New York City’s mayor and police commissioner on Sunday both defended local officers engaged in violent standoffs with protesters as mass demonstrations erupted across the U.S., sparked by the death of Black man George Floyd while in Minneapolis police custody.

Videos and images circulated on social media Saturday afternoon showing New York Police Department officers driving vans into crowds, accosting credentialed media ― and arresting a HuffPost reporter ― and, in one instance, apparently pulling down a protester’s mask to pepper spray him as the demonstrations progressed into the evening.

De Blasio also announced in a news briefing on Sunday that two local investigators — Department of Investigation head Margaret Garnett and Corporation Counsel James Johnson — will conduct an independent review in June of the NYPD’s actions during the weekend’s protests.

Shea and de Blasio both blamed outside agitators for protest violence and praised the NYPD for the progress it has made to address accusations of unfair policing and violence against people of color.

However de Blasio and Shea characterized the department’s progress, their comments stood in stark contrast to Saturday’s widespread imagery of journalists arrested and police vans driving into crowds of people.