Asian Americans grieve, organize in wake of Atlanta attacks
Fox News
Some have called for law enforcement to expand its definition of "what a hate crime is."
"I think the reason why people are feeling so hopeless is because Asian Americans have been ringing the bell on this issue for so long. ... We’ve been raising the red flag," said Aisha Yaqoob Mahmood, executive director of the Atlanta-based Asian American Advocacy Fund, which does political and advocacy work across Georgia. Many were also outraged that the suspect, 21-year-old Robert Aaron Long, was not immediately charged with hate crimes. Authorities said Long told police the attack was not racially motivated, and he claimed that he targeted the spas because of a "sex addiction." Six of the seven slain women were identified as Asian. Law enforcement needs "some training understanding what a hate crime is. This man identified targets owned by Asians," said Margaret Huang, president and CEO of the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks hate groups. The gunman "was very clearly going after a targeted group of people."More Related News