Minneapolis Braces Potential Unrest
Minnesota | April 20, 2021
MINNEAPOLIS— Julia Hinton walked along downtown’s Nicollet Mall on Monday morning, watching as a man installed plywood over the doors and windows of 801 Chophouse on 8th Street and Nicollet Avenue. Armed troops and military vehicles stood posted near the Saks Off Fifth store a few blocks down on 6th, and several more lined the way to the already-boarded-up Target on 9th.
“It’s like we’re getting ready for war or something,” she said of the city’s preparations for a verdict in the trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer charged in the death of Black man George Floyd last May. The jury began deliberating following closing arguments on Monday.
“It’s just so much,” said Ms. Hinton, 53.
Without knowing how quickly a verdict could arrive—and whether that decision will reignite the looting and arson that damaged swaths of the city last summer—Minneapolis has spent the past several days tightening security, including bolstering temporary barricades around government buildings….
(Excerpts from The Wall Street Journal)