Left-wing pop icon Madonna on Wednesday lambasted all police in the wake of continued protests in Minneapolis in response to the death of George Floyd.
“Watching this Cop suffocate George Floyd with his knee on his neck, handcuffed and helpless, crying for his life with his face in the street is the most sickening, heartbreaking thing ive seen in a long time. This Officer knew he was being filmed and murdered him with arrogance and Pride. This has to stop!!” Madonna wrote in an Instagram post.
The Like a Virgin songstress then called for a ban on American carrying firearms, particularly police officers, until the country can “overcome Racism in America”
“Until we can overcome Racism in America— no one should be allowed to carry a gun. Most of all cops,” Madonna wrote. “God Bless you George Floyd Im so sorry for you and your family. And all the senseless killings that have gone before you. Will it ever end? I pray to GOD it does one day.
“Until then—Fuck The Police! Yea I said it. Im not interested in being PC. Im interested in Justice,” she concluded.
Madonna’s comments came as buildings in Minneapolis burned through the night as protesters turned to riots.
The protests that began late Wednesday and stretched into Thursday morning were the most destructive yet since the death of George Floyd, who was seen on video gasping for breath during an arrest in which an officer kneeled on his neck for almost eight minutes. In the footage, George pleads that he cannot breathe before he slowly stops talking and moving.
Mayor Jacob Frey sought calm. “Please, Minneapolis, we cannot let tragedy beget more tragedy,” he said on Twitter.
Protests also spread to other U.S. cities. In California, hundreds of people protesting Floyd’s death blocked a Los Angeles freeway and shattered windows of California Highway Patrol cruisers.
Pockets of looting continued Thursday at Minneapolis stores where windows and doors were smashed. Television station KSTP reported some fires at businesses burned with no firefighters on the scene. A liquor store employee displayed a gun as he stood among the debris of broken bottles and beer cans inside the business.
Amid the violence, a man was found fatally shot Wednesday night near a pawn shop, possibly by the owner, authorities said.
Protesters began gathering Wednesday afternoon near the city’s 3rd Precinct station, in the southern part of the city, where the 46-year-old Floyd died on Memorial Day as police arrested him outside a convenience store on a report of a counterfeit bill being passed. Protesters also skirmished with officers, who fired rubber bullets and tear gas in a repeat of Tuesday night’s confrontation.
The AP contributed to this report.
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