At the request of President Donald Trump’s campaign staff, police in Tulsa, Oklahoma, arrested a single peaceful protester in a black “I Can’t Breathe” T-shirt who was sitting outside the venue where Trump is expected to hold a rally on Saturday.
“Officers at the location, particularly in the ‘Sterile’ area, will remove individuals only at the direction of Campaign Staff,” police said.
Police across the country ― particularly in New York ― have come under harsh criticism for using excessive force against protesters who have carried out demonstrations largely without violence.
A new wave of Black Lives Matter demonstrations was sparked by the death last month of George Floyd, a Black man who died after a Minneapolis police officer knelt on his neck.
Trump is set to begin his rally at 7 p.m. local time at the city’s BOK Center, despite warnings from public health experts that a rally in the middle of a pandemic could result in a spike in cases of COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus.
