People hold signs and protest during a rally after a Minneapolis Police Department officer allegedly killed George Floyd on Tuesday in Minneapolis, Minnesota. A video of a handcuffed black man dying while a Minneapolis officer knelt on his neck for more than five minutes sparked fresh furor in the US over police treatment of African Americans. Photo: AFP

Hong Kong's rioters and police should carefully watch how the "democratic US" deals with the chaos in Minnesota. 

After the tragic death of African-American George Floyd following violent police treatment, enraged protesters in Minneapolis rushed to the city's police building, where a fire later broke out. US President Donald Trump then began to feel uneasy. He sent out a tweet early Friday morning (US time), saying, "I can't stand back & watch this happen." He instructed Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey to "get his act together and bring the city under control," saying the alternative was that he would send in the National Guard and "get the job done right."

"When the looting starts, the shooting starts," Trump said. He said he had spoken to Minnesota Governor Tim Walz and told him "the military is with him all the way."

United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet on Thursday condemned the killings of many unarmed African Americans at the hands of the police over the years. She said that US authorities must take serious action to stop such killings and to ensure that justice is done when they do occur.

In the US, more than 100,000 people have died from COVID-19, most of them weak, elderly, poor and minorities. The death of George Floyd, from another perspective, reveals the desperate inequality rampant in the US. People in Minnesota were angry and lost control. I sent out a tweet on Friday: "Secretary Pompeo, please stand with the angry people of Minneapolis, just like you did with the people of Hong Kong."

US political elites seem to be fierce in all directions. They directly applauded Hong Kong's riots, calling them a "beautiful sight" of democracy. The chaos in Hong Kong has lasted for over a year and military forces have not been dispatched. Yet after only three days of chaos in Minnesota, Trump publicly threatened the use of firepower and implied military forces could be utilized.

That is the state of US inequality and another example of the country's double standards. Well, America, what should I say?

The author is editor-in-chief of the Global Times. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn