New York curfew will be extended until June 7, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Tuesday after a series of lootings, while refusing to deploy the National Guard in the economic capital of the United States as claimed by Donald Trump. This exceptional measure will be in effect from 8:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m., said the mayor, after the heart of Manhattan and certain districts of the Bronx had been the scene of many scenes of looting Monday evening, the first day of the curfew.
Vandalized shops
Many businesses have been vandalized, including the emblematic department store Macy's. "Intruders entered the store, (..) the police intervened and at this stage the damage is limited," a spokesman for the chain told AFP.
In view of these images widely relayed on social networks, President Donald Trump, who when he lived in New York lived on 5th Avenue, very close to certain targeted stores on Monday, called in a tweet the city to "act quickly" and to "call the National Guard".
Several cities across the country have already called these soldiers in for reinforcement after protests against police brutality against black Americans who have engulfed the country for a week, after the death of George Floyd at the hands of a white police officer in Minneapolis.
But Bill de Blasio estimated that the city "did not need it" thanks to its more than 36,000 police officers, the largest municipal police force in the country, better prepared according to him for these types of situations. "We will take steps immediately to restore order and calm," he said. "I know we're going to get over this, we're going to have a few tough days but we're going to get there."
No National Guard deployment
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said Monday night's looting was "inexcusable" and said the mayor and police had "not done their job". "I think the mayor underestimates the scale and duration of the problem, I don't think they used enough police to respond to it," Andrew Cuomo said in a press briefing, whose reports with the mayor are notoriously difficult.
The governor, however, refused to impose a National Guard deployment to New York, saying it would involve hanging the mayor and would only "make the situation worse". Came into force Monday at 11:00 p.m., the New York curfew has been advanced and now begins at 8:00 p.m.