George Floyd March Spreads Peace From Park Slope

PARK SLOPE, BROOKLYN — Park Slope's "peaceful and prayerful" march in honor of George Floyd lived up to its name.

Large crowds gathered outside Park Slope Christian Tabernacle on Tuesday for a march bestowed with the #PrayMarchAct hashtag.

It was a march host by about 25 Brooklyn churches, as indicated by the organizers' Facebook event post.

"In recent weeks, we have seen several tragedies that are not new in our country's scene," the organizers wrote on Facebook. "The deaths of George Floyd and Ahmaud Arbery, along with the attempted weaponization of the police towards Christian Cooper.

"As the church, we are standing in solidarity with our brothers and sisters, seeking reform in our system, and praying for justice to come quickly."

The event followed — and apparently continued — a day of peaceful protests across Brooklyn, where thousands of marchers snaked through Bed-Stuy and Crown Heights before going on to Grand Army Plaza and Barclays Center. Things weren't as calm in Manhattan and the Bronx, where looters struck and a police officer was attacked.

Officials imposed a curfew for Tuesday at 8 p.m., which forced the Park Slope march organizers to push the protest time to 6 p.m.

Several posts online stressed the march, which went from the church to the 78th police precinct and to the Barclays Center. City Councilman Brad Lander, who represents Park Slope and has criticized the citywide curfew, posted video from there depicting protesters peacefully singing.

"Take a listen and see if you think they should all be arrested," he wrote.

Social media posts indicated protesters hoisted a "Black Lives Matter" flag atop the center's pole before curfew fell. It appeared much of the crowd ignored the curfew and kept marching peacefully.

Similar peaceful protests unfolded across the city, such as in Astoria, where protesters kneeled before a line of police officers in riot gear gripping batons. The officers stood silently as protesters chanted "we are peaceful" and, despite protesters' requests, didn't kneel as well.