Urgency of crisis demands quick action
Returning from a month-long holiday in the US, I was immediately struck by the urgency of the pollution crisis as I landed in Delhi, past midnight this week.
Thousands of people gathered in central London’s Hyde Park to show their solidarity against the death George Floyd, an unarmed African-American man suffocated to death by a white police officer in the US state of Minnesota on May 25.
On Wednesday, the protests was organized by the campaign group “Black Lives Matter” with demonstration started chanting “no justice, no peace”, “Black Lives Matter” and “silence is violence” before marching towards the Parliament Square.
Star Wars actor John Boyega made an emotional speech to protesters, in which he said the crowds were “a physical representation of our support” for Floyd.
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“I need you to understand how painful it is to be reminded every day that your race means nothing and that isn’t the case any more. That was never the case,” he said.
Earlier in the day, while condeming the incident, Prime Minister Boris Johnson told US President Donald Trump that racist violence has no place in society, saying he was “sickened and appalled” by the death of Floyd during an arrest.
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, organisers asked demonstrators to keep two-meter distance during the event and were seen handing out gloves.
The London protest followed days of massive protests against racial discrimination and police abuse across the US.
George Floyd, a 46-year-old African-American, was handcuffed and pinned to the ground in Minneapolis on May 25 by a white police officer who kneeled on his neck as he gasped for breath.
Trump on Monday deployed thousands of “heavily armed” soldiers and police to prevent further protests in Washington, where buildings and monuments have been vandalized near the White House.
The protests turned violent across the US that left at least five people dead and over 4,000 people arrested.
The protests was seen as the latest example of police brutality against African Americans, which gave rise six years ago to the Black Lives Matter movement.
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