GLAD mourns alongside the Atlanta community following the murder of eight people, six of whom were Asian American women, across the city earlier this week. We stand in unity with the Asian American community in Georgia and across the country as this brutal and heartbreaking attack and its aftermath come in the midst of a reported 150% increase in hate-motived violence against Asian Americans over the past year.

This increase in anti-Asian American attacks, many directed at elders and other particularly vulnerable members of the community, are not only manifestations of despicable heightened anti-China and anti-Chinese sentiment spurred in some cases from the top of our federal government over the past year, but of a long history of racial bias against Asians, Asian Americans, and Pacific Islanders in the U.S.

Structural racism and accompanying individual bias impact all communities of color in the U.S., though those impacts manifest and are felt differently among us. As justice seeking people, whether AAPI, Black, Latinx, Native American, or white, whether LGBTQ+ or not, we can come together to dismantle the painful and destructive legacy of white supremacy, lift up one another’s humanity, and support our friends, neighbors, and community members with love and dignity. We join with you, and thank you for joining GLAD, in our shared commitment to this work.

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