'Occupy City Hall' protest urges budget cuts for NYC police

Hundreds of protesters camped outside City Hall are demanding that lawmakers slash the New York City police budget.

The encampment in City Hall Park in lower Manhattan began forming earlier this week following weeks of street protests sparked by the death of George Floyd and other Black Americans killed by law enforcement. The protesters are part of a national “defund the police” movement seeking more spending on other needs like housing and education.

Demonstrators are demanding that the City Council cut at least $1 billion in from the police department’s current $6 billion budget when it begins considering a new city budget next week. Organizers have called it “Occupy City Hall” — a nod to the 2010 Occupy Wall Street movement a few blocks away in Zuccotti Park.

A protester sets up signs on a subway station entrance at an encampment outside City Hall, Friday, June 26, 2020, in New York. (AP PhotoJohn Minchillo)

Police officials warned the budget cut would come at a time when the city has seen a surge in shootings during the first three weeks in June. Mayor Bill de Blasio has committed to reducing the police budget, but hasn’t said by how much.

“We need safety and we need fairness. We need safety and we need justice. We have to do both,” the mayor said.

Floyd, a Black man, died on May 25 after a white Minneapolis police officer pressed a knee on Floyd's neck even after he stopped moving and pleading for air. His death prompted global demonstrations about police brutality and slayings of people of color.

A protester at an encampment outside City Hall, Friday, June 26, 2020, in New York writes the names of individuals killed in incidents involving police. (AP PhotoJohn Minchillo)

Protesters hang signs and artwork at a subway station entrance at an encampment outside City Hall, Friday, June 26, 2020, in New York. (AP PhotoJohn Minchillo)

Police stand on the street beside a protest encampment surrounded by handmade signs and barricades outside City Hall, Friday, June 26, 2020, in New York. (AP PhotoJohn Minchillo)

A protester paints signs that cover a subway station entrance at an encampment outside City Hall, Friday, June 26, 2020, in New York. (AP PhotoJohn Minchillo)

Protesters rest on a grassy area at an encampment outside City Hall, Friday, June 26, 2020, in New York while surrounded by signs calling for justice in the deaths of Black civilians in police encounters. (AP PhotoJohn Minchillo)

Protesters rest in a grassy area surrounded by signs calling for changes to police policies and practices at an encampment outside City Hall, Friday, June 26, 2020, in New York. (AP PhotoJohn Minchillo)

A New York City police officer, among a detail of police guarding City Hall, watches as organizers with City Workers4Justice–an activist organization for city employees–prepare to lead a rally and march calling on Mayor Bill de Blasio to defund the police department, Thursday June 25, 2020, in New York. (AP PhotoBebeto Matthews)