Protests broke out near the White House on Saturday, with demonstrators pushing down multiple security barricades and some clashing with police, according to multiple reports.
Demonstrators protested over police brutality and the killing of George Floyd, a 46-year-old unarmed black man who died in police custody on Monday.
WTOP reporter Alejandro Alvarez shared video from the scene Saturday, showing protesters pushing against a crowd of police officers.
Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.) shared video of the protest earlier Saturday in which protesters can be heard chanting, “Hands up, don’t shoot!”
Outrage reverberated through the country after bystander video captured former officer Derek Chauvin pinning Floyd down behind a police car with his knee on Floyd’s neck. Floyd can be heard in the video pleading for air and telling the officer that he could not breathe. In the moments following, Floyd’s body goes limp. He was pronounced dead 90 minutes after his arrest.
The protest in Washington, D.C., comes as demonstrations, many of which have turned violent, raged on this week to speak out against the killing of Floyd.
The Friday protests prompted the White House to go on lockdown for a brief period.
Saturday morning, President Trump praised the Secret Service for its efforts to secure the White House. On the same day, Trump lobbed criticism at D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser (D), claiming that she is “always looking for money & help,” according to a post on Twitter. He also asserted that Bowser did not allow D.C. police officers to get involved in the confrontation outside the building.
The Post later reported that the D.C. Metro Police had in fact been present at the protest to assist the Secret Service.
Updated 8:10 p.m.