Martin Luther King Jr.'s daughter, Dr. Bernice King, is urging protestors to avoid violence when demonstrating against the death of George Floyd.
Floyd, an African-American man, was arrested by Minneapolis police on Monday, May 25th, for reportedly using a counterfeit $20 note in a store. While being detained, Derek Chauvin - a 19 year veteran of the force - knelt on his neck for eight minutes, which resulted in him losing consciousness, and later passing away.
Protests, both peaceful and violent, have since broken out across the country, with people demanding that all four officers involved be brought to justice.
Dr. King condemned the acts of violence during a city briefing on the Atlanta City protests in Georgia, on Saturday. "As I stand here in this moment and look at my journey, I have to make an appeal to my brothers and sisters, because I realized that the only way to get constructive change is through nonviolent means," she said.
Explaining that "nonviolent means" are a "proven method" of instigating change, she continued: "It did not fail my father... it did not fail them [...] Because when you really understand it and really practice it, it brings about the results."
"We want change and we want it now. But change never comes through violence. It is not a solution. Violence, in fact, creates more problems."
"Nonviolence is not weak or passive. Nonviolence is active and aggressive," she added on Twitter.
"It is strategic, with an ultimate goal. It seeks true peace, which = justice. Even if you disagree with it as a method for social change, I still hear you and love you. You are an answer and a solution."
On Saturday morning, Atlanta Mayor, Keisha Lance Bottoms, echoed Dr. King's sentiments. "You're not honoring the legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. and the civil rights movement. When you burn down this city, you’re burning down our community," she told her citizens.
"You are disgracing this city, you are disgracing the life of George Floyd and every other person who has been killed in this country. We are better than this. We’re better than this as a city, we are better than this as a country."
On Friday it was revealed that Chauvin had been detained and charged with third-degree murder and manslaughter. He was arrested by the state’s bureau of criminal apprehension.
Floyd's family has since released a statement calling Chauvin's arrest a "welcome but overdue step on the road to justice” and added that members “expected a first-degree murder charge" - which they still demand.
"The pain that the black community feels over this murder and what it reflects about the treatment of black people in America is raw and spilling out on to streets across [the country]," the statement added.
The statement concluded by saying:
"Today, George Floyd's family is having to explain to his children why their father was executed by police on video. It's essential that the City closely examines and changes its policing policies and training procedures to correct for the lack of proper field supervision; the use of appropriate, non-lethal restraint techniques; the ability to recognize medical signs associated with the restriction of airflow, and the legal duty to seek emergency medical care and stop a civil rights violation."
Under Minnesota law, a first-degree murder charge would require prosecutors to prove Chauvin’s actions were willful and premeditated.
In footage of the arrest, George Floyd can be heard pleading for help - repeatedly telling officers that he couldn't breathe. He then became unresponsive during the arrest and was later pronounced dead.
Watch a news report on protests in Minneapolis below, where a white CNN journalist describes how differently he was treated by police at the demonstration: