The Atlanta-area spa shootings hit home for many Asian American women: “This could have been me.”
Ten Asian American women explain the connection they feel to the six slain women, and the resilience required to assimilate while facing ongoing harassment. washingtonpost.com/nation/interac…
When Karen Watkins heard about the shooting, she thought of her mother, who was often mocked for her race and accused of “stealing” jobs.
“I remember those people getting mad at her in the grocery store. If they had a gun and they got frustrated, they could just shoot at her.”
Mariah Hatta survived a fatal shooting at work in 2008. People often check in on her when a mass shooting occurs.
The Atlanta-area one felt different: “Workplace ones always kind of hit a little close to home.” The victims being mostly Asian women made it “just a little harder.”
Snigdha Hoque sometimes faced crude and sexualized comments related to her ethnicity from men at work. That's why the Atlanta-area shooting resonated with her.
“These women went to work because they had to ... They had to go to work to support their families.”
For Thao Lee, the shooting reinforced her feeling of vulnerability during the pandemic: “Even when I go to the store, I have to watch my back all the time.”
Her daughter Monica said it validated a growing fear that her family and friends “didn’t really know how to process yet.”
When Kym Lee read that one of the slain women in the Atlanta-area shooting worked 12 hours every day, she thought: “That’s my mom.”
“That’s what a lot of immigrants do: You come here to build a better life and give a better life for your family. You’ll do whatever it takes.”
The six victims of Asian descent in the Atlanta-area mass shooting represented a diverse community.
Video: How Asian American women feel connected to victims of the Atlanta spa shootings
Videos by Drea Cornejo. Photos by Mary Inhea Kang, Michelle Mishina, Carolyn Fong, Mick Hawkins, Drea Cornejo, Sarah Pulcino, Caroline Yang and Mengwen Cao. Family photos were provided by the women featured in this story.
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Mark Robinson, the firebrand Republican nominee for governor in North Carolina, has for years made comments downplaying and making light of sexual assault and domestic violence. wapo.st/3KQffZ6
A review of Robinson’s social media posts over the past decade shows that he frequently questioned the credibility of women who aired allegations of sexual assault against prominent men, including Harvey Weinstein, Bill Cosby and now-U.S. Supreme Court Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh. wapo.st/3KQffZ6
In one post, Robinson, North Carolina’s lieutenant governor, characterized Weinstein and others as “sacrificial lambs” being “slaughtered.” wapo.st/3KQffZ6
Exclusive: A Washington Post investigation has found that over the past two decades, hundreds of law enforcement officers in the United States have sexually abused children while officials at every level of the criminal justice system have failed to protect kids, punish abusers and prevent additional crimes. wapo.st/3XiNgZC
The Post conducted an exclusive analysis of the nation’s most comprehensive database of police crimes.
From 2005 through 2022, reporters identified at least 1,800 state and local law enforcement officers who were charged with crimes involving child sexual abuse. wapo.st/3XiNgZC
Police and court documents show that abusive officers frequently spent months befriending and grooming kids.
Many used the threat of arrest or physical harm to make their victims comply. wapo.st/3XiNgZC
Exclusive: For decades, Catholic priests raped or molested Native American children who were taken from their homes by the U.S. government and forced to live at remote boarding schools, a Post investigation found. wapo.st/3yB2VZT
At least 122 priests, sisters and brothers assigned to 22 boarding schools since the 1890s were later accused of sexually abusing Native American children under their care, The Post found. wapo.st/3yB2VZT
Most of the documented abuse occurred in the 1950s and 1960s and involved more than 1,000 children.
Experts say the The Post’s findings are a window into the widespread sexual abuse at Indian boarding schools. wapo.st/3yB2VZT
Exclusive: A group of billionaires and business titans working to shape U.S. public opinion of the war in Gaza privately pressed New York City’s Mayor Eric Adams (D) last month to send police to disperse pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University. wapo.st/4apUvBO
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Emily Franciose’s love of the backcountry drew her to boarding school in the Swiss Alps.
Then a mountain fell apart beneath her skis — and left her parents seeking answers. wapo.st/3UqR3SH
Emily had been on skis since she was 2, had attended avalanche safety courses and traveled with a first-aid kit.
She arrived at Ecole d’Humanité — which had a backcountry program with ski tours at least once a week in the Swiss Alps — in August 2022, one day after turning 18. wapo.st/3UqR3SH
The school’s last backcountry outing of the season took place on March 21, 2023.
Spring break was a few days away. Emily and her roommate had tickets to Paris.
But first, a trek to the top of the Wellhorn: wapo.st/3UqR3SH
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