Protesters hit the streets of New York City Friday night to express their outrage over the fatal police beating of Tyre Nichols after video of the violent confrontation was released to the public.
Several different demonstrations erupted across the Big Apple, including ones in Union Square, Times Square and Grand Central Terminal.
The protests appeared to remain peaceful early Friday night, but at Union Square, Black Lives Matter leader, Hawk Newsome, warned that violence isn’t off the table.
“Was they peaceful when they were stomping on brother Nichols’ head, when they was hitting him with that baton?” Newsome said to a crowd of dozens of people.
“Was they peaceful with Rodney King, was they peaceful with George Floyd, Eric Garner?”
“But they want us to always be peaceful,” the activist went on to say. “I’m not telling you to come out here and wild out but we ain’t never taking violence off the f–king table. Because that’s the language of America.”
Another small protest was underway inside Grand Central Terminal, according to footage posted on Twitter shortly before 6 p.m. Demonstrators were calling for the closure of Rikers Island as they held signs commemorating Nichols and other black men who died following confrontations with police.
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“Only revolution can bring justice!” part of one sign read.
Footage posted online from Times Square — where another protest was expected — showed police arresting a man after he got into the face of officers. It’s unclear if the man was connected to any protests.
Read more of the Post’s coverage of Tyre Nichols’ beating death
Nichols died earlier this month after he was pulled over by police, and the five cops involved in the traffic stop were charged with murder Thursday.
The 29-year-old black man’s death has sparked condemnation from leaders across the country as they urge peaceful demonstrations following the release of the graphic footage that shows Nichols pummeled and tased by officers, who are all black.
