According to Fox News, President Biden, rallying support from Black voters in Philadelphia on Wednesday, accused former President Trump of wanting to tear gas those who “peacefully protested” George Floyd’s murder in 2020.
Biden, alongside Vice President Kamala Harris, addressed attendees at Girard College, a predominantly Black boarding school. They expressed gratitude to Black voters for their crucial support in the 2020 presidential election.
In his speech, Biden highlighted several initiatives his administration has undertaken to improve the lives of Black Americans. These include eliminating lead pipes to ensure safer drinking water, reducing pollution in fenceline communities, providing affordable high-speed internet, and protecting the Affordable Health Care Act. “A promise made, and a promise kept,” Biden declared.
The president did not shy away from criticizing Trump, his likely opponent in the upcoming presidential election. Biden mentioned Trump’s support for the January 6 rioters, saying Trump called them patriots and expressed a desire to pardon them.
“Let me ask you: What do you think [Trump] would have done on Jan. 6, if Black Americans had stormed [the Capitol]?” Biden asked the crowd. “I don’t think he’d be talking about pardons. This is the same guy who wanted to tear gas you as you peacefully protested George Floyd’s murder.”
Trump’s campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Fox News Digital.
Public protests and demonstrations in Philadelphia following George Floyd’s death in May 2020 initially began as peaceful but later turned violent. Demonstrators defaced a statue of former Philadelphia Mayor Frank Rizzo, climbed atop glass fixtures near the SEPTA subway entrance, and looted or defaced numerous storefronts along Chestnut and Walnut streets.
Several Philadelphia Police Department vehicles and a Pennsylvania State Police cruiser were set ablaze. A Starbucks on Dilworth Plaza, near City Hall, was also engulfed in flames. Police, equipped in riot gear, eventually confronted the crowd near the Municipal Services Building at 16th and Arch streets. Officers reportedly pushed the crowd back as they threw projectiles and attempted to breach the police line using a fence.
The initial night of protests resulted in injuries to over a dozen police officers and the implementation of a mandatory curfew.
The White House did not immediately respond to inquiries from Fox News Digital seeking clarification on Biden’s remarks about the protests being peaceful.
