WATCH LIVE: Justice Department Holds Press Conference Amid Nationwide Protests
The Justice Department is holding a press conference Thursday amid nationwide protests over racial inequality and the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
Floyd died after being pinned down at the neck by a police officer, prompting massive protests across the country. The now-fired officer, Derek Chauvin, has been charged with second-degree murder.
Attorney General William Barr said that it is "undeniable that many African Americans lack confidence in our American criminal justice system," adding, "This must change."
He called Thursday a "day of mourning," referring to the memorial for Floyd scheduled for later in the day.
Of video showing the police officers' conduct when arresting Floyd, Barr said, "It is impossible for any normal human being not to be struck to the heart with horror."
Barr said the aftermath of Floyd's death has produced a challenge to the rule of law in the form of "lawlessness, violent rioting, arson, looting of businesses and public property, assaults on law enforcement officers and innocent people."
"We have evidence that Antifa and other similar extremist groups, as well as actors of a variety of different political persuasions have been involved in instigating and participating in the violent activity," Barr said. "And we also seeing foreign actors playing all sides to exacerbate the violence."
Barr was joined Thursday by FBI Director Christopher Wray, U.S. Marshals Director Donald Washington, Bureau of Prisons Director Michael Carvajal; Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Acting Director Regina Lombardo; and Drug Enforcement Administration Acting Administrator Timothy Shea.
The Justice Department leaders reiterated the right of Americans to exercise their First Amendment right to peacefully protest but called out the smaller group of people who have "hijacked" those efforts.
Watch live: William Barr holds press conference with DOJ officials
Barr has been leading the federal response to the protests, some of which had been violent. Barr has sent specialized teams of federal agents to help control protests in Washington, D.C., and Miami, and the FBI is setting up command posts in cities across the country.
In D.C., Barr was on the scene Monday night ahead of the largely peaceful protest in Lafayette Square that was broken up by law enforcement. His presence came in advance of President Trump walking over to St. John's Episcopal Church, where Trump posed with a Bible. The church had been damaged in a fire the night before.
The actions of police, who aggressively cleared the protesters, have been criticized. The U.S. Park Police announced it had assigned to administrative duties two officers who were seen assaulting a TV news crew from Australia.
The Park Police says it "will always support peaceful assembly but cannot tolerate violence to citizens or officers or damage to our nation's resources that we are entrusted to protect." It says officers had been assaulted with bottles of frozen water and other projectiles.
