U.S. cities see more protests, violent unrest over George Floyd's death | CBC News

With cities wounded by days of violent unrest, America headed into a new week with neighbourhoods in shambles, urban streets on lockdown and shaken confidence about when leaders would find the answers to control the mayhem amid unrelenting raw emotion over police killings of black people.

The demonstrations were sparked by the death of George Floyd, a black man who pleaded for air as an officer pressed a knee into his neck.

Floyd's death in Minneapolis came after tensions had already flared after two white men were arrested in May for the February shooting death of black jogger Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia, and the Louisville police shooting death of Breonna Taylor in her home in March, which also attracted national attention.

The scale of the coast-to-coast protests rivalled the historic demonstrations of the civil rights and Vietnam War eras.

Tensions rose Sunday outside the White House, the scene of three days of demonstrations, where police fired tear gas and stun grenades into a crowd of more than 1,000 chanting protesters across the street in Lafayette Park.

As demonstrations persisted past curfew, Washington police said they were responding to multiple fires set around the capital.

The district's entire National Guard — roughly 1,700 soldiers — was called in to help control the protests, according to two Defence Department officials who insisted on anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss the matter.

In Salt Lake City, an activist leader condemned the destruction of property but said broken buildings shouldn't be mourned on the same level as black men like Floyd.

"Maybe this country will get the memo that we are sick of police murdering unarmed black men," said Lex Scott, founder of Black Lives Matter Utah.

Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said two officers had been fired and three placed on desk duty after video showed police surrounding a car Saturday and using stun guns on the man and woman inside.

In Minneapolis, the officer who pressed his knee onto Floyd's neck has been charged with murder, but protesters are demanding the other three officers at the scene be prosecuted.

"We're not done," said Darnella Wade, an organizer for Black Lives Matter in neighbouring St.

Tim Walz brought in thousands of National Guard soldiers on Saturday to help quell violence that had damaged or destroyed hundreds of buildings in Minneapolis over days of protests.