(Washington, DC) – Today, Mayor Muriel Bowser and the Chief of Police Peter Newsham provided an update following last night’s protests in Washington, DC.

Below is the Mayor’s statement, as delivered.

I want to start by saying we certainly recognize and empathize with the outrage that people feel following the killing in Minneapolis last week. And we certainly empathize that the killing of George Floyd wasn’t the first, and that people are expressing outrage and demanding action.

We also recognize that we are proud of our city and we do not want our city to be destroyed.

So our police, and firefighters, and members of the public safety team for Washington, DC, along with our federal partners, have been working to make sure people can exercise their First Amendment rights, while not destroying Washington, DC.