal charges a big part of their message that day.[36]

Despite the announcement of the charges and the new curfew, riots broke out again on Friday night and continued into early Saturday morning, with much of the action taking place adjacent to the Minneapolis police fifth precinct station near Lake Street and Nicollet Avenue.[37] Law enforcement presence was reportedly "undetectable", as violence in Minneapolis quickly grew until just before midnight, when police officers, state troopers, and members of the National Guard began confronting rioters with tear gas and mass force.[37] Officials later said that the 350 police officers at the site of rioting near the Minneapolis fifth precinct station were vastly outnumbered by the crowds.[38]

As the events unfolded that night, the Pentagon placed members of the Military Police Corps from Fort Bragg and Fort Drum on stand-by, preparing for possible deployment to the Twin Cities if requested by Walz.[39] Walz later declined the offer and activated all of the state's National Guard, up to 13,200 troops.[40]

Minnesota National Guard and local law enforcement stand guard at the state capitol building in Saint Paul on May 30

The sound of helicopters and smoke were present in Minneapolis through the night as multiple fires burned near the fifth police precinct. A United States Post Office on Nicollet, a Wells Fargo Bank branch, and several gas stations, among other business, blazed. Fire officials were unable to immediately attend to major fires, citing security concerns at the sites, but later reached them when the area was cleared of protesters.[41]

For the second time in as many nights, officials held a press conference at 1:30 a.m. CDT, but this time in Saint Paul and led by the governor and state officials. Some officials speculated that much of the destruction was being caused by people from outside the state, a claim that was later contradicted by arrest records of protesters and that officials walked back.[42] It was reported that Frey and Walz appeared visibly exhausted as they made emotional pleas to the public about Floyd's death and the escalation of violence. “The absolute chaos — this is not grieving, and this is not making a statement [about an injustice] that we fully acknowledge needs to be fixed — this is dangerous,” Walz said. “You need to go home.” Walz also took responsibility for under estimating the size of the crowd causing deconstruction earlier in the night.[41]

By the day, 2,500 officers were deployed and 50 people had been arrested in relation to the protests. Major General Jon Jensen of the Minnesota National Guard said that by May 31, over 1,700 National Guard soldiers could be deployed, the largest deployment in the state's history.[43] Jensen confirmed that 2,500 Guards would be deployed by noon.[44]

Crowds of people continued to gather at the makeshift memorial at the site of Floyd's arrest and subsequent death.[45] Minneapolis police reported that another group of protesters near Hiawatha Avenue and Lake Street were attacking police by throwing nondescript objects, and deployed more units to the area.[46] That night after curfew, police fired tear gas at a group of protesters who were attempting to march from Minneapolis to Saint Paul via the Lake Street bridge.[45]

Protesters gather at the state capitol in Saint Paul on May 31

The number of Minnesota National Guard members deployed to Minneapolis was scheduled to increase to 10,800, from 4,100 the previous day.[47] Crowds of people once again gathered at the site of Floyd's arrest and subsequent death.[48]

Shortly after 6:00 p.m. CDT, 5,000 to 6,000 people gathered on the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis while the interstate was supposed to be closed and began taking a knee.[49] A semi-truck tanker, unaware the road was closed, drove through the crowd as they parted ways to avoid being run down. After the driver came to a halt, he was pulled from his cab and beaten by the surrounding crowd. He suffered minor injuries, with some of the protesters attempting to protect him. The people delivered the driver to the police, who then pepper-sprayed the crowd. The truck driver, later identified as Bogdan Vechirko, was taken to Hennepin County Medical Center then released into the custody of the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, who charged him with assault.[50][51] No serious injuries to the people on the bridge were reported.[50] Minnesota Public Safety Commissioner John Harrington denied that Vechirko did the act intentionally.[52]

The same day, it was agreed that Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison would assist in the investigation.[53]

Thousands gathered peacefully at the state capitol building in Saint Paul and marched to the governor's mansion, calling for police reforms and the prosecution of all four officers who were involved in Floyd's death. Nearly 30 Saint Paul police officers on the outskirts of the rally took a knee, which drew criticism from rally organizers who felt the gesture was hollow and asked them to leave. Activist Nekima Levy Armstrong, citing distrust of Ellison, demanded that Floyd's case be handled outside the state. Walz attended part of the rally but did not speak.[54]

National Guard and demonstrators at the state capitol building on June 2

Somber protests continued at the Minneapolis intersection were Floyd was killed and a group remained after the curfew time came and went.[55]

On June 3, Ellison, who four days earlier took over the case against the officers involved in Floyd's death, upgraded the murder charges against former officer Chauvin and charged former officers Kueng, Lane, and Thao with aiding and abetting second-degree murder. Floyd's family called the charges “a significant step forward on the road to justice". Walz, who visited the Floyd memorial in Minneapolis where crowds continued to gather, said he recognized "that the anguish driving protests around the world is about more than one tragic incident".[56][57]

Following a memorial service on June 4, people gather at the intersection of East 38th Avenue and Chicago Avenue and take pictures of a George Floyd mural

As nights grew calmer, curfews that had been in place since the previous Friday ended in the Twin Cities.[58]

Protests on Saturday in Minneapolis were mostly peaceful. A march to the home of the mayor resulted in a confrontation where Frey was called to come out and asked if he supported abolishing the city's police force. After Frey responded that he did not, the crowd booed him away. In a speech that resonated with the gathered crowd, United States Representative Ilhan Omar denounced the city's police force as “inherently beyond reform”.[59][60]

In Minneapolis, a large crowd gathered for a rally at the city's Powderhorn Park calling for more changes to the city's police force. Nine of the thirteen members on the Minneapolis City Council in attendance vowed on stage to "dismantle" the police department, but concrete details about it were less defined. Activists at the rally wanted to replace the police department with unarmed public safety responders.[61][62]

An American Indian Movement group tore down a statue of Christopher Columbus outside the state capitol building in Saint Paul as the global protest movement turned towards removing monuments and memorials with controversial legacies.[63]

Protesters gathered at the Police Officers Federation building in Minneapolis to demand the resignation of Bob Kroll, head of the city's police union, who had characterized the protests and Black Lives Matter as a “terrorist movement”. Thousands of people stretched in every direction from the federation building and listened to speeches by community leaders.[64]

A smaller protest group gathered at the Hennepin County Government Center to demand Freeman's resignation over his poor handling of officer-involved shootings in Minneapolis.[64]

At dozens of Juneteenth commemorations that were held in the metropolitan area, including in Minneapolis near the former third precinct station and at the location where Floyd died, participants connected police brutality to the historic legacy of slavery in the United States.[65] The Minnesota's Black Lives Matter chapter that rallied at the state capitol building in Saint Paul called on state lawmakers who were meeting in a special legislative session to agree on police reform measures.[66]

Protesters gathered outside the governor's mansion in Saint Paul and called on the governor to reconvene the legislature in a special session for the purpose of passing police reform measures. Lawmakers had recently adjourned a special session without agreeing to legislation on the topic.[67]

Hundreds of protesters again gathered outside of the Minneapolis Police Federation to call for the removal of Bob Kroll as the organization's leader. Kroll had earlier said he would not step down from the post. The protesters said they would continue protesting until its demands were met.[68]

Despite cancellation of official Twin Cities Pride festivities, protesters gathered in downtown Minneapolis and called for justice for Floyd, greater protections for black transgender people, community control of policing, and the freeing of "political prisoners".[69]

Minnesota State Patrol officers wearing riot gear in Minneapolis on May 29

Officials had trouble identifying the people responsible for causing destruction as the peaceful protests transitioned to riots. By May 30, Minnesota state law enforcement had recovered incendiaries, weapons, and stolen vehicles left in the areas of heated protests.[70] Early in the events, state and local officials claimed that "white supremacists" and "outside agitators" might be responsible. Walz initially speculated that as much as 80% of people causing destruction and lighting fires could be from outside the state; several analysis of arrest records later contradicted the statement, finding that under 20% were. Carter said that all of the people arrested in Saint Paul by May 30 were from outside Minnesota, a claim he later rescinded.[71][72] The multi-agency, law enforcement command center for the Twin Cities announced that 604 protesters had been arrested as of June 2 during the course of events.[4]

In the weeks following the initial protests, federal law enforcement opened investigations of people who instigated looting and arson. By June 17, 2020, federal charges had been filed against 10 people, 9 of whom had ties to the U.S. state of Minnesota, for rioting or arson during the unrest.[5] Among the arrests announced by U.S. Attorney Erica MacDonald's office were two Minnesota residents for their role in the burning of the Minneapolis police third precinct. A 23-year old man from Saint Paul, who was identified on video inside the precinct and later found in possession of police riot gear, was charged with aiding and abetting the looting and arson.[73] Another man, a 22-year old from Brainerd, Minnesota who authorities arrested in the U.S. state of Colorado, was captured on video lighting and throwing Molotov cocktails.[74] Authorities identified many suspects via videos they posted of themselves at protests on social media websites.[5]

Several incidents in Minneapolis between bystanders and law enforcement were captured on video. On May 29 5:11 a.m. CDT, an encounter between CNN reporter Omar Jimenez and a camera crew led to their arrest by Minnesota State Patrol officers as Jimenez reported live on television. After intervention from Walz, the crew was released an hour later.[75][76] Tom Aviles, a photojournalist with WCCO-TV, was shot at with rubber bullets and arrested at 8:45 p.m. CDT, on May 30, on live television. He was later released.[77] A video circulated online showing police officers enforcing curfew ordering residents on their porches to go inside, and after a few demands, firing paint rounds at the residents.[78][79] Video of a parking lot at Lake Street and Nicollet Avenue, captured uniformed officers on May 30 slashing tires of unoccupied vehicles parked near protests, including those of several journalists. A Minnesota Department of Public Safety spokesperson later confirmed that the state patrol slashed tires in "a few locations", "in order to stop behaviors such as vehicles driving dangerously".[80][81]

An emergency alert informing of a curfew in St. Paul on May 30

The state imposed nightly curfews in the cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul beginning on Friday, May 29 to keep people off the streets.[82] After several extensions, curfews ended one week later on June 5.[58]

Walz made several Minnesota statewide declarations during the course of events. He issued a proclamation declaring eight minutes 46 seconds of silence at 11:00 a.m. CDT on June 9, 2020, in memory of Floyd, which coincided with the beginning of Floyd's funeral in Houston, Texas[83] He also proclaimed June 19 as "Juneteenth Freedom Day" and called on the legislature to make it an annual state holiday.[65]

After the protests turned violent, more than 7,000 members of the Minnesota National Guard were activated and deployed to the Twin Cities. Their mission was to support local law enforcement, safeguard the state capitol building, and protect the right of people to protest.[84] The deployment was the largest in the state's history.[43]

People cleaning sidewalks of debris next to a burnt out building at Minnehaha Avenue and East Lake Street in Minneapolis on May 30

Each morning, hundreds of residents, some with snow shovels and brooms, went to areas affected by overnight rioting to clean up trash, graffiti, broken glass, and the remnants of damaged buildings. Some residents participating in the clean up told local media they were devastated by the damage, but shared the sense of anger and solidarity over Floyd's death.[85][86]

Residents took action to support the needs of people for food and goods who were affected by the riots. In the areas of heavy rioting, many local stores were closed after being looted and burned, and food pantries were overwhelmed. A small food drive at a middle school in Minneapolis aimed to fill 85 bags of food to help families, but organizers ended up with a line of vehicles stretching 14 city blocks and 20,000 bags of bread, fruit, and other items. A food drive in the Little Earth community resulted in enough packages of food and diapers to serve 1,000 residents and 7,500 people from the nearby neighborhoods. Many organizations, overwhelmed by the volume of donations, had to turn them away.[87]

People gather at the George Floyd memorial site on June 4

A makeshift memorial emerged at the East 38th Street and Chicago Avenue intersection in Minneapolis near where Floyd died. Thousands of visitors protested and grieved at the site, which was described as like a "shrine". State and local elected officials that met with community members indicated their support for a more permanent memorial at the intersection.[88] Many visitors left behind flowers by the murals and sculptures created by activists to symbolize the Black Lives Matter movement. The Minneapolis police announced that they would not alter or decommission the memorial site or remove artifacts.[89]

Graffiti and political messages on a boarded up store in Minneapolis, June 4

Vibrant works of arts appeared all over the Twin Cities that sought to honor George Floyd's memory and show community solidarity. Boarded-up buildings were described as canvasses for artists, and so were walls, sidewalks, and public property.[90] A mural of George Floyd on the side of the Cup Foods grocery store became one of the most recognizable images of the global protest movement that was sparked by his death, and a digital rendering of it served as a backdrop to his casket at his funeral in Houston, Texas.[91][92] In a grassy field near the location where Floyd died, artists erected a symbolic cemetery with 100 gravestone markers of African-Americans, including of Floyd, who were killed by police.[93]

Residents awoke many mornings during the heaviest rioting to find nearby restaurants, liquor stores, and other businesses had been set on fire. In Minneapolis, the Longfellow, Powderhorn, and Phillips communities were heavily affected by the events. Reports and videos of residents confronting the people causing damage circulated, as did rumors about who might be responsible for the violence. Some residents felt the city and law enforcement had abandoned them, so they carried bats and sticks to protect their homes and businesses. On Saturday, May 30, Minneapolis city counselors hosted community meetings in public parks and helped residents initiate block-by-block plans to monitor disruptive activity.[42] The American Indian community in Minneapolis organized group patrols of 50 to 100 volunteers each night of the larger protests, which was credited with saving more than 20 businesses along the Franklin Avenue corridor. The effort was organized by leaders of the American Indian Movement and a community development organization, as well as a coffee shop owner.[94]

Many small business owners and organization leaders stood guard at their buildings overnight during the heaviest rioting. Some intervened to dissuade rioters from destroying property while others carried fire arms. Several establishments near Lake Street posted signs that the business or organization was minority or black owned, or that it served American Indian youth. Some businesses were sparred from destruction, such as a Nepalese restaurant on East Lake Street in Minneapolis that posted such signs, but others were destroyed by fire despite similar notices, such as a nearby Indian restaurant and barbershop.[95][96] One business owner of a distillery near the Minneapolis third precinct station credited "black owned" signs for sparing part of business complex from fire.[97]

Civic unrest after Floyd's death came in the middle of the global COVID-19 pandemic caused by the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 respiratory infection. People wearing protective masks became a common sight at protests. Health officials in Minnesota warned that mass protests could exacerbate the spread of the virus in Minnesota and trigger a surge in the outbreak that has a disproportionate impact on minority communities.[98] In early June, the state's health department stood up free testing clinics with the help of community organizations and encouraged people who participated in protests to get tested.[99] By June 18, of the 3,200 people tested at four popup sites in the metropolitan region, 1.8 percent tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, while testing by private health care provider HealthPartners had a 0.99 percent positive rate among the 8,500 people it tested who said they attended a mass gathering. Kristen Ehresmann, infectious disease director for the state health department, remarked about the data, "it appears there was very little transmission at protest events”.[100]

Ruins of the El Nuevo Rodeo club in Minneapolis on May 31

The riots worsened economic conditions for people and business in Minneapolis and Saint Paul.[101] An analysis of property damage caused by the riots determined that through June 19, nearly 1,500 businesses in the Twin Cities were damaged by vandalism, fire, or looting, with some reduced to rubble and dozens completely destroyed by fire. The heaviest damage occurred in Minneapolis along a 5-mile (8.0 km) stretch on Lake Street between the city's third and fifth police precincts and in Saint Paul along a 3.5-mile (5.6 km) stretch of University Avenue in the Midway area.[102] Estimates of property damage were upwards of $500 million, making the unrest in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul area the second most destructive in United States history after the 1992 Los Angeles riots.[6] During the riots, National Guard forces and law enforcement focused on protecting large institutions such as the Federal Reserve, power plants, and state capitol building. Officials acknowledged the emphasis came at the expense of family- and minority-owned business, many of which were burned or plundered by looters.[41] Officials vowed to mitigate the losses and help the affected businesses rebuild, and created new financing initiatives to accelerate repair and recovery efforts. At least one Minneapolis business that suffered heavy losses from the fires, 7-Sigma, said they would leave the city for good after losing trust in public officials during the riots.[101] Some businesses announced plans to rebuild. Among them, the Target Corporation made a commitment to rebuild the store on East Lake Street that had been heavily damaged.[35]

The unrest in Minneapolis impacted people experiencing homelessness. People displaced by the unrest sought refuge in a vacant Sheraton hotel in the city's Midtown neighborhood. Volunteers helped turn it into a what was described as functioning hotel and sanctuary for nearly 200 people.[103] However, residents at the hotel were later evicted, and some set up a sprawling camp at the city's Powderhorn Park. When the city's park board gave notice for people to clear the camp, resident's of the nearby Powderhorn Park neighborhood negotiated a longer stay with the board park and organized volunteers and aid for the people living in tents.[104] The situation is ongoing.

Police atop a Minneapolis precinct building amid violent protests on May 27

The widespread protests and a significant public scrutiny of its law enforcement policies led to reforms of policing in Minneapolis and the U.S. state of Minnesota. In June 2020, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey signed a temporary restraining order forcing immediate police reforms in the city, including banning chokeholds by police and requiring officers to intervene in instances of excessive force. Many organizations quickly distanced themselves from the city's police force by ending formal policing relationships, led by city's school district and park board and the University of Minnesota.[62]

Bob Kroll, head of the Minneapolis police officers union, was the subject of protests. After offering support for the officers at Floyd's death and a full investigative process, he made few substantial statements during the initial course of events. But after several days of clashes with the police and protesters, he sent an email to Minneapolis rank-and-file police officers that became widely circulated. Kroll criticized Frey and Walz for not containing the riots and commending the work of responding officers, and he went on to characterize the protests as a "terrorist movement", a claim he also made about the Black Lives Matter movement in 2016.[105] Frey and other officials were quick to condemn Kroll's email statement. Among them, Council President Lisa Bender described Kroll as "a barrier to change" of the Minneapolis police force.[106] Several labor union leaders called for Kroll’s removal, with one saying he perpetuated "a culture of violence" against the black community.[64]

Nine members of the Minneapolis city council – a veto-proof majority – pledged on June 7, 2020, to dismantle the city's police department, despite opposition from Frey.[107][60]