Minneapolis mayor calls for unity, denounces violent protests, looting

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Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey early Friday called on the community to come together after protesters decrying the police-custody death of George Floyd set a local police precinct on fire.

“We ... need help from our community,” Frey said in a 1 a.m. news conference, according to FOX 9 in Minneapolis-St. Paul. “We need to make sure that people are looking out for our city right now. It’s not just enough to do the right thing yourself. We need to be making sure that all of us are held accountable, to make sure that we’re holding up the highest ideals that we stand by.”

Protesters gathered in Minneapolis for the third straight night Thursday to demonstrate against the death of Floyd, a restrained black man who died after a white police officer knelt on his neck for nearly eight minutes.

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Widespread looting, vandalism and arson were also witnessed throughout the city, with similar unrest in neighboring St. Paul, the state capital.