Ann Arbor Times

The Michigan Senate earlier this month approved and adopted a resolution denouncing violent extremism and urging the federal government to stop the spread of domestic terrorism.

Senate Resolution 122, which received full bipartisan support, was authored by Sens. Lana Theis (R-Brighton) and Sylvia Santana, (D-Detroit).

The death of George Floyd in the custody of the Minneapolis Police Department on Memorial Day set off a wave of protests nationwide, with several taking place in Michigan.

“We stand together, joined as Michiganders and Americans, united for peace and understanding,” Theis said on MiSenateGOP. “What happened to George Floyd was horrific, unconscionable, indefensible and pure evil. We all are shocked and saddened by what we saw and have been spurred to action.”

Theis supports the First Amendment rights of the protesters but lamented how looting and rioting are muddling the message they are trying to send.

“But the voices of people who are expressing their constitutionally protected rights to peacefully protest are being overshadowed by violent groups that seek to destroy and divide,” the senator said, according to MiSenateGOP. “This resolution that I proudly cosponsored with my colleague from Detroit expresses our desire to come together to condemn and denounce that behavior, so that the peaceful voices that are rightfully outraged at injustice can be heard by the government that represents them.”

Thousands of Michiganders, from Grand Rapids to Detroit, have taken to the streets in the past three weeks to demand justice for 46-year-old Floyd, who was allegedly suffocated to death when police officer Derek Chauvin pressed his knee against Floyd’s neck for almost nine minutes.

Chauvin and three other officers were responding to a call from a store clerk who claimed Floyd used a counterfeit $20 bill to pay for a pack of cigarettes.