Anti-Racism Protests: Outcry After Shooting In Atlanta; Clashes In Paris And London

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«RIP Rayshard» is spray-painted on a sign as flames engulf a Wendy’s restaurant during protests in Atlanta on Saturday over the death of Rayshard Brooks.

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A man holds up a sign during a protest Saturday near the Atlanta Wendy’s where Rayshard Brooks was killed.

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People gather at the Place de la Republique in Paris on Saturday for a march against police brutality and racism.

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A man kicks a tear gas canister during a march against police brutality and racism in Paris.

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Police confront protesters in Whitehall near Parliament Square in London. The weekend’s unrest include «protect our monuments» protesters.

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Police confront protesters in Whitehall near Parliament Square in London. The weekend’s unrest include «protect our monuments» protesters.

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In London, fights broke out between Black Lives Matter protesters and far-right counterdemonstrators, leading to more than 100 arrests on Saturday, according to the city’s police department. The confrontations occurred despite calls from organizers and the city’s mayor for protesters to stay home.

According to The Guardian, a cry to «protect our monuments» drew largely white protesters to London. The protest came in an apparent response to recent vandalism of monuments of figures tied to racist practices in British history. These include the recent toppling of a statue of the 17th century slave-trader Edward Colston in the city of Bristol, and an incident where «racist» was spray-painted on a London statue of Winston Churchill.

Anticipating possible violence and vandalism this weekend, London authorities covered up the Churchill statue as well as the Cenotaph war memorial and a statue of Nelson Mandela.

On Saturday, hundreds of largely white far-right protesters, football hooligans and other supporters thronged Parliament Square, site of the Churchill statue. Police penned in the demonstrators, who began throwing bottles and punching officers.

In the city’s Trafalgar Square, anti-racist protesters clashed with the far-right demonstrators. Many groups organizing anti-racist protests had discouraged demonstrations this weekend. Events organized by both Black Lives Matter and a self-avowed anti-facist group were canceled to avoid overlapping with the «protect our monuments» rally. The city’s mayor, Sadiq Khan, had also urged protesters to stay home this weekend.

In the end, at least six people were hospitalized.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson condemned the violence, tweeting «racist thuggery has no place on our streets.»

Racist thuggery has no place on our streets. Anyone attacking the police will be met with full force of the law. These marches & protests have been subverted by violence and breach current guidelines. Racism has no part in the UK and we must work together to make that a reality.

— Boris Johnson #StayAlert (@BorisJohnson) June 13, 2020

NPR’s Emma Bowman contributed to this report.

Frank Langfitt contributed to this report from London. Eleanor Beardsley contributed from Paris and Lily Oppenheimer of WABE contributed from Atlanta.