One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
Long Beach Calls In National Guard To Help Address Looting, Vandalism
National Guard troops are being deployed to Long Beach to assist local law enforcement as looting and vandalism have sprung up amid ongoing protests, Mayor Robert Garcia said tonight.
The protests were triggered in response to the death of George Floyd, a black man who died after a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes, ignoring the man's pleas and cries of "I can't breathe."
Up to now, the protests in Long Beach had been peaceful, Garcia said, but today was a different story. He noted that many of the businesses that have been vandalized or looted were small, mostly minority-owned mom-and-pop shops.
"What I saw tonight, and the type of vandalizing that was happening was unacceptable. I saw the Kress Market, a small mom-and-pop grocery store, owned by two hardworking immigrants that came to this country, that put everything they had into their small bodega and market — I saw that being attacked tonight."
You can watch the full address from Garcia, Luna, and city manager Tom Modica, in the video above.
MORE COVERAGE ON TODAY'S PROTESTS:
- LA Protests Over Death Of George Floyd Stretch Into 5th Day
- PHOTOS: Protests Against Police Brutality Continue Sunday Across LA
Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily coronavirus newsletter. To support our nonprofit public service journalism: Donate now.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
