Democrats launching early 2022 AAPI ad buy
20 May 2021
The Democratic National Committee is launching its first minority-focused ad buy of the 2022 midterm cycle, targeting the Asian American and Pacific Islander community in battleground states, Axios has learned.
Why it matters: The buy, which comes earlier than any similar purchase during prior election cycles, underscores Democrats’ awareness of their slim majorities in Congress and the need to engender and retain support from communities of color.
Details: The “high five-figure” ad buy will be placed in AAPI-serving outlets and run in Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Minnesota, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wisconsin.
- The ads will be translated into "traditional Chinese," Korean and Vietnamese.
The buy also comes during AAPI Heritage Month.
- Congress passed the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act on Tuesday. The bill will now head to President Biden's desk, who's said he will sign it into law.
The big picture: In America's largest cities, anti-Asian hate has jumped 164% compared with this time last year, according to data from the Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino, Axios’ Shawna Chen writes.
What they’re saying: “The AAPI community has made tremendous contributions to our nation and were an integral element of Democrats regaining control of the White House and U.S. Senate,” DNC Deputy Executive Director Roger Lau said.
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.