28 May 2021
President Biden on Friday called the recent spate of antisemitic attacks in the United States "despicable, unconscionable, un-American."
What he's saying: "We have seen a brick thrown through [the] window of a Jewish-owned business in Manhattan, a swastika carved in the door of a synagogue in Salt Lake City, families threatened outside a restaurant in Los Angeles, and museums in Florida and Alaska, dedicated to celebrating Jewish life and culture and remembering the Holocaust, vandalized with anti-Jewish messages," Biden said.
- "These attacks are despicable, unconscionable, un-American, and they must stop," he said, reiterating the Justice Department's commitment to "deploying all of the tools at its disposal to combat hate crimes."
- "May is Jewish American Heritage Month, when we honor Jewish Americans who have inextricably woven their experience and their accomplishments into the fabric of our national identity," he said.
- "I will not allow our fellow Americans to be intimidated or attacked because of who they are or the faith they practice," he added, denouncing "hatred, dangerous lies, and conspiracy theories."
The big picture: Rights groups across the U.S. and Europe have documented a rise in antisemitic attacks following this month's fighting between Israel's military and Hamas in Gaza.
- The recent string of antisemitic attacks in the United States are "despicable, unconscionable, un-American," Biden said. His statement Friday echoed comments he made earlier this week.
- Jewish faith leaders and groups organized a virtual rally on Thursday to denounce the attacks. Though lawmakers, celebrities and others participated in the event, neither Biden or Vice President Harris took part, which privately "frustrated" some Jewish leaders, according to Time.
Go deeper: Latest Gaza conflict fuels anti-Semitism, Islamophobia across U.S., Europe
Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times
Section2Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.
Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.
The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.
- The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.
What the transcripts say:
- Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
- The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
- Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."
Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.