Hong Kong protesters have turned their attention to the U.S. consulate

Hong Kong's protesters want the United States to step in and help them out.

Anti-government, pro-democracy protests continued in Hong Kong on Sunday, as thousands of demonstrators marched on the U.S. consulate in the city in an attempt to garner support from Washington.

The protesters reportedly waved American flags and sang the "Star Spangled Banner" as they called on President Trump to "liberate" Hong Kong.

"Please liberate Hong Kong"

These #antiELAB protesters sing the Star-Spangled Banner as they call for democracy during the 13th straight weekend of #HongKongProtests #香港 pic.twitter.com/RVBIq7vhFQ

— Bloomberg TicToc (@tictoc) August 31, 2019

More specifically, The South China Morning Post reports, the rallygoers want Washington officials to back the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act which would require the U.S. government to assess Hong Kong's level of political autonomy to determine whether it should continue to have a special trade status under the U.S.-Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992. The bill, if passed, could reportedly put more pressure on Beijing, because losing the special status would affect investment in mainland China.

The U.S. has remained mostly mum on Hong Kong as Washington and Beijing try to hammer out some sort of resolution to their trade war. But Defense Secretary Mark Esper on Saturday urged China to exercise restraint and Trump has suggested in the past he thinks the situation should be settled "humanely." Read more at Reuters and The South China Morning Post.