About 200 people gathered along Portland’s waterfront Saturday night while lighting candles and signs during a vigil that honored the victims of a series of shooting incidents at three spas in the area’s Atlanta earlier this week.
“We are here just to show our unity and to tell the world that we are part of America. We are not a target for discrimination,” said Liying Zheng, vice president of the Vancouver Chinese Association. said.
People had signs with messages like ‘Stop Asian Hate’ and ‘Hate is a virus’, as well as the names of those killed on Tuesday. Of the eight deceased, six were Asian American women.
Authorities identified those who died in the attacks as Soon Chung Park (74); Hyun Jung Grant, 51; Suncha Kim, 69; Yong Ae Yue, 63; Delaina Ashley Yaun, 33; Xiaojie Tan, 49; Daoyou Feng, 44; and Paul Andre Michels (54).
The event next to Tom McCall Waterfront Park was organized by various Asian American organizations in Oregon as part of a nationwide night vigil planned by United Chinese Americans, a national advocacy group for Chinese Americans. Volunteers from the Portland Chinese Friendship Association handed out candles to participants.
Ai Fen, 46, said she is not the kind of person who usually attends such events, but she wants to show up and be counted among those who declare violence against Asian Americans.
“We need to learn how to stand up and speak out,” Fen said in Chinese. “We need to show that Asian people cannot be treated so badly.”
Hyun-joo Oh, who is a Korean American, said she will help us be more visible.
“I think it’s time for change to stand up and show up for each other more, because sometimes we’re scared, so we hide,” Oh said.
A group of Oregon leaders spoke at the event, including Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, State Representative Khanh Pham, an Asian U.S. lawmaker representing Portland Jade District, Multnomah County Commissioner Lori Stegmann and President Christine Ryan Chin of the National Organization for Women Oregon, represented. .
Rosenblum urged those present to use and disseminate awareness of the state’s bias crime line.
Asian Americans have been facing increasing racism since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Community leaders in Oregon have been on standby for the past few months as hate crimes and violence against the communities increase nationally.
Stop AAPI Hate, an organization that tracks and reports prejudiced crimes against Asian Americans, counted nearly 3,800 incidents nationwide from March 19, 2020 to the end of last month.
Prejudice crimes against Asian American women made up 68% of the reports. Thirty-five percent of that happened in businesses.
The report noted 40 racist incidents in Oregon.
In January, vandals hit a section of Southeast 82nd Avenue where several businesses in Asia are owned. Business owners in the Jade District have reported more than a dozen such incidents.
“We appeal to the members of our community – look out for each other, support each other,” said Hardy Li, a founding member of United Chinese Americans.
– Jaimie Ding
[email protected]; 503-221-4395; @j_dingdingding