THE FRUSTRATION THAT SO MANY
CERTAINLY SHARE AS WE WATCH
WHAT'S UNFOLDING HERE IN OUR
CITY WITH US NOW ON THE PHONE
THE MAYOR OF GRAND RAPIDS
ROSALIND BLISS UH THANK YOU FOR
JOINING US MAYOR AND ON WHAT
HAS BEEN A DIFFICULT NIGHT FOR
LAW ENFORCEMENT AND REALLY
EVERYONE INVOLVED AS WE WATCH
THE DAMAGE AND DESTRUCTION THAT
IS HAPPENING IN PROTEST IN OUR
CITY. YOUR FIRST REACTION TO
WHAT YOU'RE SEEING.
IT'S BEEN AS YOU SAID IT'S
BEEN AH HEARTBREAKING AND SAD
NIGHT IN OUR CITY AND REALLY IN
CITIES ACROSS OUR COUNTRY I
THINK HEARTBREAKING THE FIRST
WORD THAT COMES TO MIND WHAT.
IS THE TAKE AWAY WHAT DO YOU
AS THE MAYOR OF THIS CITY LOOK
AT THIS OBVIOUSLY NOT CONDONING
ANY OF THE VIOLENCE OR THE
DAMAGE THAT WE'RE SEEING BEING
DONE IS THERE A MESSAGE HERE
THAT YOU'RE GOING TO BRING BACK
TO CITY HALL FROM WHAT YOU'RE
SEEING ON TELEVISION RIGHT NOW.
I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF
MESSAGES THAT WE'RE HEARING
TONIGHT. I MEAN FOR ME. A
COUPLE THINGS ONE.
I THOUGHT IT WAS A BEAUTIFUL
SHOWING OF SOLIDARITY EARLIER
TODAY AS PEOPLE CAME OUT AND
PROTESTED PEACEFULLY. AND THEY
THEY CAME TOGETHER AND RAISED
UP THEIR VOICE AND SHARED THE
DEPTH OF THE PAIN AND OUTRAGE
THAT WE ALL FEEL ABOUT THE KILL
OF GEORGE FLOYD AND. THE DESIRE
TO BE A PART OF CREATING A
DIFFERENT FUTURE AND ADDRESSING
THE DEEP RACIAL DIVIDES THAT
EXIST IN OUR COMMUNITIES AND I
IT WAS JUST YOU KNOW I WAS VERY
HOPEFUL THAT WE WOULD NOT HAVE
THE EVENT TODAY ESCALATING INTO
VIOLENCE AND THAT'S EXACTLY
WHAT HAPPENED AND. SO NOW WE'RE
ALL WATCHING IMAGES OF OUR
DOWNTOWN WITH BROKEN WINDOWS
AND FIRES AND OUR POLICE OUT
THERE DOING THE BEST THEY CAN
TO TRY TO KEEP ORDER IN OUR
CITY SO SO TO ME RIGHT NOW MY
NUMBER ONE PRIORITY IS SAFETY.
I WANT PEOPLE TO BE SAFE. I
WANT PEOPLE TO DISPERSE. I WANT
THEM TO GET HOME SAFELY. I WANT
OUR OFFICERS TO BE SAFE ON. SO
TO ME RIGHT NOW THE NUMBER ONE
THING IS AROUND SAFETY AND THEN
WE NEED TO COME TOGETHER. AS A
COMMUNITY YOU KNOW WE HAVE
INCREDIBLE PEOPLE IN THIS
COMMUNITY DEDICATED PEOPLE AND
ORGANIZATIONS WHO HAVE WORKED
SIDE BY SIDE WITH US HERE AT
THE CITY TO ADDRESS ISSUES
AROUND RACIAL DISPARITIES AND
AH AND. DISMANTLING HOW DO WE
DISMANTLE OUT OF COMMUNITY? THE
INSTITUTIONAL RACISM THAT WE
KNOW IS IN PLACE UH OH AND AND
MY HOPE IS THAT WE COME
TOGETHER AFTER THIS AS QUICKLY
AS POSSIBLE AND WE FIGURE OUT A
WAY FORWARD TOGETHER THAT'S THE
ONLY WAY WE'RE GOING TO. WE'RE
GOING TO DO. THIS IS TOGETHER.
MAYOR YOUR REACTION WHEN YOU
SAW THE VIDEO OF WHAT HAPPENED
TO GEORGE FLOYD.
MY IMMEDIATE REACTION WAS. I
SAD. IT'S PAINFUL. IT WAS
PAINFUL. IT'S OUTRAGEOUS.
HORRIFIC AH WHAT A TRAGEDY I I
I THINK I SHARE THAT WITH SO
MANY PEOPLE EVEN EVEN SEEING
THE IMAGES AH. IF THERE'S JUST
A DEEP DEEP SENSE OF SADNESS
AND PAIN I IMAGINE YOU LIKE SO
MANY OF US HAVE WATCHED AS THIS
PROTESTS HAVE UNFOUNDED ACROSS
THE COUNTRY AND YOU KNOW I
FOUND MYSELF AT YOU KNOW COULD
THAT HAPPEN AND GRAND RAPIDS
AND THINKING NO IT WOULDN'T
HAPPEN HERE. HOW SHOCKED ARE
YOU TO SEE WHAT THIS HAS
TRANSPIRED IN TONIGHT?. YEAH.
I I WAS UH I WAS I AM A
LITTLE SHOCKED. I WAS I WAS
OPTIMISTIC THAT WE WOULD BE
ABLE TO COME TOGETHER AND AND
HAVE.
PEACEFUL PEACEFUL PROTESTS
AND AND YOU KNOW I I WILL I'VE
BEEN TALKING BACK AND FORTH
WITH AH FOLKS FORMER IOC ALL
NIGHT AND YOU KNOW I AM
CONCERNED THAT SOME OF THE
FOLKS WHO ACTUALLY PERPETRATED
SOME OF THE VIOLENCE THAT WE
SAW AND ESCALATED THE VIOLIN
AND AGITATED. THE VIOLENCE THAT
THEY MAY NOT BE GRANDER
OPINIONS BUT WE WE DON'T KNOW
THAT AT THIS POINT IT WAS JUST
SPECULATION. BUT I WAS SHOCKED.
I AM SHOCKED.
WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT WHAT
HAS TRANSPIRED DOWN ON THE
GROUND AND WHETHER ANY ARRESTS
HAVE BEEN MADE OR IF ANYBODY
HAS BEEN HURT..
. SO AS OF I HAVE NOT GOTTEN
ANY REPORTS THAT WE'VE HAD A
SIGNIFICANT INJURY SO AS OF
RIGHT NOW I'M NOT AWARE OF THAT
BUT I AT CITY HALL AND HAVE
BEEN GETTING BRIEFED REGULARLY.
AND SO I'M SURE I'LL GET AN
UPDATE MOMENTARILY.
MAYOR ROSLYN BLESS SPEAKING
TO US ON A DIFFICULT NIGHT IN