Protests have broken out across the US following the death of George Floyd in police custody, with some escalating to violence but a US activist says it's a result of long-standing anger over the treatment of black people in America.
The president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People's Youth and College Division (NAACP) says the riots are the result of desperation.
"We've been told that kneeling, signing petitions and voting doesn't always work," Tiffany Loftin told Magic Talk on Tuesday.
"So the folks you see outside now are the folks who have had enough and I think it's a really powerful moment."
Some people have criticised protesters for the scenes of chaos across the country. President Donald Trump even threatened them with further violence, saying "when the looting starts the shooting starts" in a Tweet which has since been censored.
Loftin says the conversation about violent protest fails to acknowledge decades of context.
"I think these conversations sometimes change very quickly when we talk about violence but without recognising the systematic violence and the reason for the protest in the first place," she told host Ryan Bridge.
"We want a better, safer America."
To achieve that the NAACP has two goals.
"We want to see an equal system across the country so that the excessive force we have seen for decades isn't used on black folks, and the other thing we want is to see officers going to trial."
Loftin says less than one percent of officers who are violent against black people are brought to trial - and less are convicted.
"Until that happens you'll continue to see year after year folks get more upset, more scared, more angry about what's taking place."
She says while people may criticise how people are protesting they have no right to tell black people in America how to handle their anger.
"We cannot tell a family or a community how to process their anger when the track record of America has told us that George Zimmerman is allowed to walk free, that the officer who killed Michael Brown can walk free and still be an officer today."
"I don't condone the violence but I know that people are frustrated and their rage is justified."
