George Floyd’s death: Protests across Quebec province against racism, police brutality

Demonstrators marched as part of a global wave of protests sparked by Floyd's death

Published: June 08, 2020 15:59 AFP and Compiled by Nathaniel Lacsina, Digital Content Editor

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Montreal: Protesters in Montreal were tear-gassed Sunday as thousands gathered across Quebec to demonstrate against racism and police brutality in the French-speaking Canadian province. Image Credit: Reuters

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Demonstrators marched peacefully in the center of the city for the second time in a week as part of a global wave of protests sparked by the death of George Floyd, a black man killed in US police custody when a white officer knelt on his neck for nearly nine minutes. Image Credit: Reuters

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After the march ended some of the protesters gathered near police headquarters where officers used tear gas to disperse them, Radio Canada reported. Last Sunday's protest also ended in clashes in the evening. Image Credit: Reuters

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During the march, protesters chanted, "Black Lives Matter", "No justice, no peace", "je ne peux pas respirer" ("I can't breathe") and "il faut que ca cesse" ("this has to stop"). Image Credit: Reuters

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Protester Madani Ba, a 28-year-old musician and artist, told AFP that he once was subjected to two different identity checks in the span of five minutes on the same street. Image Credit: Reuters

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"There's a lot of racial profiling, ask anyone of color and they will tell you the same thing. It's unbelievable - and it has to change," he said. Image Credit: Reuters

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Jessica Francois, 29, said she had come to the protests to show that "the color of your skin does not justify the inequalities we can see, for instance, in Quebec." Image Credit: Reuters

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Demonstrators marched peacefully and were asked to stop several times to kneel in memory of Floyd. Image Credit: Reuters

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While many protesters wore masks, it was hard to maintain social distancing of two meters (six feet), particularly while waiting for the march to begin. Image Credit: Reuters

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More protests took place in Sherbrooke, east of Montreal, and in the provincial capital Quebec City. Other demonstrations had occurred Saturday in Toronto, and other cities across the country. Image Credit: AFP

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Prime Minister Justin Trudeau joined thousands in Ottawa on Friday. He knelt for eight minutes and 46 seconds, the same length of time that police officer Derek Chauvin had kept his knee on Floyd's neck. Image Credit: Reuters

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"Over the past weeks, we've seen a large number of Canadians suddenly awaken to the fact that the discrimination that is a lived reality for far too many of our fellow citizens is something that needs to end," Trudeau said earlier that day during his daily briefing. Image Credit: AFP

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Montreal Police form a line in front of protesters during a march against police brutality and racism in Montreal, Canada. Image Credit: AFP

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