GAITHERSBURG, Md. — Justice for George Floyd protests continued in the DMV Monday after a chaotic weekend, which oscillated between peaceful demonstrations and prayer vigils and scenes of pellet bullets, pepper spray and confrontations between law enforcement and demonstrators.
One of the largest gatherings seen around the DC metro region Monday was organized by DC Teens Action in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement. Hundreds of demonstrators gathered outside the Rio Lakefront shopping center in Gaithersburg, before marching through neighborhoods, chanting "say their names" and eventually winding up on the Sam Eig and Great Seneca highways blocking traffic.
The rally remained peaceful and was comprised mainly of teens and young adults.
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Protests erupted nationwide days after Floyd’s death calling for the arrests of all the officers involved after a Memorial Day viral video showed Floyd being pinned down by his neck by then-Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. Floyd, who is repeatedly heard in the video saying he can't breathe and asking for Chauvin to get off his neck, died that day.
The Minneapolis mayor on Tuesday fired all four officers involved in the incident. On Friday, Chauvin was arrested and charged with murder and manslaughter in Floyd's death. But the other three officers who were involved in the incident have not yet been arrested or charged, with prosecutors in Minnesota on Friday saying that charges are likely forthcoming.