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With just one day to go until the US presidential election, each candidate's message on racism, protests and the police could be a deciding factor for many voters.

Both Donald Trump and Joe Biden are old enough to remember the civil rights movement in America, a time in the 1950s and 1960s when black people campaigned to have the same freedoms as white people in the country.

However for many, the events of this year have proved that black people in the US are still treated unfairly and the country still has a real problem with racism.

George Floyd

In May, a black man named George Floyd was killed when police in Minnesota stopped him and held him down by kneeling on his neck.

Despite saying he couldn't breathe, the police officer refused to remove his knee and soon afterwards Floyd died.

George Floyd's death resulted in thousands of people protesting in cities across America. They chanted Floyd's name in tribute and shouted slogans such as 'black lives matter'.

The reaction to the protests

Many of the protests were peaceful but some demonstrations became violent, with protestors fighting with police and lighting fires.

At the time, President Trump said he didn't have a problem with peaceful protests, and that all Americans had been 'sickened' by the death of George Floyd.

But, he added that if cities and states failed to control protestors and "defend their residents" he would deploy the army and "quickly solve the problem for them".

When protestors gathered outside the White House where President Trump lives in America's capital, Washington DC, he said:

"In recent days our nation has been gripped by violent mobs, arsonists, looters, criminals, rioters.

"As we speak I am dispatching thousands of heavily armed soldiers and law enforcement officers to stop the rioting, looting, vandalism assaults and the destruction of property."

For many of those who protested, they believe that Donald Trump is part of the problem and say he divides America and encourages violence.

They also argue that the president has previously defended white supremacists, who think that white people are better than other races.

Mr Trump has defended himself by saying:

"I am the least racist person."

What have Biden and Trump said to each other on the issue?

Trump has argued that one of the many things he has done, is to create jobs for minority Americans, the president says that 'nobody has done more for the black community' in the US than him, "except for maybe" Abraham Lincoln.

Considered as one of the greatest presidents in American history, Lincoln helped to bring about the end of slavery in the country.

In the final televised presidential debate, Joe Biden said: "[President Trump] pours fuel on every single racist fire. Every single one."

In response, Trump referred to a law supported by Joe Biden in the 80s and 90s, that resulted in thousands of black men going to jail for minor offences.

"Now, you have done nothing other than the crime bill which put tens of thousands of black men, mostly, in jail," Trump said.

The law and order president

As campaigning ahead of the election has continued, Donald Trump has told supporters that he is the president of 'law and order'.

At a campaign rally in October, the president talked about this year's protests and said:

"Cities are burning and they're saying these are peaceful protests. And you look, and everything is on fire.

"Biden likes to call them "peaceful protesters."

Dr Clodagh Harrington is an American politics expert, she says Joe Biden and Donald Trump have taken a completely different approach on the issue.

"Both candidates have a strong message, but are speaking a different language," she said.

"Following the protests, Trump had the message of law and order, while Biden has talked about changing the way the police behave."

Police reform

Following the death of George Floyd, there had been calls to defund the police in America, meaning they wouldn't get as much money.

But Joe Biden has said that: "We don't have to defund police departments, we have to make sure they meet the basic standards of decency."

Biden says that after Floyd's death and the protests that followed, the behaviour of the police has to be changed and improved.

"The vast majority of police are decent men and women," Biden said.

"But there's bad apples in every profession."

Critics, including president Trump, say that if Biden becomes president he won't be supportive of law enforcement, who have a very difficult job.

Donald Trump also says that Joe Biden has failed to make any real difference to the issues faced by the black community during a 47 year career in politics.

So why is this important in the election?

If the election is close, black voters could help tip the balance in some key battleground states, where a win for either candidate could decide the outcome of this year's election.

In 2016 many black voters decided not to vote at all, this time around both Donald Trump and Joe Biden are hoping to win them over.