Washington gears up for huge protest over George Floyd's death

Washington is preparing for a huge demonstration on June 6 over the death of George Floyd, said city’s police chief, as marches and protests enter the 12th day. According to local media reports, Washington DC Police Chief Peter Newsham said that the police department has received the information suggesting that the capital is going to witness one of the largest protests ever held. While Newsham did not provide any crowd estimate, reports suggest that the gathering could be of tens of thousands of people.

Washington DC mayor Muriel Bowser has written to US President Donald Trump to withdraw all extraordinary federal law enforcement and military presence from the city. Bowser has been one of the most vocal politicians who have voiced anger against US President Donald Trump’s aggressive approach to quell the ongoing protests. Bowser wrote to New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy urging to remove National Guard from Washington DC immediately, saying they were deployed in the city without her knowledge and request.

Trump administration's response to the ongoing protest has infuriated Black Lives Matter protesters as well as Democratic politicians. Former US Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman denounced President Donald Trump’s threat to deploy the military to control violent protests across the country. 

Read: Sydney Police Pepper-sprayed Protesters At Black Lives Matter Rally

'Very dangerous'

Speaking to National Public Radio, General Martin Dempsey said that the President’s remarks on the handling of protests were “very dangerous” and “troubling”. Gen Dempsey said the idea that the president would take charge of the situation using the military was troubling to him. While the ex-senior military officer acknowledged that some protesters had “opportunistically” turned the protests violent, he added that it has been largely peaceful.

Trump’s call to deploy active-duty troops has already been criticised former Defense Secretary James Mattis, and current Defense Secretary Mark Esper has also expressed his reservation against it. Mattis told CNN on June 3 that Trump is the first President in his “lifetime” who does not try to unite the American people but tries to divide them.

Read: Damian Lillard Joins George Floyd Protests Arm-in-arm On The Streets Of Portland