Odette Youssef

One of the gaping holes that remains five years after Floyd's murder is the AutoZone auto parts store arson. This was the very first structure in the area to burn. It's been cited as the trigger event that turned peaceful protests into lawlessness. The police named a suspect from a suburb of Minneapolis.

An arson investigator's affidavit identified him as an affiliate of organized white supremacist groups, including the Hells Angels and a prison gang called the Aryan Cowboys. To this day, there has been no arrest. The details of it all have faded for some locals.

An arson investigator's affidavit identified him as an affiliate of organized white supremacist groups, including the Hells Angels and a prison gang called the Aryan Cowboys. To this day, there has been no arrest. The details of it all have faded for some locals.

An arson investigator's affidavit identified him as an affiliate of organized white supremacist groups, including the Hells Angels and a prison gang called the Aryan Cowboys. To this day, there has been no arrest. The details of it all have faded for some locals.

What hasn't faded is the conviction nurtured among many Americans that summer that actually the violence came only from the left, the side that, in this case, did not set off the chaos.

What hasn't faded is the conviction nurtured among many Americans that summer that actually the violence came only from the left, the side that, in this case, did not set off the chaos.

What hasn't faded is the conviction nurtured among many Americans that summer that actually the violence came only from the left, the side that, in this case, did not set off the chaos.

Data from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project find that at least 27 people were killed during the demonstrations across the nation. Most of them were not tied to any obvious ideological motivation. Instead, they appear to have just been criminal in nature. But of those where the perpetrators had an identifiable ideology, only one was a self-identified anti-fascist.

Data from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project find that at least 27 people were killed during the demonstrations across the nation. Most of them were not tied to any obvious ideological motivation. Instead, they appear to have just been criminal in nature. But of those where the perpetrators had an identifiable ideology, only one was a self-identified anti-fascist.

Data from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project find that at least 27 people were killed during the demonstrations across the nation. Most of them were not tied to any obvious ideological motivation. Instead, they appear to have just been criminal in nature. But of those where the perpetrators had an identifiable ideology, only one was a self-identified anti-fascist.

Six, by comparison, were far-right actors. Still, an internal report from the Department of Homeland Security suggests top officials were interested in a single predetermined narrative. Focusing on the drawn-out rioting in Portland, Oregon… The head of Intelligence Gathering, quote, stated that the violent protesters in Portland were connected to or motivated by Antifa.

Six, by comparison, were far-right actors. Still, an internal report from the Department of Homeland Security suggests top officials were interested in a single predetermined narrative. Focusing on the drawn-out rioting in Portland, Oregon… The head of Intelligence Gathering, quote, stated that the violent protesters in Portland were connected to or motivated by Antifa.

Six, by comparison, were far-right actors. Still, an internal report from the Department of Homeland Security suggests top officials were interested in a single predetermined narrative. Focusing on the drawn-out rioting in Portland, Oregon… The head of Intelligence Gathering, quote, stated that the violent protesters in Portland were connected to or motivated by Antifa.

This, even though his analysts had no evidence of that. But it wasn't just Trump and some administration officials who manipulated public perceptions of the unrest that summer.

This, even though his analysts had no evidence of that. But it wasn't just Trump and some administration officials who manipulated public perceptions of the unrest that summer.

This, even though his analysts had no evidence of that. But it wasn't just Trump and some administration officials who manipulated public perceptions of the unrest that summer.

Pete Simi is a sociology professor at Chapman University. He says extremists did what they always do. They clocked the high level of uncertainty among the public and swooped in. Simi says the movement for racial justice also created its own problems in retrospect. The defund the police slogan ultimately wasn't helpful.

Pete Simi is a sociology professor at Chapman University. He says extremists did what they always do. They clocked the high level of uncertainty among the public and swooped in. Simi says the movement for racial justice also created its own problems in retrospect. The defund the police slogan ultimately wasn't helpful.

Pete Simi is a sociology professor at Chapman University. He says extremists did what they always do. They clocked the high level of uncertainty among the public and swooped in. Simi says the movement for racial justice also created its own problems in retrospect. The defund the police slogan ultimately wasn't helpful.

And experiments with so-called autonomous zones, areas with no police, produced troubling stories, including a 16-year-old fatally shot in Seattle's.