Police Increase Patrols As Asian Americans Fear More Violence

ATLANTA, GA — Just two days after a lone gunman took the lives of eight people while targeting three Georgia massage parlors, police and lawmakers alike are taking action to quell rising fears of violence among the country’s Asian American community.

Authorities searched for answers as to what motivated Robert Aaron Long, 21, to attack metro Atlanta Asian massage parlors Tuesday afternoon. Meanwhile, police in cities across the country are upping patrols in Asian American neighborhoods out of “an abundance of caution.”

Among them is the Atlanta suburb of Lawrenceville. Authorities there on Wednesday said the police department would provide "extra patrols in and around Asian businesses, particularly spas" following the shootings, Yahoo News reported.

"Although there are no known threats at this time, these patrols will continue for the foreseeable future for the safety and comfort of the community," police said.

Five people were shot at a massage parlor about 30 miles north of Atlanta, and four died. Police also found three women shot to death at Gold Spa in Atlanta, and another woman dead at Aroma Therapy Spa across the street.

In a statement to The Associated Press, South Korea's Foreign Ministry confirmed that four of the victims who died were women of Korean descent. An additional two female victims were also of Asian descent.

The shooting has prompted many to wonder if the attack was race-related.

During a Wednesday press conference, police said the attack was not racially motivated. During questioning, authorities said, Long claimed to have a “sex addiction” and said he lashed out at what he saw as sources of temptation.

However, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms told CNN it’s difficult to ignore that many of the victims were Asian and were targeted at Asian massage parlors.

"We're listening to a confessed murderer," Lance Bottoms told CNN, adding that Long's statements to investigators must be taken "with a grain of salt."

Regardless of Long’s motive, Asian American fears are not unfounded.

Police in several major cities saw a sharp increase in Asian-targeted hate crimes between 2019 and 2020, The AP reported, citing data collected by the Center for the Study of Hate & Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino.

New York City went from three incidents to 27 during that period, Los Angeles from seven to 15, and Denver had three incidents in 2020 — the first reported there in six years.

Another recently released report by Stop AAPI Hate found that 68 percent of Asian Americans had experienced verbal harassment between March 19, 2020, and February 2021. Eleven percent reported being physically assaulted.

The report included graphic and heartbreaking examples of the harassment endured by Asian Americans since the onset of the pandemic:

In New York City: “... A man started screaming at me and called me a ‘disgusting f-----g animal,’ told me to ‘get the f--k out of the store.’ He asked if I was crazy, and told me to ‘go back home’ and ‘get out of the f-----g country.’ He followed me around the store screaming at me and nobody did anything.”

In Annandale, Virginia: “My boyfriend and I were riding the metro into DC. When on the escalator in the transfer station, a man repeatedly punched my back and pushed past us. At the top, he circled back toward us, followed us, repeatedly shouted ‘Chinese b----h’ at me, fake coughed at, and physically threatened us.”

In Dallas: “I am a Pacific Islander. I was at the mall with a friend. I was wearing a plumeria clip and was speaking Chamorro when a woman coughed and said, ‘You and your people are the reason why we have corona.’ She then said, ‘Go sail a boat back to your island.’”

Police departments in Chicago and New York City are also increasing patrols in Asian American neighborhoods.

“Our district commanders are working with local community leaders, advocates and business owners throughout Chicago's Asian American & Pacific Islander community to reinforce our commitment to protecting the lives, rights, and property of all people in Chicago,” Chicago police Superintendent David Brown tweeted.

Police in San Francisco and Houston are also among cities upping patrols.

“We have seen a rise of hate crimes against our elderly Asian community, and I want to make it clear that we won’t tolerate it,” San Francisco Mayor London Breed said during a news conference. “San Francisco will continue to support and uplift our Asian community ... the xenophobia and discrimination against our Asian community has been really horrible.”

On Capitol Hill, lawmakers are also seeking answers for why the country is seeing an uptick in violence against Asian Americans.

The House Judiciary subcommittee on Thursday held a hearing focused on the rise of violence and discrimination against Asian Americans. The hearing featured testimony from Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Democratic Reps. Grace Meng of New York and Doris Matsui and Judy Chu of California.

"Anti-Asian hate did not begin with the COVID-19 pandemic, and it will not end when the pandemic is over,” Congressman Steve Cohen said in his opening remarks. “All the pandemic did was exacerbate latent anti-Asian prejudices that have a long and ugly history in America.”

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