night, and beat boys rule the world. this is "nightline." >> tonight, joining forces to stop asian-american hate. >> asian piece of [ bleep ]. >> oh my god! >> the activists. the lawmakers. the famous faces. >> we're being a lot more than our parents and bragrand grandparents. we were raised to speak up for people who need our help. >> olivia munn to jeremy lynn. >> old people being pushed over and attacked. >> spotlighting attacks in the community, inspiring others to stand up against racism. looking for a lifeline. >> hey,guys. >> we're with business owners in los angeles crippled by the pandemic, now fighting to turn the tables. >> this is the land of dreams. you're telling me that we can't

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against the community. and reminding us all to not look the other way when they too often are made to feel just that, "other." here's my "nightline" coanchor juju chang. >> reporter: for too long, it's been an invisible problem. the violence against asian-americans surging throughout the pandemic. this week, police investigating new incidents from a street in seattle and a laundromat in san francisco. to new york city, where a 56-year-old man was beaten for no apparent reason. attacks targeting our neighbors, our friends, our loved ones. a woman viciously shoved. a 71-year-old lady punched in the face. a 36-year-old man stabbed in chinatown on his way home from work. these attacks seemingly escalating over the past two prptorha00eople sidaritygast olen. r boiling over.w tng an uprising to stop the hate.

>> it is something in the psyche of this country where somehow it's okay to physically or verbally abuse asian-americans. we're being scapegoated. and this is not just one community. it is every community. >> reporter: hollywood stars, athletes, congress members, activists, and everyday americans joining forces against not just the violence -- >> punched, pushed over. we have elderly being attacked. >> reporter: the casual racism asian-americans endure every day in this country. >> i've always kind of been the "asian guy." prove myself a little more. >> reporter: basketball player jeremy lin of the nba g-league called "coronavirus" on the court. >> when the next asian or asian-american comes along, that they won't have to fight as hard or fight uphill to show what they can do. >> reporter: actress olivia munn lending star status to the fight. >> when i look in the mirror, i see an asian-american woman.

i don't see a woman. >> reporter: like so many, munn says the pandemic has been weaponized against asians and asian-americans. >> i really was paralyzed. i didn't really know what to think, what to say. >> when the previous administration said things publicly like the wuhan virus -- >> the china flu. the china virus. the plague from china. >> unapologetically, he helped to stoke the fires of anti-asian violence against our communities. >> reporter: stop aapi hate began collecting more than 2,800 reports nationwide of anti-asian hate between march and december. munn says her mission became personal after her friend's mother was attacked. take me to that moment when you saw surveillance video of your friend's mom being attacked. what went through your mind? >> i was in shock. i mean, she's a very tiny woman. and she is hurled through the

air to the point where her body is horizontal, her legs are flailing. and i think about my own mother. i think about my aunts. i think about the people in my family. and how it could have happened to any of them. >> reporter: munn told us her friend's mom didn't even want to report the crime at first. but after the suspect was arrested she now feels like she matters. tell me how the younger generation is responding to that cultural need to sort of stay quiet. are younger asian-americans being more vocal? >> yeah, we're being a lot more vocal than our parents and grandparents. there was this conditioning for the older generation to accept being a second-class citizen in your own country. just surviving and thought pnot shouldn't be the aim for our families. it shouldn't be the aim for anyone. our parents and grandparents paved the roads for us. now it's our turn to take them back to the front of those roads and walk them down those paths and say, look, you belong here,

you're an american, and it's safe. >> reporter: one of the videos that helped spark this fresh ouage,he senseless death of 84-year-old thai immigrant vishar, knocked to the ground while on his morning walk. the horrific video getting the attention of so many people, including actor daniel day kim. >> it was a very visceral response. i got very angry. this is now a year of these kinds of things going on. but it was disheartening to see how many people did not know. >> reporter: police arrested a 19-year-old suspect who pled not guilty to murder and elder abuse. his lawyer insists the attack was not racially motivated because the victim's face was fully covered with a mask and hat so there was no knowledge of race. his lawyer instead calling it a break in the mental health of a teenager. but while vishar's death made headlines, propelling this issue to the forefront, it's his life his daughter and son-in-law want to honor. ♪ happy birthday ♪ >> he's a family man.

a gentle man. he's taking care of our family. >> reporter: even though svishar's attack and others are not being investigated as hate crimes it's drawing attention to the alarming surge in xenophobic atta attacks. >> asian piece of [ bleep ]. >> oh my god, go back to whatever [ bleep ] asian country you belong in. >> reporter: she's trying to find hope. it isn't easy. >> i've been outside with the kids and i've been attacked verbally, the yelling, you are sick, you are a virus asian. >> how did your kids react? >> we know there is violence, we just walk away. >> reporter: that pain pales in comparison to her father's murder. >> i miss him a lot, every day. he's a caring person. we can't believe this happened. >> reporter: many in the asian-american community are harnessing the power of social media to share information on attacks and help hunt for

suspects. my colleague, dion lim, of kgo-tv in san francisco, is a prime example. >> on social media, things are different. people get to know me on a little bit more of an interest accurate basis. they learn about me being bullied growing up in nondiverse parts of the country. so they feel that connection. then on social media, there's also a buffer. there's a screen on a phone or a computer. so they feel protected. they don't have to lay it all out on the line. then when they see other people comment on these posts, they realize, oh my gosh, i'm not alone. i can do this. i feel empowered to share my story. >> reporter: others using their influence online to raise awareness, 31-year-old software engineer hugh ma. >> it started when i was trying to help my mom find a vaccine. it was a pretty arduous process. >> reporter: ma started turbovax, a popular twitter profile which tracks realtime availability of the vaccine. he's reportedly helped tens of thousands of new yorkers get the shot. but as attacks against the asian

community spiked, ma decided to protest in a meaningful way, to capture people's attention. he shot turbovax down temporarily. >> i wanted to illustrate through this action of taking the site down for two days that if we as a country don't listen to the concerns of asian-americans, then we risk losing the contributions of asian-americans as well. growing up in queens, i was not immune to anti-asian bias. i grew up with people making offhand remarks about slanted eyes, yellow skin, my ching chong name. >> reporter: ma recommended people donate to a chinatown nonprofit. he said messages of hate started pouring in. but so did the support and the money. hso fas raid $105,000. >> i just hope that my experience can show others that as long as we take the initiative and stand up for what you believe in, i think that you

can make real change regardless of however big or small you think that may be. >> our thanks to juju. you can watch the "abc news live" special "stop the hate: the rise in violence against asian-americans" on hulu. how businesses in one american city hit hard by covid-19 are fighting to survive. kim is now demonstrating her congestion. save it slimeball. i've upgraded to mucinex. we still have 12 hours to australia. mucinex lasts 12 hours, so i'm good. now move! kim, no! mucinex lasts 3x longer for 12 hours. brushing only reaches 25% of your mouth. listerine® cleans virtually 100%. helping to prevent gum disease and bad breath. never settle for 25%. always go for 100. bring out the bold™

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relaxing their mask mandates, the state of california faces arguably the strictest covid-19 restrictions in the u.s. now the business owners finding new ways to stay afloat. >> so here you can see what is a really expensive warehouse and storage facility now. >> reporter: this empty 10,000 square foot gym is the financial responsibility of jared pearl mutter, j.p. as he's known. >> we have to maintain it. cleaning crew comes out every night wide receiver we change out the hvac hepa filters because we have staff and members that come in. >> reporter: he's expected to pay full rent, a staggering $30,000 per month. >> six, eight people over here stretching. >> reporter: even though he's currently prohibited from using the space for regular business. he's one of about 4 million small business owners in california trying to keep the lights on in one of the most

restricted states in the nation. >> we're operating at 50% as far as our ability to offer programs. so not only are we limited to 50%, we're now limited to the number of people we can service at 50%. >> reporter: gyms have not been allowed to operate indoor business for almost a yes, sir in l.a. county. it was this parking lot and the loyal clientele that allowed j.p. to reopen this summer at reduced capacity. >> the sec it opened back up, yes, sign me up. >> reporter: as texas and mississippi eliminate mask mandates and reopen, california's governor continues to take it slow. >> we have to be vigilant, we have to be mindful. >> reporter: california has lost the largest number of small businesses of any state, more than 15,000 shuttered in los angeles county alone. with only 12% here getting a vaccine dose so far, and a more contagious variant of the virus running rampant in the state, we spent the day with three small business owners whose resilience is their best asset. >> we're california.

this is the land of dreams. the richest people on earth live in california. you're telling me that we can't create a few solutions? >> i'm going to fight, fight, fight and look for ways until everything is starting to get better. >> i can tell you 100 businesses that need that miracle right now. >> we're brick fit innocence west hollywood, california. brick fitness is a group class instruction facility. >> all right action guys, welcome. >> rowing and bike and jump roping and movements on the ground, barbells, dumbbells, et cetera. . >> reporter: before the pandemic, j.p. says his 11-year-old business had 28 employees. he's let go of half. the cost of doing business has only increased. >> increased expenses to operate safely outdoors is between $10,000 and $12,000 a month. increased cleaning crew. tent rentals. equipment. maintenance is five times what

it was on equipment alone. >> reporter: adapting while complying to a myriad of rules. for this gym, outdoors, masks, no music or loud instruction. >> you can see some of them have their airpods in. so they can listen to their own music. then they have to focus and listen intently because the coach can't scream. >> reporter: a 30-minute drive away is historically latino east los angeles. >> chico's, can i help you? >> reporter: san sanchez is getting ready for the lunch rush. >> chico's restaurant in highland park, california, my restaurant. where we've been since 1983. we started from scratch. >> reporter: the state's shutdown of indoor dining last march forced 58-year-old senin to innovate immediately, turning to delivery apps. >> i had to jump into the technology, otherwise i will be totally dead if i'm not on the

website or using the media. door dash takes 30%. i believe grub hub takes 25%. i've been able to make mortgage payments, my rent on time, my bills are paid. so if i break, i'm okay. >> reporter: he's been blessed with a landlord who's kept rent low. >> so people eat every day, and thank god they like my food, so i'm blessed. >> reporter: he's one of the lucky ones. latino-owned businesses have been more impacted by the pandemic than other ethnic groups. because latinos in l.a. county are dying at three times the rate of white residents, he's in no rush to open his dining room. >> we have to give respect and follow the rules. because they're doing their best they can. so we have to do the best we can according to the rules. >> no more outdoor dining in l.a. county, at least for now. officials announced more restrictions as coronavirus cases continue to surge. >> reporter: l.a. restaurants

and bars have gone through three rounds of closures or restrictions on service. many that have not folded are in massive debt. including the owner of this neighborhood bar. >> how are you doing? >> reporter: angela marsden. >> we're in sherman oaks at pineapple hill grill and saloon, at my bar. i'm in debt even with the gofundme. i got the ppe and applied for the sba loan. i took that money and i paid my staff, i paid for the patio, i paid for all the covid stuff. >> reporter: angela first spoke with "nightline" last march. she received the news of the mandatory shutdown. >> you know, it's almost 5:00, and we're open from 11:00 to 8:00, and we only have $140 in sales. and that doesn't even cover the two people that we're trying to keep employed. >> reporter: she eventually built an elaborate parking lot patio for outdoor dining. >> i've taken a loss every month, $20,000 to $30,000.

overall i've lost over $500,000 in revenue that would normally be coming in. >> reporter: she says she's spent $80,000 in adaptations to the restaurant. ppp loans she received evaporated quickly. by november, another shutdown. >> they basically shut us down two days before thanksgiving. i went out and bought $10,000 worth of food to sell that now can't be sold. >> reporter: she recorded a video that went viral, blasting the state for deeming businesses like hers nonessential. >> mayor garcetti has approved this being set up for a movie company. look at this. tell me that this is dangerous. but right next to me, as a slap in my face. >> my real complaint was never with the movie company or the movie industry. my problem was with garcetti and newsom. they're the people that are making the rules.

>> reporter: with the parking lot patio finally reopened, angela is part of a movement to recall the governor. for angela, business is personal. it's not just a living, it's her life. >> the pineapple hill grill and saloon, it represents a real meeting place where people meet here. i hope that i own this till the day i die. up next, a double lung transplant and a second chance at life for one covid-19 survivor. walter, did you know geico could save you hundreds on car insurance and a whole lot more? so what are you waiting for? world's strongest man martins licis to help you break down boxes? arrrggh! what am i gonna do to you box? let me “break it down” for you... arrgggh! you're going down! down to the recycling center! >>hey, thanks martins! yeah, you're welcome.

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♪ finally tonight, a programming note on tomorrow's broadcast. the miraculous story of leah. a loving father brought back from the brink of covid-19. the virus destroying leo's lungs. now the journey to undergo a rare and risky operation. the life-saving double lung transplant. cameras are there every step of the way following the story of saving leo. the special broadcast tomorrow night right here on "nightline." that's it for this evening.

watch our full episodes on hulu. we'll see you right back here, same time tomorrow. thanks for the company, america. good night.