Merton is set to pay tribute to George Floyd by lighting up the civic centre purple tonight (June 3).

The building will be lit purple in memory of George Floyd and in solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement.

George Floyd, 46, was killed by police in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on Monday, May 25.

Footage of his death in police custody sparked waves of protests against racism and police brutality in the US and around the world that continue unabated.

In a joint statement posted online, council leaders, Stephen Alambritis, Nick McLean, Anthony Fairclough and Peter Southgate, said:

“We are all appalled at the images of George Floyd’s arrest, and many of us are still in shock by his tragic, brutal and unnecessary death.

“As you know, this tragedy has sparked mass protest across America to highlight the issue of police brutality against black Americans, and over the last few days, Black Lives Matter protests have also been held here in London.

“Here in Merton, we have a diverse population coming from many different backgrounds and we continue to work in partnership with the police and other agencies to keep Merton residents safe.

“Our local police have built up a good working relationship with all communities in the borough and treat our residents with dignity and respect.

“We support the need to show solidarity and to continue the fight for equality and justice and would urge local residents who wish to show that black lives matter, and to continue to do so safely to honour George Floyd and the many others who have lost their lives in similar circumstances.

“We urge everyone in the borough to continue to safely support.

“Merton stands against all forms of hate and in these unprecedented times, where face to face advice is currently unavailable, we want to ensure our residents continue to have access to our Hate Crime Advice Surgeries.

"To run this service safely, we’ve launched our new telephone support service, which will temporarily replace our monthly drop-in surgeries.”

To find out more about the service, visit at: https://www.merton.gov.uk/communities-and-neighbourhoods/crime-prevention-and-community-safety/hate-crime