Minnesota's Democrat Gov. Tim Walz on Saturday moved to mobilize the National Guard against what he called outside agitators who have helped fuel looting and arson in reaction to the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man who died in police custody.
At a morning news conference, Waltz suggested a growing number of rioters are coming from outside the city and state in "an organized attempt to destabilize civil society," the Star Tribune reported.
"Our cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul are under assault," he said, the news outlet reported.
The infusion of help from the National Guard could add another 1,000 soldiers into the cities — in addition to the 700 already there — the largest civil policing authority in the state's history, and the first full mobilization of the Guard there since WWII, the Star Tribune reported.
Walz asserted as many as 80% of the people causing destruction and fire in the cities could be from elsewhere, distinguishing the looting and vandalism from the peaceful protests that began Tuesday, the day after the death of Floyd.
The affiliation of outside groups, however, was not clear, the news outlet reported.
Walz also ordered another temporary curfew starting at 8 p.m. ET on Saturday. It came after a third night of violent protests and looting, despite an overnight curfew following the arrest of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who faces murder charges in Floyd's death, captured on video beamed around the world.
At later news conference, Walz was joined by faith leaders, community leaders and local politicians who pleaded for peace, including the head of the Minnesota State Baptist Convention, the Rev. Billy Russell.
"Stand for love because God is love," Russell urged. "Continue to come together. Continue to fight against this evil that we face that they are trying to tarnish the name of George Floyd."
"I am asking that we do protest and use our voices loudly to represent love and the power of God so that we can make the systematic changes so that my kids don't feel the same pain that I felt for the last 41 years.
"So, yes, we are asking that you go home at 8 p.m. and pray . . . give room to our government that's been working so hard with us, partnering with us. Give them the room to separate the good from the bad."
In the early hours of Saturday, Walz and Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey, both made emotional appeals for calm.
"The absolute chaos — this is not grieving, and this is not making a statement [about an injustice] that we fully acknowledge needs to be fixed — this is dangerous," Walz said, the Star Tribune reported. "You need to go home."
Walz said he had talked to Floyd's family, and they agreed what was happening in Minneapolis was horrific and counterproductive.
"Our Minneapolis residents are scared and rightfully so," Frey said during a press conference. "We've seen longterm institutional businesses overridden. We've seen community institutions set on fire. And I want to be very, very clear. The people that are doing this are not Minneapolis residents."
Frey said protesters have come in from largely outside the city after mostly peaceful gatherings, but the "dynamic has changed."
"Gradually that shift was made, and we saw more and more people coming from outside of the city," Frey said. "We saw more and more people looking to cause violence in our communities, and I have to say, it is not acceptable.
"This is no longer about verbal expression. This is about violence and we need to make sure that it stops," he added.
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