I can't speak for all of the US but last night, I could hear the helicopters (more than the other nights) and I could hear gunshots (firecrackers? loud noise makers?).
My husband works in San Francisco and had a hard time getting to work last night, once there, his building was boarded up, with extra security and such.
My sister in LA is having a similar experience to mine, and even family in San Diego (and San Diego usually doesn't join in) are seeing the riots keep going strong.
What I meant by it being covid related, is that people have been holed up with nowhere to put their energy, lots of job losses, lines to buy groceries, kids home from school, and just a difficult time in general. It kind of feels like we were ripe for an outbreak of "can't hold us down."
That's a fair point, the timing of Covid is unfortunate and I agree that it is likely to have contributed somewhat. People are at breaking point for a number of reasons and whether or not you agree with the lockdown, it's been tough on us all. I guess it's only natural that all it needs is a spark in these circumstances to escalate things very quickly.