Miami Beach prepares to apply a nightly curfew in the wake of shootings

Miami Beach authorities are preparing this Thursday to impose a night curfew, following two shootings that left five injured last weekend in that Florida city, in the southeastern United States.

It is the second consecutive year that the town applies this measure during the "spring break" –the spring break in the United States–, which each year attracts thousands of young people, mostly students, to South Florida for a few days of fun and chaos.

The curfew, which covers the busiest area of ​​the city, including the famous Ocean Drive promenade, will apply between midnight and 06:00, from this Thursday until Monday morning.

Raúl lives in Miami Beach and is in favor of the City Council’s decision during this period in which the southernmost neighborhood, South Beach, is the scene of parties with high alcohol consumption.

For that 49-year-old waiter, who doesn’t want to give his last name, the curfew means less business, but it is necessary.

"It’s not good for my job, but I agree with the authorities. Something needs to be done to ensure safety"he assures.

On Ocean Drive, 27-year-old Ebony Mcfarland laments having to live through another "spring break" with a curfew in Miami Beach, after having attended the previous one in 2021, but that measure does not surprise him.

"I fully understand why they impose a curfew, because this gets out of control. There are young people who come here and don’t know how to behave"says this young woman from Atlanta, about 1,000 km north of Miami.

– A controversial move –

Local authorities announced a nightly curfew on Monday after the weekend shootings.

On Wednesday, the City Council added a ban on selling alcohol in shops and supermarkets in the most visited area from 6:00 p.m. until opening the next day. This measure does not affect bars and restaurants.

Marcus Gregory, a 24-year-old tourist from Houston, Texas, sees no benefit to such measures.

"I don’t understand how this is going to help. I don’t feel like I’m going to stop something from happening."it says.

The curfew announcement drew some criticism, including from Stephen Hunter Johnson, a member of the Miami-Dade County Black Advisory Board.

"Only emergency is there’s blacks on the beach"he told the Miami Herald, accusing authorities of targeting Miami Beach because it is a place where many African-Americans gather.

Sitting on a bench by the beach, local John Lee feels that there is too much difference between his city and other places.

"I don’t think anything spectacular happens here. These things (the incidents) happen all over the world every day, and they don’t say anything about it"says this 27-year-old man.

According to local police, officers have seized 100 firearms and arrested some 620 people in the city since February 18.

More than 50% of those arrested were residents of Miami-Dade County, where Miami Beach is located.

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