Downtown storefront smashed in Seattle George Floyd protest

SEATTLE – Dozens of people gathered in downtown Seattle Friday night to protest the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody and some black-clad anarchists smashed up a storefront window.

The rally started in the city’s International District, and then moved north to downtown. Protesters chanted: “I can’t breathe” and “Black Lives Matter.”

Video from KOMO-TV showed several people smashing windows at an Amazon Go grocery store. Police on bicycles attempted to move people along.

The Seattle Fire Department told all downtown business owners via Twitter Friday night to “immediately secure all open areas,” including outdoor seating areas, garages, dumpsters and recycling bins, and remove all combustibles that can’t be secured.

Protesters dressed all in black – so-called antifa or anti-fascist groups – are often fixtures at rallies in the Northwest.

Floyd was a Black man who was killed after an officer put his knee on his head and neck. The officer was arrested on criminal charges Friday.

Earlier Friday, Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan and Police Chief Carmen Best had said the were outraged by Floyd’s death and also called for protesters to be peaceful. A large rally is also planned for Saturday afternoon in downtown Seattle.