Atlanta anger at Asian 鈥榟ate鈥 killings
Print Edition
A DIVERSE crowd gathered Saturday near the Georgia state Capitol to demand justice for the victims of recent shootings at massage businesses and to denounce racism, xenophobia and misogyny.
Hundreds of people of all ages and varied racial and ethnic backgrounds gathered in Liberty Plaza in Atlanta, and in similar rallies across the country, waving signs and chanting slogans.
In Atlanta, they cheered US senators Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff, and Georgia state House member Bee Nguyen, the first Vietnamese American to serve in the Georgia House.
鈥淚 just wanted to drop by to say to my Asian sisters and brothers, we see you, and, more importantly, we are going to stand with you,鈥 Warnock said to loud cheersas passing drivers honked car horns in support.
Robert Aaron Long, a 21-year-old white man, is accused of killing four people inside two Atlanta spas and four others at a massage business about 50 kilometers away in suburban Cherokee County. Six of the eight people killed Tuesday were women of Asian descent. Another person was shot but survived.
Investigators have said Long confessed to the slayings but said they weren鈥檛 racially motivated. He claimed to have a sex addiction, which caused him to lash out at what he saw as sources of temptation. Police have said they鈥檙e still working to establish a motive, including looking into whether the attacks can be classified as hate crimes.
Georgia lawmakers last year passed a hate crimes law allowing additional penalties for certain offenses when motivated by a victim鈥檚 race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender or disability. A hate crime is not a standalone crime, but can be used to add time to a sentence of for another crime.
鈥淣o matter how you want to spin it, the facts remain the same. This was an attack on the Asian community,鈥 said Nguyen, an advocate for women and communities of color. She noted the shooter targeted businesses operated by women of Asian descent.
鈥淟et鈥檚 join hands with our ally community and demand justice for not only these victims but for all victims of white supremacy,鈥 she said.
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