City crews have removed concrete barriers, artwork, flowers and other items from the south Minneapolis intersection where George Floyd was killed.
City spokeswoman Sarah McKenzie said the work began at 4:30 a.m. at 38th and Chicago — informally known as George Floyd Square. The intersection was cleared about four hours later.
A sprawling memorial was erected in the area after Floyd was killed by then-Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin on May 25, 2020. The intersection has been closed to traffic since.
“Great care was taken to preserve as much of the memorial, artwork and artifacts as possible,” McKenzie said. “Some pieces were collected and moved away from the right of way, but the fist sculpture remains in the intersection.”
The fist sculpture is several feet tall.
In a statement Thursday, the city described the process as a “community-led reconnection of 38th and Chicago.”
“The City’s three guiding principles for the reconnection of 38th and Chicago have been community safety, racial healing and economic stability and development for Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian and other communities of color,” Mayor Jacob Frey, City Council Vice President Andrea Jenkins and City Council Member Alondra Cano said in a joint statement.
The Agape Movement, a community group which contracted with the city to keep watch over the area, coordinated the clearing of the intersection, the statement said.
“We are collectively committed to establishing a permanent memorial at the intersection, preserving the artwork, and making the area an enduring space for racial healing,” Frey, Jenkins and Cano said.
They said they have met regularly with community members to discuss “the short-term path toward reconnecting this area and the long-term plan for the neighborhood with sustained investments to help restore and heal the community.”
They have scheduled a news conference for later Thursday.
Chauvin was convicted in April of second-degree unintentional murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter for kneeling on Floyd’s neck for 9½ minutes. Floyd called out for his mother and repeatedly said he couldn’t breathe while he was handcuffed face down on the pavement.
The Minneapolis Police Department said it was not a part of the operation.
The removal was met with backlash on social media. Photographer Patience Zalanga said the city’s actions were insincere.
“This is what folks are going to say today. ‘Well, at least they didn’t get rid of ALL the things at the memorial. They still kept some parts,'” she tweeted. “But that’s not the point. What they’re trying to do is appeal to the public and have you renegotiate your stance about the memorial.”
David Gilbert-Pederson, a political consultant in Minneapolis, posted images on Twitter of the memorial being dismantled.
“The community has held this intersection for over a year as a living memorial to George Floyd and a gathering space for Black joy and community building,” he said. “They can white wash the record and lie to themselves but we will never forget.”
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
