Protests seeking justice for Floyd began in the United States the next day, with citizens of other countries soon following suit.

[5] Prominent local issues included the 2016 death of Adama Traoré near Paris while in police custody (for whom roughly 20,000 people protested at various times) and the high rate of death amongst incarcerated Indigenous Australians.

The protests took place during the COVID-19 pandemic, during which gathering in crowds was strongly advised against in some parts of the world, and outright banned in others.

Starting on 28 May, protests arose in nearly all major cities across Italy, including Milan, Naples, Florence, Rome and Bari.

As well as providing solidarity to protests in the United States, many of the ongoing protests in Italy intend to highlight issues with racism faced from law enforcement in Italy and in daily life, as well as highlighting wider non-racial issues of police corruption and brutality.