bbc--2020-05-27--Coronavirus: What attacks on Asians reveal about American identity

Attacks on East Asian people living in the US have shot up during the pandemic , revealing an uncomfortable truth about American identity .
Though she was not born in the US , nothing about Tracy Wen Liu 's life in the country felt `` un-American '' .
She went to football games , watched Sex and the City and volunteered at food banks .
Before the Covid-19 pandemic , Ms Liu , 31 , did n't think anything of being East Asian and living in Austin , Texas .
`` Honestly , I did n't really think I stood @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
That has changed .
With the outbreak of the pandemic that has killed nearly 100,000 people in the US , being Asian in America can make you a target - and many , including Ms Liu , have felt it .
In her case , she says a Korean friend was pushed and yelled at by several people in a grocery store , and then asked to leave , simply because she was Asian and wore a mask .
In states including New York , California , and Texas , East Asians @ @ @ @ @ @ @ kicked - and in one case even stabbed .
Whether they have been faced with outright violence , bullying or more insidious forms of social or political abuse , a spike in anti-Asian prejudice has left many Asians - which in the US refers to people of east or southeast Asian descent - wondering where they fit in American society .
`` When I first came here five years ago , my goal was to adapt to American culture as soon as possible , '' says Ms Liu .
`` Then the pandemic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Asian , and because of how I look like or where I was born , I could never become one of them . ''
After her friend 's supermarket altercation , she decided to get her first gun .
`` I hope the world never comes to a day when we have to use that , '' she says , adding : `` That would be a very , very bad situation , something I do n't even want to imagine . ''
Authorities in New York City and Los Angeles say that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have increased , while a reporting centre run by advocacy groups and San Francisco State University says it received over 1,700 reports of coronavirus-related discrimination from at least 45 US states since it launched in March .
Police in at least 13 states , including Texas , Washington , New Jersey , Minnesota and New Mexico , have also responded to reported hate incidents .
Critics say those at the very top have made things worse - both President Donald Trump , and Democratic hopeful Joe Biden have been accused of fuelling anti-Asian @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 've used while talking about China 's role in the outbreak .
And for many Asian Americans , it can feel as though , in addition to being targeted , their identity as Americans is being attacked .
How serious is anti-Asian prejudice in the US ?
Large numbers of Asian Americans , and Asians in the US - have described a sharp change in their experiences following the outbreak .
Kimberly Ha , 38 , says she noticed the difference in February , after a stranger began shouting at her as she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` He yelled : ' I 'm not scared of radioactive Chinese people ' and started pointing at me , shouting 'you people should n't be here , get out of this country , I 'm not scared of this virus that you people brought over , ' '' the Chinese Canadian , who has lived in New York for over 15 years , said .
In the weeks that followed , she also noticed that `` about one in 10 '' people she encountered in public appeared angry when they saw her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ level of hostility before , '' she says .
On the opposite side of the US in California , Madison Pfrimmer , 23 , had heard about anti-Asian attacks , but `` did n't think it was as prevalent as everyone made it seem '' .
Then , in April , she helped translate for an elderly Chinese couple in a supermarket in Los Angeles when they were confronted by an angry woman who swore at them at length , threw water at them and sprayed them .
`` She yelled 'how dare @ @ @ @ @ @ @ family shops , how dare you come and ruin my country .
You are why my family is not able to make money , ' '' Ms Pfrimmer , who is half-Chinese , recalls .
Ms Pfrimmer says she tried to reason with the woman , who berated her for translating for the couple and hurled water from a bottle at her , soaking her legs and feet .
The woman walked by them again when they were waiting for the cashier , spraying them with something that appeared to be air freshener @ @ @ @ @ @ @ elderly couple to their car , where she took photos of them while shouting `` it 's your fault '' , and directing expletives at `` China '' , `` all those dirty people '' and `` communism '' .
`` I ran to the couple , told them in Mandarin to just get in their car , and loaded their groceries for them - I handed the man the eggs through his window , '' says Ms Pfrimmer .
The woman followed her in her car - until Ms Pfrimmer purposefully drove @ @ @ @ @ @ @ groups and San Francisco State University teamed up to start the STOP AAPI HATE database , which records reports of Covid-19 discrimination directed at Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the US .
They received examples from 45 states , with California and New York making up the bulk of cases .
The incidents recorded fall on a broad spectrum .
Verbal harassment is by far the most common , but shunning , physical assault , workplace discrimination , being barred from establishments , and vandalism also feature in the database - with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ men .
Russell Jeung , a professor of Asian American studies at San Francisco State University who has been running the database , says he found so many incidents of people `` being coughed or spat upon '' that he added it as an additional category .
That 's what happened to Ted Nghiem , a Vietnamese American in Philadelphia .
He says in March , a man swore at him , yelling `` get out of here , you caused coronavirus '' - but it did n't particularly bother him .
However @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at him as he walked past , which got him `` really down for a day or two '' .
`` I did inform the cops but I do n't know if anything happened… luckily I did n't catch anything , '' says Mr Nghiem , 37 .
The STOP AAPI HATE database is based on online self-reporting .
A separate BBC analysis of interviews and US media reports found coverage of more than 100 alleged incidents since January that appeared to target Asians .
About 70 % of those incidents had a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about 40 % of cases were reported to police .
• BBC data on reported anti-Asian incidents in the US Some incidents reached the bar of hate crimes .
New York City police say they have investigated 14 hate crimes related to Covid-19 , involving 15 Asian victims .
There have been at least nine physical attacks in the state .
In California , an elderly man was attacked with an iron bar , and a teenager was taken to hospital after being physically assaulted .
In Texas , an Asian family , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stabbed in a supermarket .
An FBI report obtained by ABC news said that `` the suspect indicated that he stabbed the family because he thought the family was Chinese , and infecting people with the coronavirus '' .
The family was Southeast Asian .
Statistics on Anti-Asian incidents in the US : • One third of people surveyed said they had witnessed someone blaming Asian people for the pandemic • 1,710 incidents reported to STOP AAPI HATE - 15 % of those cases involved physical assault or being coughed on or spat @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reported in the media • 133 incidents of anti-Asian discrimination recorded by the New York City Commission on Human Rights - compared to 11 in the same period last year .
The commission has intervened in 91 cases .
• 14 Asian-bias hate crimes investigated by police in New York • More than 100 alleged hate incidents reported to civic groups and police departments in Los Angeles • Six reports of bias incidents reported to police in Seattle • There has been a surge in anti-Asian hate on extremist web communities Sources : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ York City Commission on Human Rights , New York City Police , Los Angeles County Commission on Human Rights , Seattle Police , Network Contagion Research Institute , BBC research Some Asians have also reported being refused service from hotel rooms , or Uber rides , as a result of their ethnicity .
Matt ( not his real name ) , a Chinese American emergency room doctor in Connecticut , noticed that several patients asked to be admitted to hospital because they said an Asian person had coughed near them .
He experienced @ @ @ @ @ @ @ personally , when he tried to treat a patient thought to have Covid-19 .
`` I had my protective equipment on , walked in and introduced myself .
Once they heard my surname , they were like 'do n't touch me , can I see someone else - can you just not come close to me ' . ''
Many other minorities face more `` overt types of discrimination which are worse '' , Matt says - but he fears that incidents such as what he experienced would be demoralising for medical workers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ time - we 're working a lot more , wearing very uncomfortable equipment all the time , and a lot of us are getting exposed to Covid-19 . ''
'If he looks Chinese , he gets attacked' The virus originated from Wuhan , China , and much of President Trump 's rhetoric has focused on what he calls the country 's failings to contain the outbreak .
Earlier this year , he regularly referred to the coronavirus as the `` Chinese virus '' - a term that critics said did not distinguish between @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people of Chinese ethnicity .
He later called for Asian Americans to be protected , saying `` the spreading of the virus is not their fault in any way shape or form '' .
But that has n't stopped Chinese Americans from being blamed - or other East Asians from being targeted .
Prof Jeung says about 40 % of the reports he received were from ethnic Chinese people - but a majority of cases were from people of other East Asian ethnicities .
`` That 's an example of racial profiling - @ @ @ @ @ @ @ gets attacked ' . ''
Back in February - before cloth masks were recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - Dahyung Oh , 23 , remembers a woman staring at her in a hostile manner on a New York subway platform .
`` She started approaching me , pointing at me and saying 'Why are n't you wearing a mask , you should be wearing a mask ' , '' the university student , from South Korea , says .
The woman did not wear a mask herself , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ because there were literally 10-20 people around us who were n't wearing masks '' .
`` I felt really angry at the situation , as if I was singled out because I 'm Asian , and a small sized woman that could be easier for someone to target . ''
That incident did n't end in violence - but Ms Oh was lucky .
In two separate incidents in New York in March , Asian women were physically attacked for not wearing masks .
Many others have been harassed while wearing masks .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a lose-lose situation for Asians when it comes to discrimination , because `` if they wear a mask , they are suspected of being infected - and if they do n't wear a mask , they 're suspected of being infected but negligent '' .
It 's not just in the US either - there have been several high profile cases of physical attacks against East Asians in the UK and in Canada .
Vancouver 's police department has said that 20 anti-Asian hate crimes have been reported in 2020 so far .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ been discrimination of African residents - with reports of people being forced into quarantine , and a McDonald 's barring African people from entering .
Many say they have been singled out for multiple Covid-19 tests , or been evicted , following online rumours that two Nigerians who had tested positive for the virus escaped .
`` I think it is very consistent with past times of crisis , where typically one group is scapegoated , '' says Carmelyn P. Malalis , head of the New York City Commission on Human Rights .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ as past examples .
In the US , there has been `` underlying anti-Asian discrimination '' even before the pandemic , but little awareness of it , because there are typically lower levels of reporting , and `` people often think of racism as a black-white thing , not realising that racism exists in many forms , '' she adds .
Why are Asian Americans still seen as outsiders ?
Asians in the US come from a wide range of ethnicities , countries and backgrounds , and often have different political beliefs and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ - or about 6 % of the US population - are Asian , according to census data .
The figure includes Asian Americans , as well as people from South and East Asia living , studying or working in the US .
Some Asian residents , such as Bhutanese Americans , are more likely to be immigrants born abroad , while others , such as Japanese Americans , are most likely to come from families that have been in the US for generations .
About three million tourists from China alone visit the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ against Asians in the US is indiscriminate , whether one identifies as Asian American , hopes to become American , or is simply visiting .
Asian Americans have described some common experiences - including that they 've been seen as `` perpetual foreigners '' even before the pandemic .
`` Race , like many social categories , [ is a ] thing that says you 're part of this category [ that is ] plainly visible for everybody to see , '' says Debbie Ma , a psychology professor at California State University @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , '' she adds , `` it 's very easy to quickly label and assign stereotypes and associations with those categories '' - that an East Asian person is foreign , even if they are not , for example .
A 2008 study she co-authored found that respondents - US university participants of various racial backgrounds and ages - were more likely to implicitly think of Kate Winslet , the English actress , as `` American '' , than Lucy Liu , the New York-born star of Chinese heritage .
Matt says he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ English '' , and asked where he is actually from , even when he explains he was born in the US .
Meanwhile , Prof Jeung says : `` Even though my family 's been in the US for five generations , I 'm still seen as a foreigner . ''
Dr Ma notes that these are `` specific burdens '' that Asian people in America experience differently from other minorities .
For example , `` nobody is surprised when a black American speaks English really well , '' though African Americans face @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
This has made a person 's Asian appearance - something `` we wear so apparently '' , as Dr Ma puts it - a reason to target them amid the outbreak .
Nor is it the first time race has been used as cover to marginalise or act against East Asians in the US .
Asian Americans were interned en masse in the US following attacks on Pearl Harbour in World War Two , and sweeping caricatures of East Asians were used as racist propaganda to exclude immigration from China and other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Today , some Asian Americans still describe feeling `` on probation '' , and needing to prove their status as US citizens - a situation that has significantly worsened amid the outbreak .
Andrew Yang , a former Democratic candidate for president , wrote in April in the Washington Post : `` Some level of background disdain or alienation has grown into outright hostility and even aggression . ''
He called on Asian Americans to `` show our American-ness in ways we never have before '' by helping neighbours and wearing `` red @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he was also accused of victim-blaming for appearing to internalise the notion that Asian people , by virtue of their ethnicity , are not American enough .
Both the Trump and Biden campaigns have also come in for criticism .
An advert for the Trump campaign described Mr Biden as soft on China , and showed a montage of video clips of him with Chinese officials .
The montage included a shot of Gary Locke - the Chinese American former Washington governor who served as the US ambassador to China - leading to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Locke was a foreign official .
The Biden campaign came under fire after an attack ad emphasised that `` Trump let in 40,000 travellers from China into America '' after announcing a travel ban - even though many of those would have been American citizens .
Both campaigns have denied any xenophobia or targeting Chinese Americans .
How are Asian people in the US responding to attacks ?
For some , the rise in anti-Asian sentiment has felt clear and dangerous .
There is no comprehensive data on race and gun purchases in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shop owners suggest that many have seen more Asian buyers amid a general rise in sales .
Chinese American Donghui Zang , 49 , has started organising neighbourhood patrols in Queens , New York , where the group 's more-than-200 members take turns driving around and reporting suspicious activities to the police .
A dozen of members in the patrol group , including Mr Zang , have recently applied for firearms permits .
Mr Zang , who describes himself as socially conservative , believes Chinese Americans should arm themselves `` in case of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The view is not shared by everyone .
Max Leung , a co-founder of the San Francisco Peace Collective , says his group conducts patrols in Chinatown to help stop cases of vandalism and theft .
`` Although I do believe and am a huge advocate of self-defence , we do not promote our members bearing arms while on patrol , '' Mr Leung , 49 , says .
`` The culture I want to create within our group is that of promoting peace , not perpetuating violence . ''
Artists and comedians @ @ @ @ @ @ @ - including hip hop artist Jason Chu , who started the campaign Hate is a Virus , and wrote a rap about anti-Asian incidents .
He says the rap aimed to show `` the ridiculousness of people targeting Asian Americans '' , and also `` emphasise the fact that Asian Americans belong here '' .
`` We 're not guests in America - we were born here - this is where our parents raised us .
We 're saying that hate has no place in our country . ''
More generally , there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ discrimination will lead to stronger Asian communities in the US - and more solidarity with other ethnic minorities .
Matt recalls hearing negative comments about the African American community as he grew up - including from Asian Americans .
By contrast , `` now I see a lot of Asian Americans standing up for Ahmaud Arbery '' , the black jogger shot dead in a Georgia suburb by two white men now charged with murder .
Matt believes that Asian American communities have become more vocal in recent years about politics and representation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have seen this anti-Chinese rhetoric going on , and become more interested in talking about the discrimination that other communities face '' as a result .
Prof Jeung says he has seen examples of Asian Americans `` recognising their common interests , and mobilising as a political group and community '' .
Asians from different walks of life now `` find themselves having a common experience '' due to discrimination related to the pandemic .
`` We 're all facing this process , of racial profiling , together .
So hopefully , we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and develop empathy with other people who are racially profiled . ''

Coronavirus: What attacks on Asians reveal about American identity Published 27 May 2020
Image source, Getty Images
Attacks on East Asian people living in the US have shot up during the pandemic, revealing an uncomfortable truth about American identity.
Though she was not born in the US, nothing about Tracy Wen Liu's life in the country felt "un-American". Ms Liu went to football games, watched Sex and the City and volunteered at food banks.
Before the Covid-19 pandemic, the 31-year-old didn't think anything of being East Asian and living in Austin, Texas. "Honestly, I didn't really think I stood out a lot," she says.
That has changed. With the outbreak of the pandemic that has killed around 100,000 people in the US, being Asian in America can make you a target - and many, including Ms Liu, have felt it.
In her case, she says a Korean friend was pushed and yelled at by several people in a grocery store, and then asked to leave, simply because she was Asian and wore a mask.
In states including New York, California, and Texas, East Asians have been spat on, punched or kicked - and in one case even stabbed.
Whether they have been faced with outright violence, bullying or more insidious forms of social or political abuse, a spike in anti-Asian prejudice has left many Asians - which in the US refers to people of east or southeast Asian descent - wondering where they fit in American society.
"When I first came here five years ago, my goal was to adapt to American culture as soon as possible," says Ms Liu.
"Then the pandemic made me realise that because I am Asian, and because of how I look like or where I was born, I could never become one of them."
Image source, Tracy Wen Liu Image caption, Tracy (centre) went to graduate school at the University of Southern California in 2015
After her friend's supermarket altercation, she decided to get her first gun.
"I hope the world never comes to a day when we have to use that," she says, adding: "That would be a very, very bad situation, something I don't even want to imagine."
Authorities in New York City and Los Angeles say that hate incidents against people of Asian descent have increased, while a reporting centre run by advocacy groups and San Francisco State University says it received over 1,700 reports of coronavirus-related discrimination from at least 45 US states since it launched in March.
Police in at least 13 states, including Texas, Washington, New Jersey, Minnesota and New Mexico, have also responded to reported hate incidents.
Critics say those at the very top have made things worse - both President Donald Trump, and Democratic hopeful Joe Biden have been accused of fuelling anti-Asian sentiment to varying degrees with language they've used while talking about China's role in the outbreak.
And for many Asian Americans, it can feel as though, in addition to being targeted, their identity as Americans is being attacked.
How serious is anti-Asian prejudice in the US?
Large numbers of Asian Americans, and Asians in the US - have described a sharp change in their experiences following the outbreak.
Image source, Ted Nghiem Image caption, Ted Nghiem, who is Vietnamese American, was spat at
Kimberly Ha, 38, says she noticed the difference in February, after a stranger began shouting at her as she walked her dog in New York.
"He yelled: 'I'm not scared of radioactive Chinese people' and started pointing at me, shouting 'you people shouldn't be here, get out of this country, I'm not scared of this virus that you people brought over,'" the Chinese Canadian, who has lived in New York for over 15 years, said.
In the weeks that followed, she also noticed that "about one in 10" people she encountered in public appeared angry when they saw her. "I've never felt that level of hostility before," she says.
On the opposite side of the US in California, Madison Pfrimmer, 23, had heard about anti-Asian attacks, but "didn't think it was as prevalent as everyone made it seem".
Then, in April, she helped translate for an elderly Chinese couple in a supermarket in Los Angeles when they were confronted by an angry woman who swore at them at length, threw water at them and sprayed them.
"She yelled 'how dare you come to this store where my family shops, how dare you come and ruin my country. You are why my family is not able to make money,'" Ms Pfrimmer, who is half-Chinese, recalls.
Image source, Madison Pfrimmer Image caption, Madison Pfrimmer reported the incident to the police
Ms Pfrimmer says she tried to reason with the woman, who berated her for translating for the couple and hurled water from a bottle at her, soaking her legs and feet.
The woman walked by them again when they were waiting for the cashier, spraying them with something that appeared to be air freshener or disinfectant - and then followed the elderly couple to their car, where she took photos of them while shouting "it's your fault", and directing expletives at "China", "all those dirty people" and "communism".
"I ran to the couple, told them in Mandarin to just get in their car, and loaded their groceries for them - I handed the man the eggs through his window," says Ms Pfrimmer. The woman followed her in her car - until Ms Pfrimmer purposefully drove near a police station.
Asian rights groups and San Francisco State University teamed up to start the STOP AAPI HATE database, which records reports of Covid-19 discrimination directed at Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in the US. They received examples from 45 states, with California and New York making up the bulk of cases.
The incidents recorded fall on a broad spectrum. Verbal harassment is by far the most common, but shunning, physical assault, workplace discrimination, being barred from establishments, and vandalism also feature in the database - with women more likely to be targeted than men.
Image source, Larissa Lam / Josh Fleagane Image caption, A poster for the Disney film Mulan was vandalised
Russell Jeung, a professor of Asian American studies at San Francisco State University who has been running the database, says he found so many incidents of people "being coughed or spat upon" that he added it as an additional category.
That's what happened to Ted Nghiem, a Vietnamese American in Philadelphia. He says in March, a man swore at him, yelling "get out of here, you caused coronavirus" - but it didn't particularly bother him.
However, later that month a man spat at him as he walked past, which got him "really down for a day or two".
"I did inform the cops but I don't know if anything happened… luckily I didn't catch anything," says Mr Nghiem, 37.
The STOP AAPI HATE database is based on online self-reporting. A separate BBC analysis of interviews and US media reports found coverage of more than 100 alleged incidents since January that appeared to target Asians.
About 70% of those incidents had a clear link to the pandemic, and about 40% of cases were reported to police.
Some incidents reached the bar of hate crimes. New York City police say they have investigated 14 hate crimes related to Covid-19, involving 15 Asian victims. There have been at least nine physical attacks in the state.
In California, an elderly man was attacked with an iron bar, and a teenager was taken to hospital after being physically assaulted.
In Texas, an Asian family, including a two-year-old and six-year-old, were stabbed in a supermarket. An FBI report obtained by ABC news said that "the suspect indicated that he stabbed the family because he thought the family was Chinese, and infecting people with the coronavirus". The family was Southeast Asian.
Statistics on Anti-Asian incidents in the US:
One third of people surveyed said they had witnessed someone blaming Asian people for the pandemic
1,710 incidents reported to STOP AAPI HATE - 15% of those cases involved physical assault or being coughed on or spat at
More than 100 individual incidents reported in the media
133 incidents of anti-Asian discrimination recorded by the New York City Commission on Human Rights - compared to 11 in the same period last year. The commission has intervened in 91 cases.
14 Asian-bias hate crimes investigated by police in New York
More than 100 alleged hate incidents reported to civic groups and police departments in Los Angeles
Six reports of bias incidents reported to police in Seattle
There has been a surge in anti-Asian hate on extremist web communities
Sources: Ipsos, STOP AAPI HATE, New York City Commission on Human Rights, New York City Police, Los Angeles County Commission on Human Rights, Seattle Police, Network Contagion Research Institute, BBC research
Some Asians have also reported being refused service from hotel rooms, or Uber rides, as a result of their ethnicity.
Matt (not his real name), a Chinese American emergency room doctor in Connecticut, noticed that several patients asked to be admitted to hospital because they said an Asian person had coughed near them.
He experienced what appeared to be anti-Asian bias more personally, when he tried to treat a patient thought to have Covid-19.
"I had my protective equipment on, walked in and introduced myself. Once they heard my surname, they were like 'don't touch me, can I see someone else - can you just not come close to me'."
Many other minorities face more "overt types of discrimination which are worse", Matt says - but he fears that incidents such as what he experienced would be demoralising for medical workers.
"This is a pretty stressful time - we're working a lot more, wearing very uncomfortable equipment all the time, and a lot of us are getting exposed to Covid-19."
'If he looks Chinese, he gets attacked'
The virus originated from Wuhan, China, and much of President Trump's rhetoric has focused on what he calls the country's failings to contain the outbreak.
Earlier this year, he regularly referred to the coronavirus as the "Chinese virus" - a term that critics said did not distinguish between China, the Chinese government, and people of Chinese ethnicity.
He later called for Asian Americans to be protected, saying "the spreading of the virus is not their fault in any way shape or form".
But that hasn't stopped Chinese Americans from being blamed - or other East Asians from being targeted.
Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Members of the Asian American Commission gather in Massachusetts to condemn racism
Prof Jeung says about 40% of the reports he received were from ethnic Chinese people - but a majority of cases were from people of other East Asian ethnicities.
"That's an example of racial profiling - that 'if he looks Chinese, he gets attacked'."
Back in February - before cloth masks were recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - Dahyung Oh, 23, remembers a woman staring at her in a hostile manner on a New York subway platform.
"She started approaching me, pointing at me and saying 'Why aren't you wearing a mask, you should be wearing a mask'," the university student, from South Korea, says.
The woman did not wear a mask herself, and Ms Oh felt "singled out, because there were literally 10-20 people around us who weren't wearing masks".
"I felt really angry at the situation, as if I was singled out because I'm Asian, and a small sized woman that could be easier for someone to target."
Image source, Dahyung Oh Image caption, Dahyung Oh says her case was relatively minor - but she has still started avoiding some parts of New York
That incident didn't end in violence - but Ms Oh was lucky. In two separate incidents in New York in March, Asian women were physically attacked for not wearing masks. Many others have been harassed while wearing masks.
Prof Jeung says face masks can be a lose-lose situation for Asians when it comes to discrimination, because "if they wear a mask, they are suspected of being infected - and if they don't wear a mask, they're suspected of being infected but negligent".
It's not just in the US either - there have been several high profile cases of physical attacks against East Asians in the UK and in Canada. Vancouver's police department has said that 20 anti-Asian hate crimes have been reported in 2020 so far.
Meanwhile, in China, there has been discrimination of African residents - with reports of people being forced into quarantine, and a McDonald's barring African people from entering.
Many say they have been singled out for multiple Covid-19 tests, or been evicted, following online rumours that two Nigerians who had tested positive for the virus escaped.
"I think it is very consistent with past times of crisis, where typically one group is scapegoated," says Carmelyn P. Malalis, head of the New York City Commission on Human Rights. She cites the HIV/Aids crisis and Ebola as past examples.
In the US, there has been "underlying anti-Asian discrimination" even before the pandemic, but little awareness of it, because there are typically lower levels of reporting, and "people often think of racism as a black-white thing, not realising that racism exists in many forms," she adds.
Why are Asian Americans still seen as outsiders?
Asians in the US come from a wide range of ethnicities, countries and backgrounds, and often have different political beliefs and identities.
Some 20 million US residents - or about 6% of the US population - are Asian, according to census data. The figure includes Asian Americans, as well as people from South and East Asia living, studying or working in the US.
Image source, Kimberly Ha Image caption, Chinese Canadian Kimberly Ha (centre) was told to get out of the US
Some Asian residents, such as Bhutanese Americans, are more likely to be immigrants born abroad, while others, such as Japanese Americans, are most likely to come from families that have been in the US for generations.
About three million tourists from China alone visit the US each year.
But race-based prejudice against Asians in the US is indiscriminate, whether one identifies as Asian American, hopes to become American, or is simply visiting.
Asian Americans have described some common experiences - including that they've been seen as "perpetual foreigners" even before the pandemic.
"Race, like many social categories, [is a] thing that says you're part of this category [that is] plainly visible for everybody to see," says Debbie Ma, a psychology professor at California State University, Northridge.
"Because of that," she adds, "it's very easy to quickly label and assign stereotypes and associations with those categories" - that an East Asian person is foreign, even if they are not, for example.
Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Who's more American - Kate Winslet or Lucy Liu?
A 2008 study she co-authored found that respondents - US university participants of various racial backgrounds and ages - were more likely to implicitly think of Kate Winslet, the English actress, as "American", than Lucy Liu, the New York-born star of Chinese heritage.
Matt says he is regularly told "you speak great English", and asked where he is actually from, even when he explains he was born in the US.
Meanwhile, Prof Jeung says: "Even though my family's been in the US for five generations, I'm still seen as a foreigner."
Dr Ma notes that these are "specific burdens" that Asian people in America experience differently from other minorities. For example, "nobody is surprised when a black American speaks English really well," though African Americans face other sets of prejudices, she says.
This has made a person's Asian appearance - something "we wear so apparently", as Dr Ma puts it - a reason to target them amid the outbreak.
Image source, Douglas Kim Image caption, Racist graffiti reading "stop eating dogs" was found at Jeju, a Michelin-starred Korean restaurant in New York, in April
Nor is it the first time race has been used as cover to marginalise or act against East Asians in the US.
Asian Americans were interned en masse in the US following attacks on Pearl Harbour in World War Two, and sweeping caricatures of East Asians were used as racist propaganda to exclude immigration from China and other eastern countries in the 19th Century.
Today, some Asian Americans still describe feeling "on probation", and needing to prove their status as US citizens - a situation that has significantly worsened amid the outbreak.
Andrew Yang, a former Democratic candidate for president, wrote in April in the Washington Post: "Some level of background disdain or alienation has grown into outright hostility and even aggression."
He called on Asian Americans to "show our American-ness in ways we never have before" by helping neighbours and wearing "red white and blue". However, he was also accused of victim-blaming for appearing to internalise the notion that Asian people, by virtue of their ethnicity, are not American enough.
Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Andrew Yang became one of the most high-profile Asian Americans when he ran to be the Democratic nominee
Both the Trump and Biden campaigns have also come in for criticism. An advert for the Trump campaign described Mr Biden as soft on China, and showed a montage of video clips of him with Chinese officials.
The montage included a shot of Gary Locke - the Chinese American former Washington governor who served as the US ambassador to China - leading to accusations that the ad was implying Mr Locke was a foreign official.
The Biden campaign came under fire after an attack ad emphasised that "Trump let in 40,000 travellers from China into America" after announcing a travel ban - even though many of those would have been American citizens.
Both campaigns have denied any xenophobia or targeting Chinese Americans.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Media caption, Trump gets in spat with Asian American reporter over "nasty question"
How are Asian people in the US responding to attacks?
For some, the rise in anti-Asian sentiment has felt clear and dangerous.
There is no comprehensive data on race and gun purchases in the US, but reports from gun shop owners suggest that many have seen more Asian buyers amid a general rise in sales.
Chinese American Donghui Zang, 49, has started organising neighbourhood patrols in Queens, New York, where the group's more-than-200 members take turns driving around and reporting suspicious activities to the police. A dozen of members in the patrol group, including Mr Zang, have recently applied for firearms permits.
Mr Zang, who describes himself as socially conservative, believes Chinese Americans should arm themselves "in case of social turmoil and skyrocketing crime".
The view is not shared by everyone.
Max Leung, a co-founder of the San Francisco Peace Collective, says his group conducts patrols in Chinatown to help stop cases of vandalism and theft.
Image source, San Francisco Peace Collective Image caption, The San Francisco Peace Collective also tries to help vulnerable individuals who may have concerns about their safety
"Although I do believe and am a huge advocate of self-defence, we do not promote our members bearing arms while on patrol," Mr Leung, 49, says. "The culture I want to create within our group is that of promoting peace, not perpetuating violence."
Artists and comedians have also been inspired to speak out - including hip hop artist Jason Chu, who helped start the campaign Hate is a Virus, and wrote a rap about anti-Asian incidents.
He says the rap aimed to show "the ridiculousness of people targeting Asian Americans", and also "emphasise the fact that Asian Americans belong here".
"We're not guests in America - we were born here - this is where our parents raised us. We're saying that hate has no place in our country."
Image source, San Francisco Peace Collective Image caption, The San Francisco Peace Collective patrols the neighbourhood
More generally, there are hopes that this new awareness of discrimination will lead to stronger Asian communities in the US - and more solidarity with other ethnic minorities.
Matt recalls hearing negative comments about the African American community as he grew up - including from Asian Americans.
By contrast, "now I see a lot of Asian Americans standing up for Ahmaud Arbery", the black jogger shot dead in a Georgia suburb by two white men now charged with murder.
Matt believes that Asian American communities have become more vocal in recent years about politics and representation.
This video can not be played To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. Media caption, The film Crazy Rich Asians was seen as an important moment for Asian American representation
"A lot of my friends have seen this anti-Chinese rhetoric going on, and become more interested in talking about the discrimination that other communities face" as a result.
Prof Jeung says he has seen examples of Asian Americans "recognising their common interests, and mobilising as a political group and community".
Asians from different walks of life now "find themselves having a common experience" due to discrimination related to the pandemic.
"We're all facing this process, of racial profiling, together. So hopefully, we'll come together to fight the racism, and develop empathy with other people who are racially profiled."
Additional reporting by the BBC's Xinyan Yu.
.


bbc--2020-05-27--Premier League clubs agree to resume contact training; four more positive coronavirus tests

Premier League clubs have unanimously voted to resume contact training as four more individuals from three sides have tested positive for coronavirus .
A total of 1,008 players and staff were tested in the third round of testing .
Phase two of 'Project Restart ' will see players `` train as a group and engage in tackling while minimising unnecessary close contact '' , the league said .
Discussions continue on plans to resume the season when `` conditions allow '' , it added .
So far 12 people have tested positive after 2,752 tests across the league .
Premier @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be tested twice a week for coronavirus , with the capacity increased from 50 to 60 tests available per club for the fourth round of testing .
Any players or staff to test positive must self-isolate for a period of seven days .
The decision to return to contact training was agreed following consultation with clubs , players , managers , the Professional Footballers ' Association ( PFA ) , the League Managers ' Association ( LMA ) and the government .
Plans for the third phase of Project Restart include a step @ @ @ @ @ @ @ games .
Speaking on Friday , Premier League chief executive Richard Masters told BBC Sport the league was `` as confident as we can be '' about resuming the season in June , with 92 fixtures still to play .
Squads started non-contact training last week for the first time since the Premier League was suspended on 13 March because of the pandemic .
Clubs will discuss further issues on Thursday including the use of neutral stadiums , how to decide the season in the event of curtailment and voting on rebates to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the timeline towards the resumption of the season , but brings with it a heightened risk of transmission .
This next stage would enable clubs to do 11 v 11 close-contact training , and clearly they will need to do that to get to a point where they are ready to play competitive matches again .
But it is yet to be explained who else would need to isolate if a player tests positive and had been training with several of their team-mates .
It is likely to come down to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with that person , using GPS trackers to determine this .
Social distancing will still need to be maintained off the field , and players and staff will have to actively opt-in to agree to the strict requirements - but also the added risks - that come with entering this next phase .

Last updated on .From the section Premier League
Premier League clubs have unanimously voted to resume contact training as four more individuals from three sides have tested positive for coronavirus.
A total of 1,008 players and staff were tested in the third round of testing.
Phase two of 'Project Restart' will see players "train as a group and engage in tackling while minimising unnecessary close contact", the league said.
Discussions continue on plans to resume the season when "conditions allow", it added.
So far 12 people have tested positive after 2,752 tests across the league.
Premier League players and staff will continue to be tested twice a week for coronavirus, with the capacity increased from 50 to 60 tests available per club for the fourth round of testing.
Any players or staff to test positive must self-isolate for a period of seven days.
The decision to return to contact training was agreed following consultation with clubs, players, managers, the Professional Footballers' Association (PFA), the League Managers' Association (LMA) and the government.
Watford captain Troy Deeney, who had not joined his team-mates in returning to training over fears for his family's health, is expected to resume his training next week.
Plans for the third phase of Project Restart include a step towards normal training and build-up to competitive games.
Speaking on Friday, Premier League chief executive Richard Masters told BBC Sport the league was "as confident as we can be" about resuming the season in June, with 92 fixtures still to play.
Squads started non-contact training last week for the first time since the Premier League was suspended on 13 March because of the pandemic.
Clubs will discuss further issues on Thursday including the use of neutral stadiums, how to decide the season in the event of curtailment and voting on rebates to broadcasters.
Analysis - 'A significant step in Project Restart'
BBC Sports News correspondent Laura Scott
This is a significant step on the timeline towards the resumption of the season, but brings with it a heightened risk of transmission.
This next stage would enable clubs to do 11 v 11 close-contact training, and clearly they will need to do that to get to a point where they are ready to play competitive matches again.
But it is yet to be explained who else would need to isolate if a player tests positive and had been training with several of their team-mates. It is likely to come down to the type of contact and length of contact with that person, using GPS trackers to determine this.
Social distancing will still need to be maintained off the field, and players and staff will have to actively opt-in to agree to the strict requirements - but also the added risks - that come with entering this next phase.


bbc--2020-05-27--Formula 1's cost-cutting proposals approved by FIA

Formula 1 's plan for cost-cutting measures has been approved by the sport 's governing body the FIA .
The @ @ @ @ @ technical and financial regulations were passed by e-vote at Wednesday 's world motorsport council meeting @ @ @ @ @ to the need to reduce costs and safeguard the sport in light of the Covid-19 @ @ @ @ @ statement .
F1 had previously agreed to introduce a budget cap for the 2021 season @ @ @ @ @ go further .
Last Friday teams voted to accept a plan to lower the budget @ @ @ @ @ year by $ 30m to $ 145m ( £114m ) .
This will be reduced @ @ @ @ @ 2022 and $ 135m for the period 2023-25 .
This is one of a series @ @ @ @ @ costs and levelling the field , including a research-and-development handicap system .
• Money , @ @ @ @ @ 'draft ' system - what are the cost-cutting measures ?
• Could Vettel 's Ferrari @ @ @ @ @ F1 ?

Last updated on .From the section Formula 1
The new F1 car design philosophy will now be introduced in 2022
Formula 1's plan for cost-cutting measures has been approved by the sport's governing body the FIA.
The changes to the sporting, technical and financial regulations were passed by e-vote at Wednesday's world motorsport council meeting.
It was "due to the need to reduce costs and safeguard the sport in light of the Covid-19 pandemic", said a statement.
F1 had previously agreed to introduce a budget cap for the 2021 season, but these new measures go further.
Last Friday teams voted to accept a plan to lower the budget cap to be introduced next year by $30m to $145m (£114m).
This will be reduced again to $140m in 2022 and $135m for the period 2023-25.
This is one of a series of measures aimed at reducing costs and levelling the field, including a research-and-development handicap system.


bbc--2020-05-27--RB Leipzig 2-2 Hertha Berlin: Krzysztof Piatek's late penalty denies Leipzig

RB Leipzig missed a chance to go second in the Bundesliga as they conceded late on to draw at home with Hertha Berlin .
The visitors opened the scoring when Liverpool loanee Marko Grujic volleyed in from Marvin Plattenhardt 's corner .
Leipzig equalised through Lukas Klostermann 's glancing header after a corner but then went down to 10 men when Marcel Halstenberg was dismissed .
Patrik Schick put Leipzig ahead but Hertha made it 2-2 through Krzysztof Piatek 's 82nd-minute penalty .
The spot-kick was awarded when former Everton forward Ademola Lookman fouled Matheus Cunha and Piatek calmly finished @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Leipzig needed to win to go above Borussia Dortmund on goal difference , but the draw means Leipzig are two points behind Dortmund and nine adrift of leaders Bayern Munich .
The result also all but ends Leipzig 's slim hopes of becoming German champions in only their 11th season in existence .
In a game played in an empty stadium because of the coronavirus restrictions , Leipzig suffered a blow in the build-up as Slovenia midfielder Kevin Kampl picked up an injury , although the hosts did have the first chance with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Hertha goalkeeper Rune Jarstein .
The visitors took the lead in the ninth minute when Grujic flicked into the net from just outside the six-yard box from a corner from Plattenhardt , who had to be substituted three minutes later following a clash of heads before the goal .
However , Hertha 's lead only lasted 15 minutes as Klostermann met Christopher Nkuku 's right-wing corner at the near post and headed into the net .
Just after the hour mark , Halstenberg picked up his second booking , although 10-man Leipzig took @ @ @ @ @ @ @ minutes later when Schick 's 20-yard strike was fumbled into his own net by Jarstein .
However , the home side could not hold on to their lead as Piatek 's penalty ensured a point apiece .
Leipzig , who are also in the quarter-finals of the Champions League after a 4-0 win on aggregate over Tottenham in the last 16 , have finished in the top six of the Bundesliga in each of the past three years .
They still have a chance of matching their highest ever finish of second in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ now Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl , finished 15 points behind champions Bayern .
On Tuesday , Bayern moved closer to an eighth successive Bundesliga title as they won 1-0 at Dortmund .
After that match , Dortmund boss Lucien Favre said it would be `` brutally difficult '' for anyone to stop Bayern becoming German champions for a 30th time .
Hertha Berlin , who move up to 10th in the Bundesliga , play at home against Augsburg on Saturday , before RB Leipzig play away at Cologne on Monday .

Last updated on .From the section European Football
Marko Grujic (number 15) is in his second season-long loan spell at Hertha Berlin from Liverpool and scored the first goal of the match
RB Leipzig missed a chance to go second in the Bundesliga as they conceded late on to draw at home with Hertha Berlin.
The visitors opened the scoring when Liverpool loanee Marko Grujic volleyed in from Marvin Plattenhardt's corner.
Leipzig equalised through Lukas Klostermann's glancing header after a corner but then went down to 10 men when Marcel Halstenberg was dismissed.
Patrik Schick put Leipzig ahead but Hertha made it 2-2 through Krzysztof Piatek's 82nd-minute penalty.
The spot-kick was awarded when former Everton forward Ademola Lookman fouled Matheus Cunha and Piatek calmly finished to deny Leipzig the three points.
Leipzig needed to win to go above Borussia Dortmund on goal difference, but the draw means Leipzig are two points behind Dortmund and nine adrift of leaders Bayern Munich.
The result also all but ends Leipzig's slim hopes of becoming German champions in only their 11th season in existence.
Ten-man Leipzig fail to hold on
In a game played in an empty stadium because of the coronavirus restrictions, Leipzig suffered a blow in the build-up as Slovenia midfielder Kevin Kampl picked up an injury, although the hosts did have the first chance with Konrad Laimer's low strike saved by Hertha goalkeeper Rune Jarstein.
The visitors took the lead in the ninth minute when Grujic flicked into the net from just outside the six-yard box from a corner from Plattenhardt, who had to be substituted three minutes later following a clash of heads before the goal.
However, Hertha's lead only lasted 15 minutes as Klostermann met Christopher Nkuku's right-wing corner at the near post and headed into the net.
RB Leipzig were behind for 15 minutes in the first half before centre-half Lukas Klostermann equalised with a glancing header
Just after the hour mark, Halstenberg picked up his second booking, although 10-man Leipzig took the lead for the first time five minutes later when Schick's 20-yard strike was fumbled into his own net by Jarstein.
However, the home side could not hold on to their lead as Piatek's penalty ensured a point apiece.
Leipzig, who are also in the quarter-finals of the Champions League after a 4-0 win on aggregate over Tottenham in the last 16, have finished in the top six of the Bundesliga in each of the past three years.
They still have a chance of matching their highest ever finish of second in 2016-17 when their side, coached by now Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl, finished 15 points behind champions Bayern.
On Tuesday, Bayern moved closer to an eighth successive Bundesliga title as they won 1-0 at Dortmund.
After that match, Dortmund boss Lucien Favre said it would be "brutally difficult" for anyone to stop Bayern becoming German champions for a 30th time.
What's next?
Hertha Berlin, who move up to 10th in the Bundesliga, play at home against Augsburg on Saturday, before RB Leipzig play away at Cologne on Monday.


bbc--2020-05-27--Kohli, Smith, Root - or all three? Pick your world Test XI

Virat Kohli , Steve Smith , Joe Root and Kane Williamson - how many of them would make your world @ @ @ @ @ Pat Cummins , James Anderson , Jofra Archer and Jasprit Bumrah ?
Those are the @ @ @ @ @ about to face .
Over the next four weeks we will be asking BBC Sport @ @ @ @ @ XI across the three men 's formats and a women 's T20 side .
Every @ @ @ @ @ selector , and the results will be revealed the following Wednesday in a live page @ @ @ @ @ also become available that day .
First up is the world Test XI , so @ @ @ @ @ .
The rules are simple : we have included only current players ; you have @ @ @ @ @ number seven ; and make sure you select a coach in the 12th position .
@ @ @ @ @ your final XI on social media using # bbccricket .

Last updated on .From the section Cricket
Virat Kohli, Steve Smith, Joe Root and Kane Williamson - how many of them would make your world Test XI?
What about Pat Cummins, James Anderson, Jofra Archer and Jasprit Bumrah?
Those are the tricky selection decisions you're about to face.
Over the next four weeks we will be asking BBC Sport users to pick their world XI across the three men's formats and a women's T20 side.
Every Wednesday we will release a selector, and the results will be revealed the following Wednesday in a live page. The next selector will also become available that day.
First up is the world Test XI, so get your thinking caps on.
The rules are simple: we have included only current players; you have to pick a wicketkeeper at number seven; and make sure you select a coach in the 12th position.
Don't forget to share your final XI on social media using #bbccricket.


bbc--2020-05-27--Thursday's gossip column: Liverpool want Wolves winger Traore

Liverpool are interested in signing Wolves ’ Spanish winger Adama Traore , 24 , with Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp reportedly personally contacting the player .
( TodoFichajes - in Spanish ) Nigeria striker Odion Ighalo , 30 , has made a personal request to extend his loan at Manchester United from Chinese club Shanghai Shenhua .
( Manchester Evening News ) Centre-half David Luiz 's brief spell at Arsenal could be coming to an end with the 33-year-old Brazilian out of contract next month and no negotiations over a new deal planned .
( Sky Sports ) Liverpool will not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Leipzig and Germany striker Timo Werner , 24 , and value him at £30m in today ’ s transfer market .
( Mirror ) Ajax and Argentina left-back Nicolas Tagliafico , 27 , could join Chelsea for £22.4m fee .
( Telegraph - subscription required ) Tottenham are looking to beat a number of Premier League rivals to the signing of Bournemouth and Scotland winger Ryan Fraser , 26 .
( Football Insider ) Newcastle ’ s Spanish full-back Javier Manquillo , 26 , wants to join a La Liga club in his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ month .
( Newcastle Chronicle ) Manchester United and Real Madrid both want to sign Rennes ' French Under-21 midfielder Eduardo Camavinga , 17 .
( Metro ) Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho has said Premier league sides will not be `` spending crazy money '' in the next transfer window .
( Sky Sports ) The Premier League managers have been told that the season will be completed in as little as six weeks if the plans for the resumption of the season remain on track .
( Times - subscription required )

Last updated on .From the section Football
Liverpool are interested in signing Wolves’ Spanish winger Adama Traore, 24, with Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp reportedly personally contacting the player. (TodoFichajes - in Spanish) external-link
Nigeria striker Odion Ighalo, 30, has made a personal request to extend his loan at Manchester United from Chinese club Shanghai Shenhua. (Manchester Evening News) external-link
Centre-half David Luiz's brief spell at Arsenal could be coming to an end with the 33-year-old Brazil international out of contract next month and no negotiations over a new deal planned. (Sky Sports) external-link
Chelsea are lining up a £15m bid for Borussia Dortmund and Switzerland goalkeeper Roman Burki, 29. (Sun) external-link
Liverpool will not pay the £50m release clause for RB Leipzig and Germany striker Timo Werner, 24, and value him at £30m in today’s transfer market. (Mirror) external-link
Ajax and Argentina left-back Nicolas Tagliafico, 27, could join Chelsea for £22.4m fee. (Telegraph - subscription required) external-link
Barcelona and Brazil midfielder Philippe Coutinho, 27, is a target for Chelsea, Newcastle, Arsenal, Manchester United and Leicester. (Mundo Deportivo - in Spanish) external-link
Match of the Day: Top 10 podcast Best Premier League game ever? Where do you even start?!
Tottenham are looking to beat a number of Premier League rivals to the signing of Bournemouth and Scotland winger Ryan Fraser, 26. (Football Insider) external-link
Newcastle’s Spanish full-back Javier Manquillo, 26, wants to join a La Liga club in his home country when his contract expires next month. (Newcastle Chronicle) external-link
Manchester United and Real Madrid both want to sign Rennes' French Under-21 midfielder Eduardo Camavinga, 17. (Metro) external-link
Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho has said Premier League sides will not be "spending crazy money" in the next transfer window. (Sky Sports) external-link
Premier League managers have been told that the season will be completed in as little as six weeks if the plans for the resumption of the season remain on track. (Times - subscription required) external-link
Leeds could sign Liverpool and Wales winger Harry Wilson, who is currently on loan at Bournemouth, for a knockdown fee this summer. Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa is said to be a big admirer of the 23-year-old. (Football Insider) external-link
Nathan Jones is close to a return as Luton boss. Jones, 47, joined Stoke from Luton in January 2019 but was sacked in November. (Telegraph) external-link


bbc--2020-05-27--Coronavirus: Boxing & MMA to return to Las Vegas

Last updated on .From the section Boxing Boxing and mixed martial arts events will return to Las Vegas from this @ @ @ @ @ authorities lifted a combat sports ban .
The first MMA event is Saturday 's UFC @ @ @ @ @ headlined by Tyron Woodley and Gilbert Burns ' welterweight match .
The first boxing event @ @ @ @ @ Top Rank promotion on 9 June .
Combat sports had been suspended in the state @ @ @ @ @ has already returned to action after an enforced hiatus with three behind-closed-doors events in Jacksonville @ @ @ @ @ will feature protocols to limit the risk of coronavirus spreading .
In the United Kingdom @ @ @ @ @ planned July return to action have included trainers in fighters ' corner wearing protective masks @ @ @ @ @

Last updated on .From the section Boxing
Tyson Fury's win over Deontay Wilder in February was one of the last big nights' of boxing before Las Vegas shut down
Boxing and mixed martial arts events will return to Las Vegas from this weekend after the Nevada state authorities lifted a combat sports ban.
All events will take place behind closed doors as part of measures to combat the spread of coronavirus.
The first MMA event is Saturday's UFC card at the Apex, headlined by Tyron Woodley and Gilbert Burns' welterweight match.
The first boxing event is a Top Rank promotion on 9 June.
Combat sports had been suspended in the state since 14 March.
UFC has already returned to action after an enforced hiatus with three behind-closed-doors events in Jacksonville, Florida.
All fights will feature protocols to limit the risk of coronavirus spreading.
In the United Kingdom, proposed measures before a planned July return to action have included trainers in fighters' corner wearing protective masks and no ring announcers.


bbc--2020-05-28--Hong Kong security bill backed by China's parliament

China 's parliament has backed a new security law for Hong Kong which would make it a crime to undermine Beijing 's authority in the territory .
The bill - which now passes to China 's senior leadership - has caused deep concern among those who say it could end Hong Kong 's unique status .
It could also see China installing its own security agencies in the region for the first time .
The move has already sparked a new wave of anti-mainland protest .
Clashes broke out on Wednesday as Hong Kong 's parliament debated a different proposed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ crime to disrespect the Chinese national anthem .
Hundreds of people were arrested in protests over that and the security law .
Security remains high on Thursday , as a tense debate in the Legislative Council continues .
At least two pro-democracy legislators were ejected from the council on Thursday .
One lawmaker , Ted Hui , threw rotten plants on to the floor of the chamber , saying it symbolised the decay of Hong Kong 's political system .
`` I want the speaker to feel what is meant by rotten , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the package to be an `` unknown dangerous object '' , and called police and fire crews .
What has the reaction been ?
Full details about exactly what behaviour will be outlawed under the new law are not yet clear .
It is due to be enacted before September .
But hours before the bill was passed , US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said developments in Hong Kong meant it could no longer be considered to have `` a high degree of autonomy '' from mainland China .
That meant that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ differently from the mainland under US law .
The declaration could have major implications for Hong Kong 's trade hub status and drew an angry reaction from Chinese authorities in the territory .
In a strongly worded statement on Thursday , the office of China 's foreign ministry in Hong Kong said it `` firmly opposed and refuted '' Mr Pompeo 's statement and urged the US to `` immediately stop meddling '' in China 's internal affairs .
It described US criticism of the new draft law as `` utterly imperious , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it was `` seriously concerned '' by Beijing 's move .
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Hong Kong was an `` extremely important partner '' and that democracy and stability there must be maintained .
What happens next ?
The National People 's Congress ( NPC ) - meeting in Beijing after a two-month delay caused by the coronavirus pandemic - backed the security bill resolution with 2,878 votes in favour , one against and six abstentions .
`` It will uphold and improve the 'one country , two systems ' policy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ delegates during the closing ceremony .
`` It is in line with the constitution and Hong Kong 's Basic Law and is in the interest of all Chinese people including Hong Kong people , '' he added .
The NPC only ever approves legislation put to it by the government so there was no chance the bill would not be supported .
The bill - referred to as the Draft Decision - now passes to the Standing Committee of the Communist Party which will draw up the full details of the new law @ @ @ @ @ @ @ • secession - breaking away from the country • subversion - undermining the power or authority of the central government • terrorism - using violence or intimidation against people • activities by foreign forces that interfere in Hong Kong The bill also says that `` when needed , relevant national security organs of the Central People 's Government will set up agencies in Hong Kong to fulfil relevant duties to safeguard national security in accordance with the law '' .
That means China could potentially have its own law enforcement agencies in Hong @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The authorities in Hong Kong insist the law is essential to tackle growing violence and `` terrorism '' , and that the territory 's residents have nothing to fear from it .
Critics fear it could lead to Hong Kongers being prosecuted - even retroactively - for criticising their or the mainland 's leadership , joining protests or exercising their current rights under local laws .
Why did China do this ?
Hong Kong was handed back to China from British control in 1997 , but under a unique agreement - a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ so-called `` one country , two systems '' principle .
• China 's new law : Why is Hong Kong worried ?
• The background you need on Hong Kong 's protests They are supposed to protect certain freedoms for Hong Kong : freedom of assembly and speech , an independent judiciary and some democratic rights - freedoms that no other part of mainland China has .
Under the same agreement , Hong Kong had to enact its own national security law - this was set out in Article 23 of the Basic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had never been done - the government tried in 2003 but had to back down after protests .
Then , last year , protests over an extradition law turned violent and evolved into a broader anti-China and pro-democracy movement .
China is keen to avoid a repeat of that unrest .

But hours before the vote was taken in Beijing, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said developments in Hong Kong meant it could no longer be considered to have "a high degree of autonomy" from mainland China.


bbc--2020-05-27--Coronavirus: How the pandemic in US compares with rest of world

Two days after the US recorded its first case of coronavirus , Donald Trump said the situation was `` totally under control '' and assured the public it was `` going to be just fine '' .
Fast forward four months and the virus has spread across all 50 states , leaving a death toll of 100,000 from more than 1.6 million confirmed cases .
We 've taken a look at how those figures compare to other countries around the world and how the situation could develop over the next few months .
How does the situation in the US @ @ @ @ @ @ @ US became the highest in the world in early April and has risen dramatically since then .
President Donald Trump initially said `` 50 to 60,000 '' people could die during the outbreak but in May he said he was hopeful the toll would be lower than 100,000 .
That benchmark has now been hit though and there are still about 1,000 deaths a day on average .
Rather than focus on deaths , Mr Trump has preferred to cite the mortality rate - that is the number of people that have died @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as evidence that the US has dealt with the virus more effectively than some other nations .
The chart below shows the countries with the highest death tolls and , to the right , their mortality rate .
You can see that by that measure there are several countries where a greater proportion of the population has died during the coronavirus outbreak .
Belgium , with a population of 11.5 million , has seen 82 people in every 100,000 die during its coronavirus outbreak while the US , with a population of around @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people in every 100,000 die .
But if you look at New York - the worst-hit state in the US - the mortality rate there is close to 150 people in every 100,000 , which shows that there is a lot of variation across the US .
One of the problems with comparing countries is that many of them report deaths in different ways .
Belgium , for instance , includes deaths where coronavirus was suspected of being present but was never confirmed with a test .
Some US states record deaths this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have also been questions over whether official data from some countries can be trusted .
Critics of China in particular have accused it of under-reporting the scale of its outbreak .
Another issue is that countries could be at different stages of an outbreak .
In many European countries it 's clear that daily cases numbers are coming down significantly and they are past the peak .
But you ca n't say the same for the US at the moment .
• Why so many people are dying in Belgium New York over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ?
Several countries in Europe had outbreaks around the same time as the US and all of them have seen the number of deaths grow quickly , peak and then fall away .
The US has not .
One of the reasons the number of daily deaths in the US has plateaued rather than fallen is the sheer size of the country - rather than one large outbreak , there have been multiple centres of infection that developed at different times and spread at different rates .
In New York , the virus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in early April .
In the rest of the US , however , the number of daily deaths has been slow to fall .
Some other states that were badly affected early on , like Louisiana and Michigan , have also seen a substantial drop in the number of daily deaths like that in New York .
But as the situation in those states has improved , others have worsened .
About a third of all states saw more deaths last week compared to the week before , with Rhode Island , Mississippi @ @ @ @ @ @ @ percentage increases .
• Jon Sopel : From 'We 've shut it down ' to 100,000 dead • RISK AT WORK : How exposed is your job ?
• THE R NUMBER : What it means and why it matters • COMPARING COUNTRIES : The pitfalls of doing so • R0 , FURLOUGH : The language of the outbreak • RECOVERY : How long does it take to get better ?
US leads the way in testing , but only now In recent weeks , President Trump has been keen to talk about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the US .
The most recent data says the US has carried out about 15 million so far .
That figure puts the US way ahead of other countries , but when it comes to using testing to try to control the virus , there is more to it than the total number you 've conducted .
Countries that did a lot of testing early in the pandemic , and followed it up by tracing the contacts of anyone who was infected , have been most successful in slowing the spread .
In @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ramped up testing early on in the outbreak and managed to contain the virus .
Less than 300 people have died with coronavirus in the country , which has a population of about 50 million .
But as the chart above shows , it was n't until several weeks after the first death in the US that officials really stepped up testing .
The top US health official for infectious diseases , Anthony Fauci , admitted in early March that the testing system was `` currently failing '' and that the US was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the way people in other countries are doing it '' .
The number of daily tests shows the US is well past those initial problems , but progress can still be made .
If the 15m figure is accurate , that would still only be 4.5 % of the population .
• The lost six weeks when US failed to contain outbreak • Things the US has got right - and got wrong So what happens next in the US ?
The death toll is still rising , albeit at a slower @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been cited by the White House predicts it could be at nearly 150,000 by August - although its projections have come in low in the past .
One of the issues with making projections is that no one is quite sure what effect the gradual reopening of the US economy will have on the spread of the virus .
At one point , more than 90 % of the US population was under mandatory lockdown orders , but the majority of states have now begun to loosen their stay-at-home restrictions .
The White @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for states to meet before they begin reopening , including seeing a downward trajectory of case numbers for two weeks .
But a group of public health experts say only a couple of states are hitting the targets .
Dr Fauci has warned states that they will see `` little spikes that might turn into outbreaks '' if they reopen before getting the virus under control .
But his advice has contradicted that of President Trump , who is keen to get the US economy restarted ahead of his re-election campaign .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the American workforce have lost their jobs since the outbreak began .
Asked earlier this month whether lives would be lost to reopen the country , Mr Trump said : `` Will some people be affected badly ?
Yes .
But we have to get our country opened and we have to get it open soon . ''
Even if states continue to ease restrictions , it 's unclear whether the American public will be eager to return to shops and restaurants just yet .
A recent poll by the Pew Research @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were concerned that states would reopen too quickly .

Coronavirus: How the pandemic in US compares with rest of world Published 27 May 2020
Two days after the US recorded its first case of coronavirus, Donald Trump said the situation was "totally under control" and assured the public it was "going to be just fine".
Fast forward four months and the virus has spread across all 50 states, leaving a death toll of 100,000 from more than 1.6 million confirmed cases.
We've taken a look at how those figures compare to other countries around the world and how the situation could develop over the next few months.
How does the situation in the US compare?
Image source, Reuters Image caption, President Trump points at a chart showing mortality rates at a White House briefing in April
The death toll in the US became the highest in the world in early April and has risen dramatically since then.
President Donald Trump initially said "50 to 60,000" people could die during the outbreak but in May he said he was hopeful the toll would be lower than 100,000. That benchmark has now been hit though and there are still about 1,000 deaths a day on average.
Rather than focus on deaths, Mr Trump has preferred to cite the mortality rate - that is the number of people that have died relative to the country's population - as evidence that the US has dealt with the virus more effectively than some other nations.
The chart below shows the countries with the highest death tolls and, to the right, their mortality rate. You can see that by that measure there are several countries where a greater proportion of the population has died during the coronavirus outbreak.
Belgium, with a population of 11.5 million, has seen 82 people in every 100,000 die during its coronavirus outbreak while the US, with a population of around 330 million, has seen nearly 30 people in every 100,000 die.
But if you look at New York - the worst-hit state in the US - the mortality rate there is close to 150 people in every 100,000, which shows that there is a lot of variation across the US.
One of the problems with comparing countries is that many of them report deaths in different ways. Belgium, for instance, includes deaths where coronavirus was suspected of being present but was never confirmed with a test. Some US states record deaths this way, but not all.
There have also been questions over whether official data from some countries can be trusted. Critics of China in particular have accused it of under-reporting the scale of its outbreak.
Another issue is that countries could be at different stages of an outbreak. In many European countries it's clear that daily cases numbers are coming down significantly and they are past the peak. But you can't say the same for the US at the moment.
New York over the worst, but is the US?
Several countries in Europe had outbreaks around the same time as the US and all of them have seen the number of deaths grow quickly, peak and then fall away. The US has not.
One of the reasons the number of daily deaths in the US has plateaued rather than fallen is the sheer size of the country - rather than one large outbreak, there have been multiple centres of infection that developed at different times and spread at different rates.
In New York, the virus struck early, spread quickly and peaked in early April. In the rest of the US, however, the number of daily deaths has been slow to fall.
Some other states that were badly affected early on, like Louisiana and Michigan, have also seen a substantial drop in the number of daily deaths like that in New York.
But as the situation in those states has improved, others have worsened. About a third of all states saw more deaths last week compared to the week before, with Rhode Island, Mississippi and Ohio seeing some of the largest percentage increases.
US leads the way in testing, but only now
Image source, EPA Image caption, President Trump has been keen to highlight the high rate of testing in the US in recent weeks
In recent weeks, President Trump has been keen to talk about the number of tests being done in the US. The most recent data says the US has carried out about 15 million so far.
That figure puts the US way ahead of other countries, but when it comes to using testing to try to control the virus, there is more to it than the total number you've conducted.
Countries that did a lot of testing early in the pandemic, and followed it up by tracing the contacts of anyone who was infected, have been most successful in slowing the spread.
In South Korea, for example, they ramped up testing early on in the outbreak and managed to contain the virus. Less than 300 people have died with coronavirus in the country, which has a population of about 50 million.
But as the chart above shows, it wasn't until several weeks after the first death in the US that officials really stepped up testing.
The top US health official for infectious diseases, Anthony Fauci, admitted in early March that the testing system was "currently failing" and that the US was not able to supply tests "easily, the way people in other countries are doing it".
The number of daily tests shows the US is well past those initial problems, but progress can still be made. If the 15m figure is accurate, that would still only be 4.5% of the population.
So what happens next in the US?
Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Several states saw protests against stay-at-home orders in early May
The death toll is still rising, albeit at a slower rate, and one model that has been cited by the White House predicts it could be at nearly 150,000 by August - although its projections have come in low in the past.
One of the issues with making projections is that no one is quite sure what effect the gradual reopening of the US economy will have on the spread of the virus.
At one point, more than 90% of the US population was under mandatory lockdown orders, but the majority of states have now begun to loosen their stay-at-home restrictions.
The White House has outlined a set of criteria for states to meet before they begin reopening, including seeing a downward trajectory of case numbers for two weeks. But a group of public health experts say only a couple of states are hitting the targets.
Dr Fauci has warned states that they will see "little spikes that might turn into outbreaks" if they reopen before getting the virus under control.
But his advice has contradicted that of President Trump, who is keen to get the US economy restarted ahead of his re-election campaign. The latest figures show that nearly a quarter of the American workforce have lost their jobs since the outbreak began.
Asked earlier this month whether lives would be lost to reopen the country, Mr Trump said: "Will some people be affected badly? Yes. But we have to get our country opened and we have to get it open soon."


bbc--2020-05-27--Ministry of Silly Walks comes to Sonning during lockdown

The residents of a Berkshire village have been filmed re-enacting one of British comedy 's most famous sketches .
Monty @ @ @ @ @ up signs outside his house in Sonning informing people they were entering the jurisdiction of @ @ @ @ @ .
He filmed the results with a motion-controlled webcam and uploaded the subsequent silliness to @ @ @ @ @ filmed using safe social distancing techniques .

The residents of a Berkshire village have been filmed re-enacting one of British comedy's most famous sketches.
Monty Python fan James Ruffell put up signs outside his house in Sonning informing people they were entering the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Silly Walks.
He filmed the results with a motion-controlled webcam and uploaded the subsequent silliness to Facebook.
Video Journalist: Joe Campbell
This story was filmed using safe social distancing techniques.


bbc--2020-05-28--Trump to 'sign executive order about social media'

US President Donald Trump will sign an executive order targeting social media firms , the White House has said .
It comes after he threatened to shut down social media platforms he accused of stifling conservative voices .
The latest dispute emerged after Twitter added fact-check links to his tweets for the first time .
The order 's details have not been shared and it is unclear what regulatory steps the president can take without new laws passed by Congress .
White House officials gave no further information on what is expected in the executive order which is set to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Washington for Florida to watch a space launch that was postponed due to bad weather , Mr Trump again accused Twitter and other social media of bias , without offering evidence .
Mr Trump also continued his criticism of social media platforms on Twitter , ending a tweet with : `` Now they are going absolutely CRAZY .
Stay Tuned !
!
! ''
The long-running dispute between Mr Trump and social media companies flared up again on Tuesday when one of his posts was given a fact-check label by Twitter for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ without providing evidence : `` There is NO WAY ( ZERO ! )
that Mail-In Ballots will be anything less than substantially fraudulent . ''
Twitter added a warning label to the post and linked to a page that described the claims as `` unsubstantiated '' .
On Wednesday Mr Trump threatened to `` strongly regulate '' or even `` close down '' social media platforms .
He tweeted to his more than 80 million followers that Republicans felt the platforms `` totally silence conservatives '' and that he would not allow this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , he said that Twitter was `` completely stifling free speech '' .
Twitter 's chief executive Jack Dorsey responded to criticism of the platform 's fact-checking policies in a series of posts , saying : `` We 'll continue to point out incorrect or disputed information about elections globally . ''
Mr Trump wrote a similar post on Facebook post about mail-in ballots on Tuesday , and no such warnings were applied .
In an interview with Fox News on Wednesday , Facebook 's chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said censoring a social @ @ @ @ @ @ @ right reflex '' for a government concerned about censorship .
Fox said it would play its full interview with Mr Zuckerberg on Thursday .
Twitter has tightened its policies in recent years as it faced criticism that its hands-off approach was helping fake accounts and misinformation to thrive .
Some of America 's biggest technology companies have also been accused of anti-competitive practices and violating their users ' privacy .
Apple , Google , Facebook and Amazon face antitrust probes by federal and state authorities and a US congressional panel .
Shares in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 's trading session in New York .
Facebook , Twitter and Google did not immediately reply to requests from the BBC for comment .

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bbc--2020-05-27--The blind teenager who's a reality show favourite

A blind 15-year-old girl has become one of the bookies ' favourites to win this year 's Britain 's Got @ @ @ @ @ weekend .
Sirine Jahangir , who lost her sight at the age of 10 , @ @ @ @ @ and piano-playing during audition rounds for the reality show .
The preliminary episodes of the @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus lockdown came into effect .

A blind 15-year-old girl has become one of the bookies' favourites to win this year's Britain's Got Talent.
Sirine Jahangir, who lost her sight at the age of 10, impressed judges with her singing and piano-playing during audition rounds for the reality show.
The preliminary episodes of the series were recorded before the coronavirus lockdown came into effect.
Sirine spoke to BBC Asian Network's Shabnam Mahmood.
Produced and edited by Sophie van Brugen


bbc--2020-05-28--Terrace House: Reality show cancels season after Hana Kimura death

Japanese Netflix reality show Terrace House has cancelled its current season following the death of cast member and pro-wrestler Hana Kimura .
The 22-year-old had before her death issued a series of social media posts implying she had been cyber-bullied .
News of her death sent shockwaves across Japan , many calling for stricter laws against cyber-bullying .
Terrace House , co-produced by Japan 's FujiTV and distributed by Netflix , is now in its fifth season .
`` We would like to express our sincere condolences for the death of Hana Kimura , '' the show said on its @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to cancel the production of Terrace House Tokyo 2019-2020 . ''
It is not yet clear if the show will be permanently cancelled , though Netflix confirmed to the BBC that there were `` no current plans to take down the latest season of this incredibly loved show '' .
It added that its latest episodes featuring Kimura were available only on its Japan service , saying that it had postponed the launch of new episodes indefinitely .
The unscripted reality show follows six young people who live together in one house in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lives .
A group of panellists provide real-time commentary - analysing conversations and deciphering their body language .
It has in recent years gained a huge following for its authentic interactions between cast members and its relative lack of drama .
Kimura who joined the show last September , was one of six members on the show 's latest season , Tokyo 2019-2020 .
She is said to have been the target of hundreds of mean tweets from fans and critics on a daily basis .
Local media reports say this abuse got @ @ @ @ @ @ @ screened in Japan so far - which saw her getting into an altercation with a roommate .
She had before her death reportedly post images of self harm on Twitter along with messages that read : `` I do n't want to be a human anymore .
It was a life I wanted to be loved .
Thank you everyone , I love you .
Bye . ''
Some local media reports say that a suicide note was found in her home , though this has not been confirmed .
With her pink @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one of the most endearing personas of the show .
She said , in between giggles , that she had come to the show to look for love .
And while the audience coo-ed along with her at first , public opinion seemed to turn against her after an episode where she confronted a housemate for accidentally ruining a wrestling costume of hers .
But Hana 's death is a reminder that while Terrace House might not be your typical reality show , it is very much still a reality show .
While @ @ @ @ @ @ @ you still just have a 45-minute window each week into their daily lives .
At the end of the day , just like any reality show , the producers of the show chose what storylines to show , what conversations are had .
And while most reality show cast members are filmed in a bubble , in Terrace House they are encouraged to go about their daily lives .
That means they are able to see themselves being closely scrutinised after each episode .
At one point this season , cast member Emika @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the panellists who provide a running commentary on the show .
The criticism was meant to come across as jokey , but its uncomfortable to watch now in light of Hana 's death and makes you think about how much weight these panellists hold .
She was filmed breaking down as she watched the episode , saying she regretted ever going on the show .
If Terrace House does continue filming future seasons , this commentary might be something that changes .
Hundreds of tributes have since poured in for Kimura since her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ refreshing and beautiful soul to see on Terrace House , '' said one person on Twitter .
`` My heart is so sad right now . ''
Others said they would not be able to watch Terrace House anymore .
`` [ Terrace House ] was a way for me to try and learn Japanese in a more fun and less academic way .
The way social media bullies drove [ her ] to suicide is so incredibly heartbreaking for us , '' said another .
`` There 's no way we can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ minister Sanae Takaichi has said the government is planning to revise an existing law that allows cyberbullying victims to request personal information on their abusers .
According to Japan 's NHK , Ms Takaichi says Japan hopes to have a draft of the new bill as soon as possible .

But Hana's death is a reminder that while Terrace House might not be your typical reality show, it is very much still a reality show. While you think you know the characters, you still just have a 45-minute window each week into their daily lives.


bbc--2020-05-28--George Floyd: Minnesota clashes over death in police custody

There have been clashes between police and protesters in Minneapolis after the death on Monday of an unarmed black man in police custody in the US city .
Police fired tear gas and protesters threw rocks and sprayed graffiti on police cars .
Video of the death shows George Floyd , 46 , groaning `` I ca n't breathe '' as a white policeman kneels on his neck .
Four police officers have been fired , with the mayor saying that being black `` should not be a death sentence '' .
• Viewpoint : Why racism is worse in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ also called on prosecutors to file criminal charges against the policeman who was filmed holding Mr Floyd .
The incident echoes the case of Eric Garner , who was placed in a police chokehold in New York in 2014 .
His death became a rallying call against police brutality and was a driving force in the Black Lives Matter movement .
What happened at the protests ?
They began in the afternoon on Tuesday , when hundreds of people came to the intersection where the incident had taken place on Monday evening .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ and maintain coronavirus social distancing , with demonstrators chanting `` I ca n't breathe , '' and `` It could 've been me '' .
Protester Anita Murray told the Washington Post : `` It 's scary to come down here in the middle of the pandemic , but how could I stay away ? ''
A crowd of hundreds later marched to the 3rd Precinct , where the officers involved in the death are thought to have worked .
Squad cars were sprayed with graffiti and protesters threw stones at the police @ @ @ @ @ @ @ flash grenades and foam projectiles .
One protester told CBS : `` It 's real ugly .
The police have to understand that this is the climate they have created . ''
Another said : `` I got on my knees and I put up a peace sign and they tear-gassed me . ''
Police said one person had suffered non-life-threatening injuries after being shot away from the protest area but gave no further details .
Officers responding to reports of the use of counterfeit money had approached Mr Floyd in his vehicle @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to step away from the vehicle and physically resisted officers .
A police statement said : `` Officers were able to get the suspect into handcuffs and noted he appeared to be suffering medical distress . ''
The video taken at the scene does not show how the confrontation started .
It shows a white officer using his knee to pin Mr Floyd to the ground by the neck .
Mr Floyd groans `` please , I ca n't breathe '' and `` do n't kill me '' as bystanders urge officers to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ move and an ambulance arrives to take him to hospital where he later died .
What was the official response ?
Mayor Frey said it was the `` right call '' to fire the officers .
He said : `` Being black in America should not be a death sentence .
For five minutes we watched as a white police officer pressed his knee into the neck of a black man .
For five minutes .
When you hear someone calling for help , you are supposed to help . ''
The FBI @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its findings to the Minnesota state 's attorney for possible federal charges .
Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar urged a thorough outside investigation , saying : `` Justice must be served for this man and his family , justice must be served for our community , justice must be served for our country . ''
There have been calls from some for the officers to be charged with murder .
The Minnesota police handbook states that officers trained on how to compress the neck without applying direct pressure to the airway can use a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is regarded as a non-deadly-force option .
The most surprising thing about the response to the in-custody death of George Floyd was the swiftness with which the four police officers involved were sacked .
This is almost always the first demand made by protesters - a demand that is often never met .
While Minneapolis is a very liberal city , it is also very segregated and the region has seen several controversial police killings .
In 2017 , Justine Damond was killed after she called to report a possible sexual assault in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for murder and sentenced to 12.5 years in prison .
During a 2016 traffic stop , Philando Castile was shot and killed by a police officer who was tried and acquitted of manslaughter .
Jamar Clark was killed by Minneapolis officers in 2015 , and charges were never brought .
It seems plausible that city officials hoped their decisive action would prevent mass protests in the middle of the pandemic , but thousands took to the streets .
Demonstrators later smashed a police precinct door , and police used tear gas and non-lethal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that these demonstrations will continue .
Why is the case so sensitive ?
Allegations of police brutality have been constantly highlighted since the start of the Black Lives Matter movement .
It began after the acquittal of neighbourhood watchman George Zimmerman in the shooting death of African-American Trayvon Martin in February 2012 .
The deaths of Michael Brown in Ferguson and Eric Garner in New York in 2014 sparked huge protests .
`` I ca n't breathe '' became a national rallying cry as Garner , an unarmed black man , uttered the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ police in a chokehold on suspicion of illegally selling loose cigarettes .
The New York City police officer involved in Garner 's arrest was fired five years later , but no officer was charged .
• New York police officer in ' I ca n't breathe ' death fired Recent allegations of police wrongdoing include the shooting of a black woman in her home in Louisville by three white Kentucky policemen and the shooting of a man by an officer in Maryland .
Police in Georgia are also accused of trying to cover @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Ahmaud Arbery , allegedly by the son of a retired law official .
• Ahmaud Arbery : What do we know about the case ?
Paige Fernandez of the American Civil Liberties Union , said of the latest case in Minnesota : `` This tragic video shows how little meaningful change has emerged to prevent police from taking the lives of black people . ''

In 2017, Justine Damond was killed after she called to report a possible sexual assault in her alley. The officer was tried for murder and sentenced to 12.5 years in prison. During a 2016 traffic stop, Philando Castile was shot and killed by a police officer who was tried and acquitted of manslaughter. Jamar Clark was killed by Minneapolis officers in 2015, and charges were never brought.