A group of over a hundred protestors against police violence gathered in downtown Washington, D.C. Friday night, harassing outdoor diners and getting into aggressive confrontations with police officers.
A hundred and seventy-five people assembled in Black Lives Matter (BLM) Plaza Friday night for a rally to protest “recent police killings of Black people across the country,” including Daunte Wright, killed outside Minneapolis by police earlier this week, and Adam Toledo, a 13-year-old teen shot in Chicago. The crowd of protestors chanted the names of the victims.
The rioters also caused mass vandalism around the Union Station area, defacing a statue of Christopher Columbus which stands just one block north of the Capitol grounds.
Following-up on a 2nd night of demonstrations in DC. The protests were against police brutality last night. A @DCPoliceDept official tells me 4 arrests were made:1 juvenile & 3 adults.
Vandalism to the Christopher Columbus fountain at Union Station seen this AM. @fox5dc pic.twitter.com/y65vGwVVWc— Stephanie Ramirez (@RamirezReports) April 18, 2021
After the rally, the protestors began marching up 14th Street, and, just before U Street, at around 10 pm, the crowd attempted to confront people dining on outdoor patios. The attempted confrontation ended in a minor skirmish with police, but there “did not appear to be any arrests or injuries and the incident lasted only a few minutes,” according to the perfunctory report in the Washington Post.
Another confrontation happened as protestors threatened the 3rd District police station at 17th and U Streets NW. In the resulting altercation police pushed the protestors away from the station, causing the protestors to push back and then shine laser pointers both at the police and diners nearby.
An angrier and more violent rally happened around 10:30 pm, where the protestors hurled fireworks and a scooter at police. The protestors, still throwing fireworks, then walked south. The protestors finally dispersed around 11:20 pm, at 9th and U Streets.