After the fatal attacks on three massage studios in the state of Georgia, US President Joe Biden and his deputy Kamala Harris traveled to Atlanta to meet representatives of the Asian community. According to his spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre, the increasing violence against US citizens of Asian descent will come up. The president will emphasize his will to fight against “xenophobia, intolerance and hatred”.
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Eight people were killed in the attacks on Tuesday, including six women of Asian origin. According to the police, the 21-year-old suspect Robert Aaron Long rejected a racist motive. He said that in the fight against his sex addiction he wanted to “eliminate” a temptation that had brought him into conflict with his strict religious beliefs.
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The authorities have not yet confirmed Long’s motive. In general, however, the act is a symbol of the intertwining of sexism and racism in the United States. On the day of the attack, a report by the Stop AAPI Hate organization was published, according to which hate crimes against people of Asian descent in the USA have increased and women are affected more than average.
By order of Biden, the flags on the White House and other public buildings should remain at half-mast until Monday. The House of Representatives observed a minute’s silence on Thursday. Vigils were held in several major cities, while police in New York, Seattle, Chicago, San Francisco, and other locations increased their patrols in neighborhoods with large Asian-American populations.
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