REUTERS/ROBERT GALBRAITH
- Some Apple stores in the United States have been boarded up as protests continue across the country in response to the death of George Floyd, a black man, who was killed after a white police officer in Minneapolis knelt on his neck for over eight minutes.
- Apple recently closed some of its retail stores in cities where protests are happening.
- The decision to keep certain stores closed comes after the company was just starting to reopen some retail locations after coronavirus-related closures.
- Are you an Apple employee with insight to share? If so, we want to hear from you. Contact this reporter at leadicicco@businessinsider.com or through encrypted mail at lisaeadicicco@protonmail.com, or send a direct message on Twitter to @LisaEadicicco.
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Apple has boarded up some of its retail locations in the US as protests continue throughout the country in response to the death of George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man who was killed after a white police officer knelt on his neck for over eight minutes.
Apple said it was keeping some of its retail stores closed to prioritize the health and safety of its employees. The move comes just as Apple was beginning to gradually reopen stores in the US following months of widespread closures because of the coronavirus.
"With the health and safety of our teams in mind, we've made the decision to keep a number of our stores in the US closed today," an Apple spokesperson said in a statement to Business Insider.
Photos circulating on social media over the past few days show Apple Stores in locations across the country, from New York City to Washington state, with their windows and entrances boarded up.
Protests and demonstrations have spanned the country in recent days, with tensions escalating. Some cities have imposed curfews and some police officers have attacked protesters: aiming their weapons or firing at protesters and journalists, tasing or attacking bystanders, or driving their vehicles into crowds. In some cases, stores have been looted, property destroyed, and police cars lit on fire. Videos also surfaced on social media over the weekend that appeared to show people attempting to break into Apple stores.
Apple has not yet said when it plans to reopen closed stores.
The facade of the Apple Store in Minneapolis, where Floyd was killed, appears to be completely boarded up with black painted wood.Tweet Embed:
//twitter.com/mims/statuses/1266732433120137216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Welcome to the Minneapolis Apple store! pic.twitter.com/uH9PwcxCUe
Barriers can be seen surrounding Apple's flagship Fifth Avenue Stores in New York City.
Tweet Embed:
//twitter.com/mims/statuses/1267421025018445825?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Apple store is building a layered barrier around the cube #nyc pic.twitter.com/zvNhyOYgrZ
An Apple Store in New York City on the Upper West Side has been completely boarded up.Rainmaker Photos/MediaPunch/MediaPunch/IPx
The Apple Store on Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn has been boarded up with wooden panels and appears to be cordoned off with caution tape.
Tweet Embed:
//twitter.com/mims/statuses/1267152345168777222?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Apple Store on Flatbush trying to board up their stupidly tall panes of glass pic.twitter.com/vMULKREmTq
The entrance to the Apple Store at the Carnegie Library in Washington, D.C., which Apple opened last May, also has wooden boards over the entrance and along the windows.
Tweet Embed:
//twitter.com/mims/statuses/1267447199081922561?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Mayor Muriel Bowser, viewing the Carnegie Library / Apple Store on Mt. Vernon Square, two blocks from my apartment.
Picture taken by me, 5 minutes ago. pic.twitter.com/hTrMr2pQ6f
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
See Also:
- How Silicon Valley leaders, from Elon Musk to Tim Cook, are responding to the George Floyd protests
- Read the memo Apple CEO Tim Cook sent to employees addressing the death of George Floyd
- These $50,000 tiny homes unfold out of shipping containers and can be combined into custom houses — see inside
SEE ALSO: Read the memo Apple CEO Tim Cook sent to employees addressing the death of George Floyd
