The Asian American community is calling out growing hate incidents after 6 Asian women were killed in Atlanta spa shooting

• A growing number of Asian American groups are speaking out following the Atlanta-area spa shootings.
• Eight people, six being Asian women, were killed in the attacks by what is believed to be a single suspect.
• While a motive is unclear, advocates pointed toward growing hate incidents toward Asian-Americans.

The Asian American community is mourning the death of six Asian women who were killed during attacks on spas in Atlanta late Thursday and calling attention to growing anti-Asian hate incidents in the US.

In total, eight people were killed, including six Asian women, a white woman, and a white man, in the attack on three spas in Atlanta. Robert Aaron Long, 21, was subsequently arrested without incident and charged with murder.

Law enforcement said that Long told investigators that he had previously been to the massage parlors where the shootings took place before and said it was likely he was "lashing out" due to sex addiction.

Atlanta Police Chief Rodney N. Bryant said at a news conference Wednesday morning it was too early to determine whether the shootings were a hate crime, but Asian American organizations sized the opportunity to address growing incidents of hate toward Asian people in the US.

"We are heartbroken by these acts of violence. Six Asian women lost their lives," said Stephanie Cho, the Executive Director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta in a statement."Now is the time to hold the victims and their families in our hearts and in our light. We're calling on our allies across communities of color to stand with us in grief and solidarity against racist violence in all its forms. When our most vulnerable community members are targeted, we all need to band together."

Sung Yeon Choimorrow, the Executive Director of the National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum, said in a statement: "We are horrified and continue to be concerned for the safety of our community members across the country as violence toward Asian Americans has escalated."

Choimorrow called on Georgia's elected officials to "speak up immediately against hate and violence directed at the Asian American community."

She also pointed toward statistics show anti-Asian hate crimes and violence disproportionately impact Asian women, pointing to data released earlier this month by the nonprofit organization Stop AAPI Hate. According to the data, there were 3,795 incidents during the pandemic from March 2020 to February 2021.

"Now, our community, particularly women, elders, and workers with low-wage jobs, are bearing the brunt of continued vilification," Choimorrow said.

According to the Stop AAPI Hate report, women reported hate incidents at a rate 2.3 times higher than men. The number of hate incidents increased 150% last year compared to reports from the year prior.

"Few details have been released, including whether or not the shootings were related or motivated by hate," Stop AAPI Hate said in a tweet late Tuesday. "But right now there is a great deal of fear and pain in the Asian American community that must be addressed."