Volunteers Clean Up, Officials React After Violent Evening

Hundreds of volunteers and business owners were out early Sunday morning in downtown Madison to clean up and repair storefronts after an evening of violence, looting and property damage following demonstrations over the death of George Floyd.

About 75 businesses on State Street were damaged or looted Saturday night, and several other businesses across the city were also looted, including East Towne and West Towne malls, according to the Madison Police Department.

Community activists put out calls on social media Saturday evening for volunteers to assist with cleanup on State Street starting bright and early Sunday. According to organizers and downtown Madison officials, several hundred volunteers gathered there before 7 a.m.

At around 8 a.m., William Turner, of Madison, scrubbed graffiti from a red brick wall outside Noodles & Co. at the corner of State and Johnson streets, where people had set fire to garbage to block traffic there the night before. Turner brought his two children, ages 14 and 11, to help with the cleanup effort.

“I want them to understand the goal of all of this is a healing process on a national level, and we need people in positions that can fix the wrongs and injustices to do it,” Turner said. “I want my kids to understand that we want to be part of that bigger picture.”

Christian Cruz, a senior at Madison West High School, worked alongside several friends to scrub graffiti outside Paul’s Club, also on State Street.

“We’ve got to stand in solidarity with our black brothers and sisters, and we’ve got to help out our community as well,” Cruz said. “The events that happened yesterday weren’t part of the protest, the protest was peaceful. These were just a couple individuals looking to start chaos.”

Across the street from Cruz, a large group of volunteers, many wearing face masks and holding brooms and garbage bags brought from home, stood outside Ragstock, a clothing store damaged and looted Saturday.

Allison Hetz, a former Ragstock employee and Madison resident, stood ready with her broom.

“(Ragstock) kind of gave me my start, it was like a family and still is, and I don’t like to see this business hit,” she said. “They got hit pretty bad. The people didn’t deserve that.”

“I understand the protest, and people should protest, but this is too much,” Hetz added. “It’s devastating.”

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In addition to organizing the clean-up effort, the Boys & Girls Club of Dane County also launched an online fundraiser for downtown businesses on Saturday night. As of Sunday mid-morning, the effort had raised nearly $73,000 to help businesses pay insurance deductibles and cover other recovery-related expenses. The fundraiser began Saturday night with a goal of $50,000. On Sunday morning, that was increased to $75,000 and then $100,000.

It’s too soon to know the damage estimate to businesses on State Street or how long it could take affected businesses to reopen, according to Madison officials.

Tiffany Kenney, executive director for Madison’s Central Business Improvement District, said it’s unclear when many affected businesses will be able to reopen. She noted 70 percent of businesses on State Street are locally owned, many by minorities and women.

“We’re proud of this street and it was devastating to see what happened,” Kenney said. “I’m so sad for them. We had just opened again after the last two months of being very cautious as a community.”

According to the Madison Police Department, three people were arrested Saturday.

Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway responded Sunday morning to criticism from some, including state Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, that Madison police didn’t arrest more people who damaged property Saturday.

“If you are angry because you want those who broke windows and trashed sidewalk cafes … to face consequences, be more angry that the people who kill black people all too often walk free,” Rhodes-Conway said.

According to the Police Department, more arrests tied to looting and destruction of property could happen.

Officials: ‘Small Group’ Caused Trouble Saturday

Rhodes-Conway and Madison interim Police Chief Victor Wahl reiterated Sunday that a “relatively small group” of about 150 people were behind the unrest Saturday evening.

“This was not a case of a protest turning violent,” Rhodes-Conway said. “This was a case of a protest concluding peacefully and a relatively small group of people coming in to cause violence and property damage.”

Thousands gathered Saturday afternoon near the state Capitol in Madison to express outrage over the death of Floyd, a black man killed Monday in police custody in Minnesota.

That gathering ended and police thought everything had quieted down for the day, Wahl said, until the group of agitators began following officers and harassing them, he said.

“Several of the group were armed with large sticks,” Wahl said. “It was clear as we were monitoring this that the behavior of this group was distinct from what we had seen earlier.”

Organizers of the earlier demonstration disavowed the violence.

As the conflict escalated, the evening turned to police wearing riot gear, firing tear gas and clashing with people as they threw rocks, chairs and water bottles at officers, broke store windows, looted businesses and started fires along State Street.

Early in the evening, a crowd with their hands held aloft faced off against police near the state Capitol and chanted, “Hands up! Don’t shoot.” As the night went on, police and protesters faced off along State Street and nearby cross streets, as authorities tried to control and disperse crowds using police lines, pepper spray and tear gas. Many downtown streets were closed.

A trash fire was set. A Madison police vehicle was stolen, driven and then set on fire, according to the police department, after two rifles were taken from it. Other police vehicles were damaged.

Shortly after midnight Sunday, most of the groups broke up and left. As the crowds on State and Johnson streets dispersed, many chanted “George Floyd” as they walked away. The police line at that location ended and vehicle traffic near State Street resumed.

After much of Saturday night’s violence had abated, Rhodes-Conway declared a state of emergency through Wednesday and instituted a curfew. City officials announced a curfew on the city’s isthmus from 12:01 a.m. to 5 a.m. Sunday and from 9:30 p.m. Sunday until 5 a.m. Monday.

“I want to be clear that this is in response to a number of people endangering themselves and others by shattering glass, destroying property, and engaging in widespread, systematic looting of local businesses,” the mayor wrote in the announcement.

Demonstrations Earlier In Day Focus On Justice For Floyd

The violence Saturday night followed mostly peaceful demonstrations earlier in the afternoon across the state where people called for justice in Floyd’s death.

Floyd died Monday after now-fired Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin knelt on his neck for almost nine minutes while Floyd, unarmed and handcuffed, repeatedly told the officer he couldn’t breathe. Chauvin has since been arrested and charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.

The killing of Floyd, which was caught on video, has lead to days of violent demonstrations in Minneapolis and St. Paul, as well as protests in cities across the country.

In Milwaukee, protesters demonstrated peacefully during the day Friday and Saturday but both nights ended with property damage in numerous parts of the city. One Milwaukee police officer got shot.

Milwaukee police made 50 arrests Friday into Saturday in connection to the protests. Ten people were arrested Saturday night into Sunday, said Police Chief Alfonso Morales.

“There are two types of incidents going on. (There are) peaceful incidents during the day, but our frustration is about the criminals that decide to loot and continue to try to divide us,” Morales said during a Sunday afternoon press conference. “You are being selfish.”

Morales said on Saturday night into Sunday, 20 businesses were looted and vandalized.

“In the middle of a pandemic you have chosen to destroy your city and put lives at risk,” he said. “Tearing up stores that people in your community, our community frequent — you don’t gain anything by tearing up our community.”

On Saturday, Gov. Tony Evers authorized 125 troops from the Wisconsin National Guard to assist Milwaukee law enforcement.

Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said the city was preparing to face disturbances that could have been much more serious.

“But there is still tonight, and more nights,” Barrett said. “There is still justifiable anger throughout this nation. The events of the last several nights can’t take our eye off the need for stronger police-community relations.”

On Saturday, Barrett imposed a 9 p.m. curfew for Milwaukee. He extended it another day Sunday.

“What we saw Friday and what we saw Saturday was a vast, vast amount of people peacefully, peacefully showing their frustration,” Barrett said. “That is America and that is what we have a right to do under the First Amendment. What we don’t have the right (to do) under the First Amendment is loot and rob.”

In Duluth, Minnesota, a demonstration drew 1,000 people to the Clayton Jackson McGhie Memorial. Those who spoke called for the prosecution of all four police officers involved in Floyd’s death. One speaker was Kim Young, an elder from the Superior African Heritage Community, a co-sponsor of the event along with the Duluth Branch NAACP, Black Lives Matter Minnesota, Native Lives Matter and at least a half-dozen other groups.
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“I don’t want you to tear down buildings,” Young said, referring to the violence rocking Minneapolis and other cities around the nation. “The foundation of this country is rotten. The house that sits upon this foundation is teetering on the brink of collapse. One swift wind will tear it down, and that’s what we are demanding. We’re no longer asking. We’re no longer begging. Our Boston Tea Party was this week.”

Demonstrators, the majority of whom were wearing masks, marched from the memorial along First Street to Duluth City Hall. Protesters blocked Interstate 35 at an overpass in Duluth for a while Saturday evening before marching up the hill on Mesaba Avenue and Central Entrance before heading back downtown.

Duluth was under a curfew from 10 p.m. Saturday to 6 a.m. Sunday, and one will be in place from 9 p.m. Sunday to 6 a.m. Monday.

At a Sunday morning press conference, Duluth Mayor Emily Larson said city officials were cleaning up vandalism at the Clayton Jackson McGhie Memorial in the wake of Saturday’s protest. However, she said there’s no large cleanup needed in the city at this time.

Duluth Police Chief Mike Tusken said there were eight confirmed reports of damage to property, including a vehicle that was set on fire on Central Entrance. Police arrested 11 people and among them were four juveniles. Only one of the individuals arrested was from Minneapolis. There were 100 officers responding to Saturday’s events from surrounding law enforcement agencies, including the Superior Police Department.

Several officers and a Kwik Trip employee were assaulted by a gathering of protesters in West Duluth late Saturday night. Police, donning helmets and masks, used tear gas to disperse them.

Tusken said they had issued warnings for people to disperse, adding officers had heard calls of shots fired and people running before deploying tear gas.

“That dispersal was absolutely imperative for us to maintain the safety of everyone,” said Tusken.

Duluth’s police chief said he’s called in additional staffing for Sunday night from surrounding agencies, including Superior Police.

Eau Claire community organizers planned to host a virtual vigil on Zoom at 3 p.m. Sunday to honor the memory of Floyd. The event is organized by University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire Professor Selika Ducksworth-Lawton and two of Floyd’s friends are expected to speak. Gatherings are planned for Sunday, including in Kewaskum, West Bend and Janesville. A “peaceful prayer protest” is planned for 4 p.m. Sunday in Milwaukee’s Washington Park.

Editor’s note: This story will be updated. Andrea Anderson, Danielle Kaeding, Laurel White, Corrinne Hess and Robin Washington contributed reporting for this story.