Crime scene tape surrounds Gold Spa after fatal shootings at a massage parlor and 2 spa in the Atlanta location, in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. March 16, 2021.
Chris Aluka Berry | Reuters
President Joe Biden stated Wednesday he was informed by his administration’s leading police authorities about the fatal Atlanta-location shooting spree that left 8 dead, supposedly consisting of 6 Asian females.
Attorney General Merrick Garland and FBI Director Christopher Wray informed Biden by phone about the shootings at 3 health spas, which have actually triggered leaders to condemn a current rise in violence versus Asian Americans.
“The investigation is ongoing and the question of motivation is still to be determined,” Biden stated at the start of a virtual conference with the prime minister of Ireland.
“But whatever the motivation here, I know Asian Americans are very concerned, because as you know I have been speaking about the brutality against Asian Americans, and it’s troubling,” the president stated.
Biden stated he is waiting for more details from the Department of Justice and the FBI, including, “I’ll have more to say when the investigation is completed.”
White House press secretary Jen Psaki stated previously that Biden had actually been at first informed over night about the shootings which authorities “have been in touch with the mayor’s office and will remain in touch with the FBI.”
Authorities have actually jailed a suspect, Robert Aaron Long, 21, of Woodstock, Georgia. Asked if the attacks were racially encouraged, Cherokee County Sheriff Frank Reynolds stated that they asked the suspect that particular concern which “did not appear to be the motive.”
“We believe that he frequented these places in the past and may have been lashing out,” Reynolds stated, including that Long showed he might be a sex addict.
However, Reynolds stated, it’s still early in the examination.
Long was charged with murder and exacerbated attack, NBC News reported.
This scheduling image supplied by the Crisp County Sheriff’s Office programs Robert Aaron Long on Tuesday, March 16, 2021. Long was jailed as a suspect in the deadly shootings of numerous individuals at 3 Atlanta-location massage parlors, the majority of them females of Asian descent, authorities stated.
Crisp County Sheriff’s Office | AP
At the top of a call with Irish leaders Wednesday early morning, Vice President Kamala Harris revealed uniformity with the Asian American neighborhood.
“It is tragic. Our country, the president and I and all of us, we grieve for those lost. Our prayers are with the families of those who have been killed. This speaks to a larger issue, which is the issue of violence in our country and what we must do to never tolerate it and to always speak out against it,” Harris stated.
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“The investigation is ongoing. We don’t yet know, we’re not yet clear about the motive,” she stated. “But I do want to say to our Asian American community that we stand with you and understand how this has frightened and shocked and outraged all people.”
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks on the Atlanta location shootings prior to a virtual bilateral conference with Ireland’s Prime Minister Micheal Martin in the Vice President’s Ceremonial Office in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, beside the White House in Washington, DC on March 17, 2021.
Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Images
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., stated on the Senate flooring earlier Wednesday that there is “legitimate concern that these killings may have been racially motivated.”
The U.S. has actually seen increasing reports of events versus Asian Americans throughout the coronavirus pandemic.
The advocacy group Stop AAPI Hate stated Tuesday that it got 3,795 reports of hate events versus Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in between March 19, 2020, and Feb. 28.
Democrats consisting of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have actually gotten in touch with Congress to pass legislation focused on enhancing hate-crime reporting and to supply more assistance to victims.
“I’m heartbroken for the victims of last night’s horrific shootings in Georgia, and for the victims’ families,” Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia stated in a declaration.Â
“While the motive for last night’s terrible violence remains under investigation, I express my love and support for and stand in solidarity with the Asian-American community, which has endured a shocking increase in violence and harassment over the last year,” Ossoff stated.
Numerous Asian American leaders and activists are poised to affirm Thursday prior to a House panel on civil liberties about the increase in discrimination and violence versus their neighborhoods amidst the pandemic.
The livestreamed hearing prior to the Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties is slated to consist of statement from numerous Asian American legislators, consisting of Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., the very first Thai American lady chosen to Congress. The other legislators are Democratic Reps. Doris Matsui and Judy Chu of California and Grace Meng of New York.
