TOPEKA, Kan - The only Asian American lawmaker serving in the Kansas Legislature says he was physically threatened in a western Kansas bar by an out-of-state patron, who he said questioned if he had been carrying COVID-19.In social media comments posted Friday, state Rep.
Rui Xu, a Westwood Democrat, said the man confronted him and, using an expletive, questioned why he was wearing a face mask.
Xu told the Associated Press that the patron also questioned if he was carrying the virus."That's a pretty specific dog whistle at Asian Americans from the last year," Xu, who is Chinese American, told the AP. "Most of the anti-Asian American rhetoric that has happened has had some form of that message."FILE - Democratic Rep.