George Floyd’s May 26 death sparked nationwide protests that spread from Minnesota to California. However, many protests quickly turned violent, leading to loss of life and destruction of property, costing nearly a billion dollars in damage.
A preliminary estimate from the Property Claim Services (PCS), a unit of Verisk Analytics, estimates that the riots caused catastrophic economic damage, putting a lowball estimate of costs anywhere between $500-$900 million in insured losses, while noting that cost is expected to increase making the 2020 string of riots the most costly ever, according to the Insurance Information Institute (III).
Without an official estimate, the 2020 disturbances are ranked second in most expensive losses, according to the III. The most expensive riots were the 1992 Los Angeles Rodney King riots that resulted in $775 million in insured losses, which when adjusted for 2020 inflation, cost a whopping $1.4 billion.
WATCH video footage from independent journalist Andy Ngo capturing ANTIFA-BLM rioters in Los Angeles tearing down a fence and burn a US flag:
Antifa-BLM rioters in Los Angeles tear down a fence and burn a US flag tonight. Video by @FromKalen. #AntifaRiots #BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/FLlKQTJKYl
— Andy Ngô (@MrAndyNgo) October 6, 2020
More than 250 buildings were looted and damaged in St. Paul and Minneapolis during the George Floyd protests. In Dallas, Texas, numerous businesses were vandalized and looted, with some rioters slashing tires and breaking windows on police vehicles. Los Angeles saw a string of looting, burglary, robbery, vandalism and arson during the protests.
Antifa rioters started more fires on the street in Seattle. #SeattleRiots #antifa pic.twitter.com/JtWU8I7Ian
— Andy Ngô (@MrAndyNgo) September 27, 2020
By June 4, more than 50 cities in 23 states had imposed curfews, and the National Guard was called in to at least 30 states and Washington D.C., according to ABC News.
Overnight on 23–24 Sept, hundreds of BLM-antifa rioters attacked the Justice Center in Portland. They used rocks to shatter windows of the police station, set the exterior on fire multiple times, & threw 3 Molotov cocktails at officers. #PortlandRiots https://t.co/aNkkhRgmkx pic.twitter.com/SjeOLwjMBJ
— Andy Ngô (@MrAndyNgo) September 24, 2020
Meanwhile, Michelle Obama stuck her head up today to give her opinion on the BLM riots, as previously reported by 100% FED Up.
Michelle Obama on BLM riots:
Trump is “pinning [violence] on what’s been an overwhelmingly peaceful movement for racial solidarity; it’s true, research backs it up; only a tiny fraction of demonstrations have had any violence at all … What the president is doing is … racist.”
Michelle Obama: "Our country is in chaos because of a President who isn’t up to the job." https://t.co/CAovE4PR8X pic.twitter.com/yqIVLxMN1G
— The Hill (@thehill) October 6, 2020