George Floyd protests: Aussie’s view from the NY riots frontline
From violence to rampant looting, the damage to the lives and livelihoods of so many Americans is almost unfathomable, says an Aussie expat in Manhattan.
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It was clear authorities were expecting things to get ugly in New York City as protests continued to descend into chaos across the US over the tragic death of George Floyd.
“It’s after 11pm when it’s going to get bad,” one NYPD officer told News Corp in Times Square on Tuesday afternoon (AEST).
He looked and sounded nervous.
As I walked from one block to the next, it became apparent he wasn’t alone. There were more people on the streets than there had been in months despite the city still being in coronavirus lockdown. There was a buzz in the air. Something was going to happen.
As the citywide curfew approached, New York appeared to be undergoing preparations for a major natural disaster as shopfront windows were boarded up and heavily armed police took to Manhattan’s streets in full force.
But the sky was clear, the waters calm and the wind still.
Instead, the city was bracing for a second night of destruction – as part of the worst riots the country has seen since the assassination of Martin Luther King in 1968.
Around 5pm, emergency alerts rang out on mobile phones and across the airwaves reminding NYC residents of a citywide curfew to come into effect from 11pm until 5am the next day.
Throughout the city, major roads including parts of Broadway were blocked off and barricaded by police heavily armed with firearms, batons and shields.
Along with their protective gear, they wore face masks and surgical gloves in what was a stunning symbol of two major events – a global pandemic and civil unrest – colliding. Police helicopters hovered overhead.
Many protesters gathered closely in groups, social distancing apparently no longer on their radar, as peaceful demonstrations were held in various iconic New York locations, including outside the Stonewall Inn and Union Square, earlier in the day.
Just before sunset, restaurants operating “to-go” services amid the coronavirus pandemic lockdown imposed on NYC closed early and boarded up.
From Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue to Times Square and Columbus Circle, workers also busily hammered nails into plywood over the windows of banks, liquor stores, discount shops and designer boutiques. Few shop fronts were left unprotected.
But that wasn’t enough to keep the thugs away. As night crept in, so too did the looters – some with crowbars – who stormed high end shops on Fifth Ave and smashed their way into stores including Macy’s, along with a Nike, Microsoft and Nintendo store.
In midtown, roving gangs overturned tables and anything else they could get their hands on, as police attempted to enforce the 11pm curfew.
There were reports of police officers being attacked, ATM’s pulled from buildings, and countless businesses vandalised.
The exclusive Crosby Hotel in Manhattan’s Soho was also targeted as the neighbourhood was ravaged by looters.
“A looter shot another looter,’ one staff member told News Corp.
“At that point police shut down the street, prior to that it was like a war zone.
“They picked up rocks from the tree beds and broke some windows of the hotel.
“At that point police shut the street down, prior to that it was like a war zone.”
The victim is in a stable condition, a Bellevue Hospital spokesperson confirmed.
Many of the people and businesses targeted overnight have also been significantly impacted by the coronavirus pandemic.
The collective damage and destruction to the lives and livelihoods of so many Americans is almost unfathomable. What happens next is anyone’s guess.