Image source, Reuters

Roxie Washington, the mother of George Floyd's six-year-old daughter Gianna, was speaking at a press conference earlier in Minneapolis.

"Gianna does not have a father," she said.

"He will never see her grow up, graduate, he will never walk her down the aisle. If there’s a problem she’s having and she needs her dad, she doesn’t have that anymore.

"I’m here for my baby and I'm here for George because I want justice for him. I want justice for him because he was good no matter what anyone thinks."

Pointing to her daughter, she added: "This is the proof that he was a good man."

Former NBA player Stephen Jackson, who was a friend of George Floyd's, also spoke, saying: "We need justice".

"Why do we have to see a daughter being raised without her father," he added.

The BBC's Phoebe Frieze was at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC just before the 19:00 curfew took effect.

She saw hundreds of people kneeling down in front of the monument in a silent protest, as the heavily armed National Guard lined up on the front steps, looking on.

Most of the roads leading to the memorial were blocked off to cars by police vehicles, and a helicopter could be heard overheard.

Names of people killed by police were read out, like 12-year-old Tamir Rice, who was killed in Cleveland, Ohio, in 2014.

It was at the Lincoln Memorial in 1963 that Martin Luther King Jr gave his famous "I have a dream" speech.

With 15-20 minutes to go before the curfew kicked in, protesters started to leave.

But protesters are still on the streets.

NYPD has cancelled all leave and the city has extended its 20:00-05:00 curfew until 7 June after Monday night saw widespread looting in Manhattan and a police officer run over in the Bronx.

As curfew takes effect, Trump has tweeted from the White House...

On Monday, law enforcement dispersed a crowd of protesters whom observers said were peaceful, moments before Trump addressed the nation about George Floyd's death.

His decision to walk through the park, where moments earlier journalists said demonstrators had been scattered with tear gas and rubber bullets, and visit a church to be photographed holding up a Bible, was condemned by local officials and religious leaders.

Image source, Getty Images

There are demonstrations in the French cities of Paris and Lyon as the killing of George Floyd has been likened to the 2016 death of a black man in Paris police custody.

Some 20,000 people have defied Covid-19 restrictions to join the protest, which though initially peaceful, turned violent, with stones thrown at police and tear gas fired back.

Protesters also gathered in the UK city of Liverpool, and buildings across the local Merseyside area have been splashed with purple lighting in support of the George Floyd.

Image source, Anonymous

Meanwhile thousands of people marched against police brutality in Amsterdam and in the western Australian city of Perth.

In recent days, solidarity protests have taken place in London, Dublin, Berlin, Milan, Toronto, and Rio de Janeiro, as well as across New Zealand.

Image source, Getty Images

Helier Cheung
BBC News, Washington DC

Hundreds have gathered for a protest near Lafayette Square - next to the White House - chanting “George Floyd”, “who do you protect”, “I can’t breathe” and “not one more”.

Merianne de Merode , 64, and Louis de Merode, 71, say they're immunocompromised, but decided to end their self-isolation after seeing tear gas being used on peaceful protesters yesterday.

Merianne said she had been to many protests over the years, but “this is a lot more diverse which makes me feel very happy".

"It makes me feel good that a lot of people are taking ownership - seeing this as our problem and not someone else’s problem.”

Pastors Mark A Thomas, Brian Relford and Christopher Zacharias have been to many protests over the years, and cautioned that change can be difficult.

If the previous protests he’d attended over the years had been successful, “we wouldn’t be here today”, Pastor Relford says with a wry smile.

Nonetheless, Pastor Zacharias expressed hope that “what we’re doing today will lead to a drastic change” in police culture, or encourage police reforms.

Washington DC's curfew has just gone into effect at 19:00 local time (01:00GMT), but our reporter near the White House says the demonstrators show no sign of moving.

A new gate has been erected, extending the security perimeter around the White House, after soldiers and police charged peaceful protesters yesterday more than 30 minutes before curfew began.

Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren was spotted in the crowd earlier today with her husband and golden retriever, Bailey.

US Attorney General Bill Barr promised earlier that more law enforcement would be on the streets tonight to crack down on protesters.

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Former President George W Bush has said he and the former First Lady Laura Bush are "anguished by the brutal suffocation of George Floyd and disturbed by the injustice and fear that suffocate our country".

Bush noted they waited to speak out on the matter "because this is not the time for us to lecture".

The former president called it a "shocking failure" that many black Americans are threatened in their own country as he lauded peaceful protesters.

"The only way to see ourselves in a true light is to listen to the voices of so many who are hurting and grieving. Those who set out to silence those voices do not understand the meaning of America - or how it becomes a better place."

He continued: "We can only see the reality of America's need by seeing it through the eyes of the threatened, oppressed, and disenfranchised."

Bush's father was president during the Rodney King riots, when the acquittal of four officers who brutally attacked King set off days of riots in Los Angeles.

Bush himself did not respond to police killings during his tenure, the New York Times reported.

But he faced criticism over his response to Hurricane Katrina when it devastated the majority-black city of New Orleans in 2005, prompting rapper Kanye West to say: "George Bush doesn’t care about black people."

You can read the former Republican president's full statement here., external

Image source, Getty Images

Protests have been growing all day across the US. Here are some of the demontrations that are already underway:

Orlando, Florida - A crowd of over 2,000 is marching towards city hall, police say. Unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin was killed in the city in 2012 by a volunteer neighbourhood watchman, who was later cleared of murder charges

Houston, Texas - A protest of 25,000 has started in George Floyd's hometown

Washington, DC - Crowds outside the White House appear smaller in size than on Monday. The security perimeter has been expanded, pushing protesters further from the White House grounds

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - A large protest group has started marching through the city, which goes under curfew starting at 20:30 (01:30 GMT). So far there have been no clashes with police. On Monday, protesters on a motorway in the city centre were tear-gassed

Chicago, Illinois - For the second day in a row, protesters are gathering in the city's North Side neighbourhood

Nashville, Tennessee - Protesters chanting a civil rights-era protest song faced off with members of the National Guard outside the statehouse, before troops eventually agreed to put down their riot control shields

BBC Monitoring
The world through its media

Social media users in Africa have expressed solidarity with protesters in the US, with some drawing parallels with instances of police brutality in their own countries.

"Scenes from the US would warrant severe censure from liberal interventionists were they happening elsewhere in the world. Democracy clearly on the back foot and civil liberties in the garbage in that blighted country," Kenya's permanent secretary in the foreign ministry Macharia Kamau said on Twitter, external.

Prominent columnist Onyango Obbo urged Western media organisations to allow African commentators to share their views on the US protests, saying "we are experts on state failure, democratic fragility and regime illegitimacy”.

Some questioned whether documented attacks on journalists would impact the country's press freedom ranking, external.

In contrast to the high volume of social media chatter, traditional media coverage of George Floyd's death and the protests has largely been limited to factual reporting from news agencies and very little comment.

But key African leaders and institutions have commented broadly on the plight of black people in the US.

South Africa's governing African National Congress (ANC), external party said George Floyd's death "has sharpened the focus on inescapable realities that American society places a perilously low value on black lives".

During the coronavirus pandemic, we've seen lots of people applauding workers on the frontlines of the healthcare emergency.

Here's some footage of hospital workers in New York City applauding #GeorgeFloyd protesters.

Some US health officials have expressed concern that these rallies could spawn a fresh wave of coronavirus infections.

But a few demonstrators have been pictured distributing masks and hand sanitiser to fellow protesters throughout the country.

Image source, EPS

So what other international reaction has there been to events in the US?

German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said the protests sparked by George Floyd's death in police custody are "understandable and more than legitimate".

"I hope that these peaceful protests won't slide further into violence, but even more than that I hope that they will make a difference in the United States," Maas said.

Russia's foreign ministry said Moscow was "outraged about the ongoing violence used by American law enforcement against international media covering the protests in the US".

It said a producer working for Russia's state media outlet was hurt when police fired rubber bullets and a grenade to disperse protesters in Washington DC.

Australia, Germany and the UK also voiced concerns about attacks on journalists covering the protests in the US.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian earlier said that "racism against ethnic minorities in the US is a chronic disease of American society".

"The current situation reflects once more the severity of the problems of racism and police violence in the US," he said.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said: "To the American people: the world has heard your outcry over the state of oppression. The world is standing with you.

"And to the American officials and police: stop violence against your people and let them breathe."

Asked about race, unrest and the US response, the Canadian prime minister chose his words carefully.

Image source, AFP/Getty Images

US Attorney General William Barr, the top law enforcement officer in the US, has released a statement praising yesterday's crackdown on peaceful protesters outside the White House and vowing to deploy even more officers tonight.

“Last night was a more peaceful night in the District of Columbia. Working together, federal and local law enforcement made significant progress in restoring order to the nation’s capital," said Barr, who was seen outside the White House gates speaking to police and soldiers before they charged the crowd.

According to US media, Barr had left the White House to discover that an order to expand the security perimeter outside the compound had not been acted on the previous night. He personally ordered the perimeter to be widened moments before Trump addressed the nation from the Rose Garden.

"There will be even greater law enforcement resources and support in the region tonight," Barr's statement continued.

"The most basic function of government is to provide security for people to live their lives and exercise their rights, and we will meet that responsibility here in the nation’s capital.”

A massive crowd of thousands of people has gathered in Houston, Texas, to march for George Floyd, who will be laid to rest in the city on 9 June.

Floyd died in Minneapolis last week after an officer kneeled on his neck for more than eight minutes. The arrest was caught on video.

A lawyer for Floyd's family said earlier on Tuesday that former Vice-President Joe Biden is expected to attend the funeral next week.

Some of Floyd's childhood friends today are leading the Houston march, with over 25,000 protesters behind them, according to local news reports.

Before departing a park for Houston City Hall, protesters took a knee and held a moment of silence for Floyd and other black Americans who have been killed by police.

Video from the scene show some protesters arrived in true Texas form - on horseback.

Image source, Getty Images

Here's what you need to know:

• Law enforcement officers were attacked in several US cities overnight as protests continued despite curfews; four were shot in St Louis, Missouri and one in Las Vegas, while two were injured after being hit by cars in New York City and Buffalo, New York
• President Trump is facing criticism after peaceful protesters in the nation's capital were dispersed with tear gas before the city's curfew began, so that he could walk to a church and pose for photos -a move condemned by a number of religious leaders; the president visited the National Shrine earlier today as protests continued in DC
• Crowds are gathering in Houston, Texas, for a peaceful march with George Floyd's family; up to 20,000 people are expected, local media say
• New York City and Los Angeles have announced the harshest curfews in decades; New York Governor Andrew Cuomo meanwhile has criticised the city's Mayor Bill de Blasio and police for not doing their jobs after a night of looting and vandalism in Manhattan and suggested he might move the National Guard into the city
• Eight states plus Washington DC are holding primary elections, many of which were delayed due to the coronavirus - and while November's presidential candidates are all but decided, the elections will serve as a test of vote-by-mail systems

Image source, Getty Images

The Minnesota Department of Human Rights will launch an investigation into the city of Minneapolis' police department, officials announced on Tuesday.

The inquiry will look into the last decade of policies and practices.

They have also filed a civil rights charge of "unlawful race-based policing" regarding George Floyd's death. Floyd died after being arrested by police in Minnesota.

Critics have accused the police department of police brutality and bias against minorities for years.

“As we move forward, we ask the community to watch what we do, not what we say," said Governor Tim Walz.

"This effort is only one of many steps to come in our effort to restore trust with those in the community who have been unseen and unheard for far too long."

Walz added: "We're not going to restore peace on our streets by having the national guard show up...We're going to restore peace by addressing the systemic issues that caused it in the first place."

Tara McKelvey
BBC News, Washington

Image source, EPA

The police forces of the US have been under scrutiny, with people across the political spectrum calling for reform.

Activists with Black Lives Matter say police should receive training in implicit bias, while a writer for the conservative National Review says officers should learn "de-escalation techniques".

Yet some suggestions have been dismissed as naïve.

Joe Biden, the likely Democratic nominee for president, said recently that police could shoot someone in the leg instead of the heart, saying that one is “a very different thing” from the other.

Critics lashed out, saying he does not understand how guns work.

Weapons instructors say Biden’s idea is impractical: when officer fire, they are unlikely to aim in such a precise manner. "Your heart rate is way up above 200, and you have tunnel vision," explained one instructor.

"Hit the kneecap? You can't even see a kneecap."

Those who work in law enforcement and their critics agree that change is necessary. But they want measures that work – not just notions that sound good but make no sense in the everyday lives of officers.

Helier Cheung
BBC News, Washington DC

A protester in Washington DC has told the BBC how he spent last night with 60 to 70 other demonstrators after a resident opened his doors to them, shielding them from riot police on the streets.

The protester, who wants to be identified as Meka, said he and other protesters were followed by police to a residential street in north-west DC, when more police appeared in front of them.

"They cut us off," he said. "We were being peaceful... cops just started coming towards us, spraying mace, pushing and hitting people."

With police on either side of the protesters, they had nowhere to go. That's when a person named Rahul Dubey opened his doors to them.

"Police chased us up the steps and sprayed mace into the house," Meka said.

Dubey says he felt like he had no other option but to host the protesters in his home after soldiers and officers charged the crowd.

"People were being beaten, people were getting slammed to the ground, they were getting pepper sprayed," he says.

"There's no other choice, what if I didn't open the door?"

"It was literally like a storm that was out front and people getting sprayed and my eyes were burning," he continues.

"It happened really fast, I flung open the door. The people that were on the steps just ran in and then just all these people were running in."

Meka said the protesters stayed inside Rahul's house ‪from 21:45 to 06:00, and thanked the stranger for his support.

"I couldn’t imagine anyone who would just be OK with dozens of people pouring into his house that he doesn’t know in a chaotic mayhem.

"He’s just an amazing person."

Meka's videos of the police outside on the street trended on social media, with one video viewed more than half a million times.

A local resident, Jeff Gay, says also saw the protesters and police crowded on the street that night.“I would estimate there were 200 to 300 protesters and easily 100 national guard members and police.

“I am very much in support of the protesters' message," he says. "I think we are about 400 years late in this country. I think the looting only hurts our cause and hope that starts to abate.”