June 10 Black Lives Matter protests

By Melissa Macaya, Mike Hayes, Meg Wagner, Joshua Berlinger, Steve George and Peter Wilkinson, CNN

Updated 12:44 a.m. ET, June 11, 2020
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10:57 a.m. ET, June 10, 2020

George Floyd's brother: "Stop the pain. Stop us from being tired."

George Floyd’s brother Philonise Floyd delivered an emotional testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, urging lawmakers to listen to "the call" for change from the Floyd family and protesters across the country.

"I’m tired. I’m tired of pain," Floyd said. "I’m here to ask you to make it stop. Stop the pain. Stop us from being tired," Floyd continued.

"George called for help and he was ignored. Please listen to the calls I’m making to you now, to the calls of our family, and to the calls ringing out in the streets across the world. People of all backgrounds, genders and race have come together to demand change. Honor them, honor George and make the necessary changes that make law enforcement the solution and not the problem," Floyd continued.

"The people elected you to speak for them, to make positive change," Floyd said. "George’s name means something. You have the opportunity here to make your names mean something, too. If his death ends up changing the world for the better. And I think it will. Then he died as he lived. It is on you to make sure his death isn’t in vain."

WATCH:

10:45 a.m. ET, June 10, 2020

George Floyd's brother: He's "more than another name on a list that won't stop growing"

Philonise Floyd, a brother of George Floyd, arrives to testify before a House Judiciary Committee hearing on proposed changes to police practices and accountability on Capitol Hill on June 10 in Washington.
Philonise Floyd, a brother of George Floyd, arrives to testify before a House Judiciary Committee hearing on proposed changes to police practices and accountability on Capitol Hill on June 10 in Washington. Michael Reynolds/Pool/AP

Philonise Floyd, the brother of George Floyd, said he's testifying before Congress today to "make sure that his death would not be in vain."

Floyd's killing at the hands of police last month has sparked protests across the country.

"I couldn't take care of George the day he was killed, but maybe by speaking with you today, I can make sure that his death would not be in vain," Philonise Floyd said today. "To make sure that he is more than another face on a T-shirt, more than another name on a list that won't stop growing."
10:31 a.m. ET, June 10, 2020

Martin Luther King III: "Our nation is poised for change"

From CNN's Adrienne Vogt

Human rights activist Martin Luther King III said that protesters are finally now being heard, after he recently tweeted, “As my father explained during his lifetime, a riot is the language of the unheard.”

King said that the protests after George Floyd’s death will not change racial inequities in America right away, but can be impactful within a short period of time. 

“I believe the entire nation, and really the world is focused on this issue … the question really is: what will those changes be? And it is clear that our nation is poised for change —and responsible change. Obviously, you cannot change institutional racism overnight. It's a process,” he said to CNN’s Jim Sciutto.

King said that there needs to be dialogue between civil rights leaders and the White House, citing when his father, Martin Luther King Jr., held meetings with Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy and Johnson. 

After delays across Georgia during its primary yesterday led to voters spending hours in line, King added that “there's no question” that voter suppression exists and that it disproportionally affects black Americans.

“If we don't deal with voter suppression, it's going to be interesting to see what happens in the election in November … We should be making it much easier for people to vote, and we're not as a nation,” he said.

Watch more:

10:30 a.m. ET, June 10, 2020

Nadler: The country "deserves meaningful change"

House Judiciary Committee committee chair Jerry Nadler speaks during a House Judiciary Committee hearing to discuss police brutality and racial profiling on June 10 in Washington.
House Judiciary Committee committee chair Jerry Nadler speaks during a House Judiciary Committee hearing to discuss police brutality and racial profiling on June 10 in Washington. Pool

House Judiciary Committee committee chair Jerry Nadler opened today's hearing on police reform urging Congress to bring change on police reform following George Floyd's death, saying lawmakers have an "obligation" to do "everything in our power" to deliver that change.

"If there is one thing I have taken away from the tragic events of the last month, is that the nation demands and deserves meaningful change. We can and should debate the specifics, but at the end of the day, it is the responsibility and the obligation of the House Judiciary Committee to do everything in our power to help deliver that change for the American people," Nadler said.

Nadler expressed his condolences to Philonise Floyd for the loss of his brother and thanked him for testifying and discussing his brother's life.

10:34 a.m. ET, June 10, 2020

Top House Republican on police reform hearing: "I’m here to listen, to find a solution"

From CNN's From Ali Zaslav

Speaking to reporters ahead of today's hearing, House Judiciary Chair Jerry Nadler said he doesn’t know whether there will be bipartisan consensus on police reform legislation but “we must have real reform."

"Frankly, anybody who stands in the way is going to get bulled over," he said.

Nadler added: “There's going to be very heavy pressure from the American people” and he hopes Republicans will be “responsive” to that pressure.

Asked what he expects to hear from George Floyd’s brother, Philonise Floyd, who is testifying today in front of the committee, Nadler replied, “We will hear some of the experience, some of his feelings, that will help inform what we do.”

Also, asked the same question, House Minority Leader Rep. Kevin McCarthy said, “I’m here to listen, to find a solution.”

 

10:20 a.m. ET, June 10, 2020

The differences between the GOP's and Democrats' policing reform plans

From CNN's Manu Raju, Lauren Fox, Clare Foran and Ali Zaslav

Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, the only black Republican in the US Senate, presented his ideas for policing reform to colleagues during a closed-door lunch Tuesday. 

Republican senators confronted by marches in cities and small towns across America are growing more vocal that the party must act on policing reform, a stark contrast to just a week ago when many members dismissed the idea of the Senate acting at all.

There is now a five-person task force that will lead Republicans in their effort to craft legislation including Scott, Senate Judiciary Chairman Lindsey Graham, also of South Carolina, John Cornyn of Texas, Ben Sasse of Nebraska and Shelley Moore Capito of West Virginia.

All of the members are working just days after Democrats unveiled their own proposal, which went further in dictated specific changes that state and local police forces should make including banning chokeholds.

Here are the main differences between both plans:

11:38 a.m. ET, June 10, 2020

George Floyd's brother: "He didn’t deserve to die over twenty dollars"

From CNN's Lauren Fox

Philonise Floyd, brother of George Floyd, arrives for a House Judiciary Committee hearing to discuss police brutality and racial profiling on June 10 in Washington.
Philonise Floyd, brother of George Floyd, arrives for a House Judiciary Committee hearing to discuss police brutality and racial profiling on June 10 in Washington. Greg Nash/Pool/AFP/Getty Images

George Floyd’s brother, Philonise Floyd, is on Capitol Hill this morning, where he'll testify before the House Judiciary committee.

"He didn’t deserve to die over twenty dollars. I am asking you, is that what a black man’s life is worth? Twenty dollars? This is 2020. Enough is enough," Floyd will say, according to a copy of his prepared remarks.
11:39 a.m. ET, June 10, 2020

Buffalo protester shoved by police will be released from hospital within next 2 weeks

From CNN's Elizabeth Joseph

Martin Gugino is shoved by Buffalo Police Officers during a protest in Buffalo, New York, on June 4.
Martin Gugino is shoved by Buffalo Police Officers during a protest in Buffalo, New York, on June 4. @MikeDesmondWBFO/Twitter

Martin Gugino — the 75-year-old man seriously injured after video showed him being pushed by two Buffalo officers at a protest — will be moved to a rehabilitation floor of the hospital where he’s being treated today, his attorney Kelly Zarcone tells CNN in a statement. 

“We hope he will be released within the next two weeks,” she said.

The officers, who were suspended after the incident, were each charged with one count of assault in the second degree and have been released on their own recognizance without bail. They both pleaded not guilty.

Yesterday, Trump suggested without evidence that Gugino may have been part of a "set up."

9:55 a.m. ET, June 10, 2020

Toppled statue of slave trader Edward Colston will be placed in a museum in Bristol

From CNN’s Sarah Dean in London

Protesters throw a statue of slave trader Edward Colston into Bristol harbour, during a Black Lives Matter protest rally, in Bristol, England, on June 7.
Protesters throw a statue of slave trader Edward Colston into Bristol harbour, during a Black Lives Matter protest rally, in Bristol, England, on June 7. Ben Birchall/PA/AP

The toppled statue of 17th-century slave trader Edward Colston will be retrieved and placed in a museum after it was dumped into a river in Bristol, England, by protesters on Sunday.

On Wednesday, Bristol City Council announced on Twitter: “The statue of Edward Colston will be retrieved from the harbor and exhibited, with Black Lives Matter placards, in one of our museums. A decision on how the plinth will be used will be decided democratically through consultation,” they said.

The council, on its website, said it has received many ideas for what should go on the remaining plinth, including another statue of notable Bristol people or revolving art projects.

The statue of Colston will be displayed in the museum alongside Black Lives Matter placards from the recent protest “so the 300 year story of slavery through to today’s fight for racial equality can be learnt about,” the council’s website said. 

Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees also announced a new commission will be set up to examine the city’s “true history”.

“The events over the last few days have really highlighted that as a city we all have very different understandings of our past. The only way we can work together on our future is by learning the truth of our beginnings, embracing the facts, and sharing those stories with others. This is why this commission is so important,” Rees said in a statement.

He said so far education of Bristol’s history has “often been flawed”.

Some background: On Sunday, protesters tied the bronze statue of Edward Colston with rope before toppling it to cheers from the surrounding crowd. Demonstrators were later seen rolling the statue to the nearby harbor and throwing it into the River Avon.

Since the incident, which was applauded by some and decried by others for what they called "mob rule," there has been much debate about what to do with the statue.

The statue of Colston had stood in Bristol's city center since 1895 but had become increasingly controversial, with petitions created to demand its removal.