Demonstrations to continue in DC area, following Saturday’s large, peaceful crowds - WTOP

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Demonstrators protest Saturday, June 6, 2020, near the White House in Washington, over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Demonstrators paint the words ‘defund the police’ as they protest Saturday, June 6, 2020, near the White House in Washington, over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

dc protests — Demonstrators march through the streets during a peaceful protest against police brutality and racism, on June 6, 2020 in Washington, DC. – Demonstrations are being held across the US following the death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, while being arrested in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

A sign is displayed near Lafayette Park in D.C. on June 6, 2020.

(WTOP/Ken Duffy)

UNITED STATES - JUNE 6: Protesters march down Pennsylavania Avenue from the Capitol as George Floyd police brutality demonstrations and marches are held around Washington on Saturday, June 6, 2020. (Photo By Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images) — UNITED STATES – JUNE 6: Protesters march down Pennsylavania Avenue from the Capitol as George Floyd police brutality demonstrations and marches are held around Washington on Saturday, June 6, 2020. (Photo By Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

muriel bowser protests — WASHINGTON, DC – JUNE 06: District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser (C) speaks to demonstrators gathered on the newly named Black Lives Plaza during a peaceful protest against police brutality and racism on June 6, 2020 in Washington, DC. This is the 12th day of protests with thousands of people descending on the city to peacefully demonstrate in the wake of the death of George Floyd, a black man who was killed in police custody in Minneapolis on May 25. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

An American flag is displayed during protests June 6, 2020 in D.C.

A sign is displayed in D.C. on June 6, 2020.

Protesters appear in front of the Lincoln Memorial on June 6, 2020.

A boy displays a “Black Lives Matter” sign during protests June 6, 2020.

A protester holds a sign in D.C. on June 6, 2020.

A protester displays a sign during downtown D.C. demonstrations June 6, 2020.

Crowds gather at the newly-named Black Lives Matter Plaza in D.C. on June 6, 2020.

A view of Scott Circle NW during protests in D.C. on June 6, 2020.

A June 6, 2020 demonstration on 16th Street and Black Lives Matter Plaza from Scott Circle to the White House.

MLK statue — The statue of Martin Luther King Jr. looks out above a peaceful demonstration on June 6, 2020.

Demonstrators pack into Lafayette Park in D.C. during protests against the death of George Floyd on Saturday. (Ken Duffy/WTOP)

Demonstrators protest Saturday, June 6, 2020, in Washington, over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Demonstrators protest Saturday, June 6, 2020, at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

As a Drug Enforcement Agency police office and National Guard soldiers watch, demonstrators protest Saturday, June 6, 2020, in Washington, over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

A demonstrator hugs a National Guard soldier during a protest Saturday, June 6, 2020, in Washington, over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Demonstrators protest Saturday, June 6, 2020, as they walk away from the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

People kneel in silence, Saturday, June 6, 2020, in Washington, in remembrance of George Floyd, who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

Demonstrators, including NarDre Thompson, 12, of Washington, protests Saturday, June 6, 2020, near the White House in Washington, over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

A car is seen with a sign along a demonstration route on Saturday in D.C. (Melissa Howell/WTOP)

Demonstrators, including Morgan Hubbard, 13, center, of Washington, protest Saturday, June 6, 2020, near the White House in Washington, over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Demonstrators, including Caden Hollingsworth, 8, of Washington, protest Saturday, June 6, 2020, near the White House in Washington, over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Demonstrators, including Rylie Rose, 7, of Washington, protest Saturday, June 6, 2020, near the White House in Washington, over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Demonstrators take part in a “March for Justice” event getting underway on Capitol Hill and heading to the White House. (Ken Duffy/WTOP)

Demonstrators gather along 16th Street in D.C. during protests against George Floyd’s death. (John Domen/WTOP)

A large group of demonstrators gather at the Lincoln Memorial during protests on Saturday. (Melissa Howell/WTOP)

A large group of demonstrators gathered at the Lincoln Memorial during protests on Saturday. (Melissa Howell/WTOP)

Demonstrators gather at the Lincoln Memorial during protests on Saturday. (Melissa Howell/WTOP)

“I’m tired. I’m tired of going to funerals…of not being able to say ‘see you later’ to my friends…I’m tired because I’m forced to stay woke,” reads a poet out loud at the Lincoln Memorial during the protests in D.C. (Melissa Howell/WTOP)

Demonstrators are seen near the U.S. Capitol as protests in D.C. are underway on Saturday. (Ken Duffy/WTOP)

A demonstrator protest Saturday, June 6, 2020, at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Tiffany Rose joins with other demonstrators protesting Saturday, June 6, 2020, near the White House in Washington, over the death of George Floyd, a black man who was in police custody in Minneapolis. Floyd died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers. In the background is St. Johns Church. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

Demonstrators carry signs as a crowd gathers outside of the White House. (John Domen/WTOP)

Children color in a poster during demonstrations in D.C. on Saturday. (John Domen/WTOP)

<p>Dozens gather for a moment of silence at 16th and H streets in D.C. They stayed for 8 minutes and 46 seconds — the length of time that a knee was pressed into George Floyd’s neck.</p> — (WTOP/John Domen)

Katie Williams, Benjamin Williams, Kyle Williams — (AP/Patrick Semansky)

<p>A checkpoint blocks traffic on 16th Street Northwest as people gather near the White House, Saturday, June 6, 2020, in D.C., before scheduled protests over the death of George Floyd, who died after being restrained by Minneapolis police officers.</p> — (AP/Patrick Semansky)

<p>A man takes pictures of demonstrators gathering ahead of protests in D.C. on Saturday</p> — (WTOP/Melissa Howell)

<p>The scene outside of Some scenes outside of Lafayette Park at Black Lives Matter Plaza in D.C. ahead of planned protests on Saturday.</p> — (WTOP/John Domen)

<p>A crowd begins to grow in D.C. ahead of scheduled demonstrations on Saturday.</p> — (WTOP/Melissa Howell)

<p>Demonstrators start to gather in D.C. ahead of planned protests on Saturday.</p> — (WTOP/Melissa Howell)

<p>The scene outside of Lafayette Square park at Black Lives Matter Plaza in D.C. ahead of planned protests on Saturday.</p> — (WTOP/John Domen)

<p>Water is seen waiting for demonstrators outside of Lafayette Park at Black Lives Matter Plaza in D.C.</p> — (WTOP/John Domen)

<p>Members of the National Guard are seen walking through Lafayette Park ahead of planned protests on Saturday.</p> — (WTOP/John Domen)

<p>People taking photos outside of Lafayette Park at Black Lives Matter Plaza in D.C. ahead of demonstrations.</p> — (WTOP/John Domen)

<p>Bottled water and snacks are seen available in front of Saint Johns Church in D.C. for demonstrators.</p> — (WTOP/John Domen)

Protesters crowded D.C. streets Saturday despite oppressive heat, reshaping the mood of a city that at times has been on edge, as they walked and chanted.

Additional demonstrations are planned across the D.C. region on Sunday.

Saturday’s demonstrations were D.C.’s largest since the May 25 killing of George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis.

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Go-go music blared from a truck that looked more like a parade float and impromptu dance parties popped up.

A black man shared a fist bump with a black police officer, and people used chalk to write messages of support on District streets.

WTOP’s John Domen reported hundreds of people had descended on 16th, I and H streets near Lafayette Square park, which has become a common focal point of protests in the city, as early as 9:15 a.m.

Ten hours later, after a hot day with temperatures hovering near 90 degrees all afternoon, protesters had gathered at numerous key points throughout D.C.: the newly named Black Lives Matter Plaza, the U.S. Senate Side of Capitol Hill (along Constitution Ave N.E.), the Lincoln Memorial, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial at the Tidal Basin, and stretching for blocks north of Lafayette Park along 16th Street NW.

Carl Sirls, 26, an airline employee who is black, joined thousands of other protesters on city streets.

“People are sick and tired of being sick and tired. I know that’s a cliché, but now you can finally see it.” Sirls said.

There were signs of cultural change. Those who led demonstrators in chants were almost exclusively people of color.

Some said they saw the beginning of a new movement.

“This is us walking across the Pettus Bridge,” said Kendyll Myles, a 33-year-old project manager, referring to site of the iconic 1965 civil rights march in Selma, Alabama. “This is that type of awakening that our country needed.”

WTOP’s Dave Dildine reported that the crowds of peaceful protesters stretched multiple blocks toward Scott Circle, a distance of about a half mile.

ENORMOUS demonstration in progress on 16th Street and #BlackLivesMatterPlaza from Scott Circle to the White House @WTOP pic.twitter.com/d83myA2psb

— Dave Dildine (@DildineWTOP) June 6, 2020

WTOP’s Ken Duffy followed the protests throughout the afternoon and sent in this audio of those walking toward the White House from Scott Circle.

This is the sound of protesters walking toward the White House from Scott Circle on Saturday.

Duffy said unlike the intense protest atmosphere of recent days, Saturday was more about “showing up here, and just being here, in the moment.”

The displays of levity, unfolding against the backdrop of damaged buildings marked with graffiti, amounted to a moment of catharsis for a city and nation that’s erupted in crisis since the May 25 killing of George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis.

Protests erupted in Minnesota shortly after Floyd’s death, and the unrest spread to cities across the country in the following days.

Saturday marked the ninth consecutive day of protests in D.C., and the day of Floyd’s memorial service in his home state of North Carolina, where long lines gathered to view his body.

After a string of violent clashes between police and protesters, demonstrations have remained largely peaceful over the last several days, both in the city and across the U.S., during the week after Floyd’s death.

WTOP’s news partner NBC 4 reported early Saturday night that there had been no arrests made, even with the large crowds in the District.

As of 7:30pm, no arrests have been made by DC Police at today’s demonstrations. There are also no reports of arrests made by U.S. Park Police or Secret Service on federal grounds. @nbcwashington

— Tom Lynch (@TomLynch_) June 6, 2020

What’s next?

As demonstrations are expected to continue into another week, there are questions about whether the scope of the protests can become something more durable.

Unlike the major D.C. protests of the past, Saturday’s events weren’t strongly organized.

In some cases, they were mini-marches that began in residential neighborhoods before converging on 16th Street.

Many protesters carried signs urging participants to vote with the passion they brought to the streets.

The Rev. Al Sharpton has said he is organizing a March on Washington for late August that would energize voters heading into the fall presidential campaign.

Mayor Bowser

D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser is under pressure to reduce funding for the city’s police and reinvest that money elsewhere.

The local chapter of Black Lives Matter derided Bowser’s widely publicized move to paint Black Lives Matter across one of the streets near the White House.

“This is performative and a distraction from her active counter organizing to our demands to decrease the police budget and invest in the community,” it said on Twitter.

But as Bowser strolled that section of the street, the crowd burst into applause for a woman who is increasingly the subject of President Trump’s ire.

Art Lindy, a fifth-generation Washingtonian, shouted “Vice President Bowser” as she walked by.

Bowser “has done an incredible job standing up to the face of federal power,” Lindy, a 56-year-old construction manager, said.

This is a developing story. Stay with WTOP for the latest.

WTOP’s John Domen, Ken Duffy, Dave Dildine and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Demonstrations to continue in DC area, following Saturday’s large, peaceful crowds - WTOP

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