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<ul class="summary-list"><li>A doctor killed during Sunday's mass <keyword id="11922278" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="shooting" source="Orion">shooting</keyword> at a <a href="https://www.insider.com/dead-injured-church-shooting-laguna-woods-california-geneva-presbyterian-2022-5">Laguna Woods church</a> is being hailed a hero.</li><li>Dr. John Cheng, a 52-year-old father of two, had charged at the suspect and attempted to disarm him.</li></ul>A sports medicine doctor who was killed during Sunday's mass shooting at a <a href="https://www.insider.com/dead-injured-church-shooting-laguna-woods-california-geneva-presbyterian-2022-5">church in California's Laguna Woods</a> is being hailed a hero after he tackled the gunman to the ground. Dr. John Cheng, a 52-year-old father of two, had gone straight for the suspect — identified as Chinese-American dual national David Chou — but was fatally shot in the process, Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes said at a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?ref=search&amp;v=1001139233849430">press conference on Monday.</a>"It is known that Dr. Cheng charged the suspect, attempted to disarm him, which allowed other parishioners to then intercede, taking the suspect into custody," he said. "Without the actions of Dr. Cheng, there is no doubt there would be numerous additional victims in this crime."The shooting also left five people injured, including four victims — aged between 66 and 92 — who were critically wounded.According to <a href="https://southcoastmedgroup.com/doctor/john-cheng/">Dr. Cheng's bio</a> on the website of his employer, South Coast Medical Group, he had a "lifelong love" for martial arts and was an accomplished martial arts instructor."He was adamant that everybody should know how to defend themselves," the medical group's executive director Johanna Gherardini said, <a href="https://abc7.com/orange-county-church-shooting-laguna-woods-dr-john-cheng-investigation/11857537/">per ABC7 News</a>. "I 100% know exactly — when they had said that he gone across the room and charged him. I can see him doing that."Cleveland Browns fullback Johnny Stanton <a href="https://twitter.com/johnnystantoniv/status/1526313156502355968">tweeted</a> that Dr. Cheng was his primary care physician. "Absolute hero. He attacked the gunman and helped save so many in that <keyword id="11994913" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="church" source="Orion">church</keyword>. I just wanted his name to be known. He will be missed," Stanton wrote. The shooting took place at around 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, at the Geneva Presbyterian Church in Orange County, about 50 miles from Los Angeles. More than 50 people in the congregation at the time were on a mission trip from Taiwan, <a href="https://www.insider.com/hatred-of-the-taiwanese-people-motivated-laguna-woods-shooter-2022-5">per reports</a>. According to Barnes, the suspect had been <a href="https://www.insider.com/hatred-of-the-taiwanese-people-motivated-laguna-woods-shooter-2022-5">motivated by</a> a "hatred for the Taiwanese people." "I believe his hatred of Taiwan manifested when he was residing there in previous years, possibly in his youth. He was not well received, from what we believe and what we collected so far and that has manifested into this hatred," he said.

Hero doctor, a 52-year-old father of 2, died while saving others during the Laguna Woods church shooting

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Authorities in Orange County, <keyword id="11892889" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="california" source="Orion">California</keyword> said the Geneva Presbyterian <keyword id="11994913" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="church" source="Orion">church</keyword> shooter hated Taiwanese people.</li><li>At press conference, the OC sheriff said that his hatred was behind the <keyword id="11922278" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="shooting" source="Orion">shooting</keyword> on Sunday.</li></ul>Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes <a href="https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?ref=search&amp;v=1001139233849430">said at a press conference</a> that the mass shooter who killed one person and injured five <a href="https://www.insider.com/dead-injured-church-shooting-laguna-woods-california-geneva-presbyterian-2022-5">in Laguna Woods, California,</a> was motivated by "hatred for the Taiwanese people."The shooting took place around 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, at the Geneva Presbyterian Church in Orange County, about 50 miles from Los Angeles. During the conference, Barnes said that the shooter drove to the church from Las Vegas, Nevada, targeting the largely Taiwanese congregation.Officials said the suspect, who was identified as Chinese-American dual national David Chou, arrived at the church with a car filled with troves of ammunition and four Molotov cocktails that he planned to use on the church. When he entered the congregation, officials said he tried to superglue and chain-lock the doors to trap churchgoers before shooting."It was very well thought-out from what he had prepared from being there, securing the location, things about the inside of the room to perpetuate additional victims if he had the opportunity, that is methodical," Barnes said. "We know they were placed at least 24 hours in advance after his travel to Orange County from outside the area. The evidence collected will show how much more in detail he went in planning this attack and how far back that was."At the press conference, Barnes said that local doctor John Cheng tried to rush the shooting suspect and successfully tackled him to the ground, but was killed by the suspect in the process. "Without the actions of Dr. Cheng, there is no doubt there would be numerous other deaths," Barnes said. The four wounded victims were between the ages of 66 and 92, according to the Orange County Sheriff.At least 50 people were at the congregation on a mission trip from <keyword id="12048018" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="taiwan" source="Orion">Taiwan</keyword>, according to authorities. Barnes called it "one of the most horrific hate crimes," he had ever seen and added that two handguns were recovered from the church."Specifically we can tell you that within the vehicle, he left not a manifesto but some notes that supported what I shared with you earlier and that would be his hatred of the Taiwanese people," Barnes added. He said that authorities were reviewing a cell phone he left behind as well, and his digital imprint."I believe his hatred of Taiwan manifested when he was residing there in previous years, possibly in his youth. He was not well received, from what we believe and what we collected so far and that has manifested into this hatred," Barnes added. Tensions between China and Taiwan have simmered in recent months, with conflicts arising over Taiwan's self-ruled status. A top US intelligence official <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-building-military-capable-take-taiwan-by-2030-avril-haines-2022-5">said last week</a> that China is set on building a military capable of taking over Taiwan by 2030. Taiwan, meanwhile, has maintained its independent status. Barnes added that the shooting suspect immigrated to the US from China and lived across several US states, working as a security guard in Las Vegas. His wife lives in Taiwan, according to Barnes.It was the second racially-motivated mass shooting in the US over the weekend. In Buffalo, New York, 10 people <a href="https://www.insider.com/buffalo-shooting-suspect-may-face-domestic-terrorism-charges-da-says-2022-5">were killed in a predominantly Black neighborhood</a>. The US Justice Department is investigating the attack "as a hate <keyword id="11893298" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="crime" source="Orion">crime</keyword> and an act of racially-motivated violent extremism," Attorney General Merrick Garland <a href="https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-statement-mass-shooting-buffalo-ny">said in a statement.</a>Federal officials said that a <a href="https://www.insider.com/byron-brown-says-gunman-drove-buffalo-to-take-black-lives-2022-5">diatribe that appeared to belong to the suspect</a> included plans to kill Black people and referenced the so-called <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tucker-carlson-endorses-white-supremacist-replacement-conspiracy-theory-2021-4">replacement theory</a>, a white supremacist conspiracy theory that believes <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/buffalo-mass-shooting-latest-linked-to-great-replacement-theory-2022-5">white people are being replaced by people of color.</a>

California church shooting suspect was likely motivated by his 'hatred of the Taiwanese people,' prompted by political tensions between China and Taiwan, OC sheriff says

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The Taiwanese American community is reacting with shock and fear after a shooting in Laguna Woods.</li><li>A tangled history of strained Taiwan-China relations underpins the attack.</li></ul>For Leona Chen, a second-generation Taiwanese American, church was more than just a religious space. It was a social one."More than the sermons, Taiwanese people across all generations remember the potlucks, the ping pong, getting help with calculus homework," Chen, the editor-in-chief of TaiwaneseAmerican.org, said. "The space is sacred, not in a theological way necessarily, but a tender and joyful part of the Taiwanese American community."So when Chen heard about the <a href="https://www.insider.com/dead-injured-church-shooting-laguna-woods-california-geneva-presbyterian-2022-5">shooting at a church in Laguna Woods, California</a>, where a man killed one person and injured several more, she was shocked that a place of healing and community had been targeted so violently.The fear, shock, and grief is echoed across the Taiwanese American community."It could happen to any of us. An attack on them is an attack on our entire community," said Tiffany Yang, a member of the nonprofit Taiwanese American Professionals (TAP), who lives near Laguna Woods.The incident belies a more complex history that Taiwanese Americans say is crucial to understanding the shooting's true implications—and the narrative surrounding it.<h2>A tangled history of Taiwan-China relations.</h2><keyword id="12048018" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="taiwan" source="Orion">Taiwan</keyword> and China have a long history of conflict. In 1949, after losing control of most of mainland China during the Chinese Civil War, the Kuomintang withdrew to Taiwan and established martial law.Ever since, China has doubled down on its "One China" principle, which holds that Taiwan is part of its sovereign state. This has led to a sense of "nationalistic fervor," as reflected in China's response to the protests in Hong Kong and its boycotting of Tibetan and Uyghur voices and businesses, according to Jessica Drun, a Taiwanese American fellow at Atlantic Council who specializes in cross-Strait relations.The tangled history has fed into discussions surrounding the <keyword id="13951373" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="laguna-woods-shooting" source="Orion">Laguna Woods shooting</keyword>, and identity politics more broadly.On Monday, the Orange County sheriff said in a press conference that the suspect was a Chinese immigrant with US citizenship, and was "upset with political tensions between Taiwan and China."But Taiwanese <keyword id="11893589" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="news" source="Orion">news</keyword> outlets have since <a href="https://focustaiwan.tw/society/202205170006">reported</a> that the suspect is a second-generation "waishengren"—an ethnically Chinese person who was born in Taiwan. The Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Los Angeles later confirmed the fact.<h2>Taiwanese Americans warn against painting an anti-China narrative.</h2>The nuances around the shooter's identity are tied to Taiwanese Americans' deeper memories of political suppression by Chinese immigrants in Taiwan.But members of the Taiwanese American community are wary of framing the Laguna Woods shooting as a simple anti-China story, and emphasize that the incident was an act of one individual—not of an entire country or group of people."We all need to challenge ourselves to think about the complexity. The shooter is from Taiwan but may not have identified as Taiwanese as the victims would have," Chen said. "Specificity affords dignity to the situation, and specificity has always been the means by which Taiwanese people have gained agency."Instead, many Taiwanese American organizations are focusing their efforts on <a href="https://tacl.org/tacl-and-tap-oc-joint-statement-on-irvine-taiwanese-presbyterian-church-shooting/">sharing information and resources</a>, including a <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/f/fundraiser-for-shooting-in-socal-taiwanese-church?qid=df6189d2772a5980ce8aa4381d1dc7da">GoFundMe</a> for the church and crisis counseling support."Our focus is on how we can bring the community back together and build resilience," Yang said. "Hate is not the answer here."

How Taiwanese Americans are reacting to the mass shooting at Laguna Woods: 'An attack on them is an attack on our entire community.'

<ul class="summary-list"><li>A recent increase in racially- and politically-motivated mass shootings across the US target vulnerable communities.</li><li>Despite a surge in <keyword id="12087779" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="hate-crimes" source="Orion">hate crimes</keyword>, only a small percentage are prosecuted as such.</li></ul>People across the US are reeling after a weekend of mass shootings, provoking questions about whether the attacks will be prosecuted as hate crimes.Last week, Dallas police said they believed a <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/05/14/us/dallas-asian-run-businesses-shootings/index.html">shooting at a Korean hair salon</a> was linked to two other attacks at Asian-owned businesses. On Saturday, an 18-year-old white man <a href="https://www.insider.com/upstate-new-york-tops-supermarket-mass-shooting-injuries-fatalities-police-2022-5">shot and killed ten people at a grocery store</a> in a predominantly Black neighborhood in <keyword id="6432379" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="buffalo" source="Orion">Buffalo</keyword>, New York. Another shooting at a California church on Sunday <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-05-16/laguna-woods-gunman-worked-methodically-but-motive-a-mystery">targeted a Taiwanese congregation</a>, an act that officials believe was a "politically motivated hate incident."Hate crimes are crimes motivated by bias on the basis of race, color, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or disability. An increasingly stratified political and social media landscape and backlash against marginalized communities has led to a surge in hate crimes in recent years: The number of hate crime incidents reported in 2020 rose to their highest levels in nearly two decades, the <a href="https://www.fbi.gov/news/press-releases/press-releases/fbi-releases-updated-2020-hate-crime-statistics">FBI reported</a>. Over 60% of those crimes were motivated by race, ethnicity, and ancestry.But experts say it's difficult to prosecute hate crimes. Only 17% of hate crime suspects investigated by US attorneys were prosecuted from 2005 to 2019, according to a US Justice Department <a href="https://bjs.ojp.gov/sites/g/files/xyckuh236/files/media/document/fhcp0519.pdf">report</a> last year."Many cases are not successful because you have to prove explicit, biased motivation. Proving a level of animus is separate from the crime itself," Stanley Mark, an attorney at the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, said.<div type="image" title="Buffalo Police on scene at a Tops Friendly Market on May 14, 2022 in Buffalo, New York." height="3280" width="4387" msid="91626670" hostid="261"></div><h2>Hate crimes are under-reported.</h2>The first national law addressing hate crimes was the <a href="https://ucr.fbi.gov/hate-crime/2010/resources/hate-crime-2010-about-hate-crime">Hate Crime Statistics Act</a> of 1990, which was the result of sustained campaigns by victim advocacy groups, according to Jeannine Bell, a criminal law professor at the Maurer School of Law.The bill requires the government to collect data on crimes committed because of the victim's identity. Since 1992, the Justice Department has published annual reports on these statistics.Now, 47 states have hate crime laws, which Bell said is important since most crimes are punished on a state level.But more than a third of those states don't require data collection on these incidents, leading to underreporting that could result in unequal protections for vulnerable communities.Nearly half of all hate crime incidents aren't reported to the police, the <a href="https://bjs.ojp.gov/content/pub/pdf/hcv0415_sum.pdf">Justice Department reported</a>. That number is even higher in targeted communities, since many victims don't report their experiences out of distrust or fear of persecution, said Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino.<h2>Authorities aren't investigating enough incidents as hate crimes, experts say.</h2>Another reason why hate crimes are hard to prosecute is a lack of full investigation by local law enforcement. Police departments will only report bias-motivated crimes to the FBI if there was an investigation that concluded a hate crime took place.More than 80% of crimes aren't investigated by the police because many are actually lower-level crimes, like verbal threats to commit a crime, Bell, the professor at the Maurer School of Law, said.In other instances, police and prosecutors are often reluctant to designate incidents as hate crimes. After last week's shooting at the Dallas hair salon, police initially said they didn't believe it to be "hate motivated," reversing course a few days later after they discovered evidence that suggested the shooting may not have been an isolated incident."You need to investigate hate crimes as hate crimes," Bell said. "If you see a difference in the perpetrator and victim's identity, or the perpetrator was targeting several victims of the same background, you need to investigate it as a hate crime."

Buffalo and Laguna Woods are reeling after recent racially-motivated shootings. Here's why it's difficult to prosecute hate crimes.

<ul class="summary-list"><li>A <keyword id="11922278" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="shooting" source="Orion">shooting</keyword> occurred at a <keyword id="11994913" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="church" source="Orion">church</keyword> in Southern <keyword id="11892889" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="california" source="Orion">California</keyword> on Sunday afternoon.</li><li>One person was pronounced dead at the scene while four were critically injured, police said.</li></ul>At least one person was killed and five were injured during a shooting that took place Sunday in Laguna Woods, California, authorities said.The Orange County Sheriff's Department <a href="https://twitter.com/OCSheriff/status/1525944252726845441?s=20&amp;t=-jSf9WhZK_P42IJvLsNGlQ">said</a> police were called to the Geneva Presbyterian Church at 1:26 p.m. One victim was pronounced dead at the scene while five who were injured, four critically, were transported to the hospital.The victims were between the ages of 66 and 92, according to a <a href="https://twitter.com/OCSheriff/status/1526031595689324544?s=20&amp;t=lVNcjZntRyIohYDBP7jsrA">statement from OCSD.</a>Authorities said during a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/OCSheriff/videos/689309835610503">press conference</a> the shooting took place at a lunch banquet that followed the morning service. Police said churchgoers were able to detain the suspect and tie him up before deputies arrived at the scene."We believe a group of church-goers detained him and hog-tied his legs with an extension cord and confiscated at least two weapons from him," Orange County Undersheriff Jeff Hallock said, adding the group of church-goers displayed "exceptional heroism and bravery in intervening to stop the suspect.""They undoubtedly prevented additional injuries and fatalities," he said, adding there were 30 to 40 people inside the church at the time of the shooting.Hallock said police detained the suspect, who he described as an Asian male adult in his 60s. He also said police do not believe the suspect is from the area but are working to determine his place of residence and whether he is connected to the church.<div type="image" title="The Geneva Presbyterian Church in Laguna Woods, California, after a shooting took place on May 15, 2022." height="3024" width="4032" msid="91585450" hostid="261"></div>Police also recovered two firearms from the scene that may have been involved.Local law enforcement and the FBI are still investigating to determine a motive or whether the suspect had an intended target.Hallock also said a Taiwanese congregation was in the church at the time of the shooting, <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-05-15/multiple-people-shot-at-church-in-laguna-woods-o-c-sheriff-says">The Los Angeles Times</a> reported.Laguna Woods Mayor Pro Tem Cynthia Conners told reporters at the scene that most of the congregants present at the event where the shooting occurred were Taiwanese, adding that the church building is a shared space.According to a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/losranchospresbytery/posts/2208709819304399">statement</a> shared by the Presbytery of Los Ranchos, a church administrative body, the event was held to honor a former pastor of a Taiwanese congregation that meets at the church."Please keep the leadership of the Taiwanese congregation and Geneva in your prayers as they care for those traumatized by this shooting," the statement said.Gov. Gavin Newsom's office said in a <a href="https://twitter.com/CAgovernor/status/1525958534529134592?s=20&amp;t=fxoOZwIvtlYxKHMSmQPY-Q">statement</a> they are "actively monitoring the shooting.""No one should have to fear going to their place of worship. Our thoughts are with the victims, community, and all those impacted by this tragic event," the office said.The city of Laguna Woods is located in Orange County, about 50 miles southeast of Los Angeles.This story is breaking. Check back for updates.

1 dead, 5 injured in shooting at a church in Laguna Woods, California; suspect has been detained

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Homeland Security said extremists are praising the deadly May 24 <keyword id="12161856" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="mass-shooting" source="Orion">mass shooting</keyword> in <keyword id="14020623" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="uvalde" source="Orion">Uvalde</keyword>.</li><li>In a new terrorism bulletin, officials said the massacre has been used to encourage copycat attacks.</li></ul>Extremists and conspiracy theorists are praising the deadly May 24 mass shooting at a <keyword id="11896956" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="texas" source="Orion">Texas</keyword> elementary school that left 21 people dead — and are encouraging others to shoot up schools in similar attacks — the <keyword id="13148364" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="department-of-homeland-security" source="Orion">Department of Homeland Security</keyword> warned on Tuesday."Individuals in online forums that routinely promulgate domestic violent extremist and conspiracy theory-related content have praised the May 2022 mass shooting at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas and encouraged copycat attacks," Homeland Security said in a new terrorism <a href="https://www.dhs.gov/ntas/advisory/national-terrorism-advisory-system-bulletin-june-7-2022">bulletin</a>.It continued: "Others have seized on the event to attempt to spread disinformation and incite grievances, including claims it was a government-staged event meant to advance gun control measures."Nineteen children and two adults were killed when an 18-year-old gunman barged into two classrooms at <a href="https://www.insider.com/uvalde-texas-school-shooting-tx-robb-elementary-2022-5">Robb Elementary School</a> in Uvalde and opened fire.The massacre — the deadliest elementary school shooting since Sandy Hook in 2012 — has sparked renewed debate over gun control legislation as the US battles a recent <a href="https://www.insider.com/mass-shootings-us-june-one-weekend-dead-injured-2022-6">surge</a> in mass shootings and other violence. Homeland Security warned that the "proliferation" of misinformation could combine with various factors to "inspire" violence, especially ahead of the upcoming midterm elections. The department also said several attacks over the last few months have highlighted "the dynamic and complex nature" of the threats facing the US — which, officials say, is in a "heightened threat environment."The department specifically cited shootings at a supermarket in <a href="https://www.insider.com/buffalo-shooting-suspect-may-face-domestic-terrorism-charges-da-says-2022-5">Buffalo</a>, New York, and a church in <a href="https://www.insider.com/dead-injured-church-shooting-laguna-woods-california-geneva-presbyterian-2022-5">Laguna Woods</a>, California that authorities allege were fueled by racist hate, as well as a mass shooting on a <a href="https://www.insider.com/nyc-subway-shooting-suspect-arrested-2022-4">New York City</a> subway car. To respond to the rise in violence, Homeland Security said it is working with the FBI "to share timely and actionable information and intelligence with the broadest audience possible."

Extremists are praising the Uvalde school shooting online and encouraging 'copycat attacks,' feds warn

<ul class="summary-list"><li>A gunman opened fire at a <keyword id="11994913" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="church" source="Orion">church</keyword> in Laguna Woods, <keyword id="11892889" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="california" source="Orion">California</keyword>, on Sunday.</li><li>Police said parishioners displayed "heroism and bravery" by detaining the suspect.</li></ul>A group of parishioners confronted a gunman who opened fire at their church in Southern California on Saturday, authorities said.Police were called to the Geneva Presbyterian Church in Laguna Woods on Sunday afternoon after a <a href="https://www.insider.com/dead-injured-church-shooting-laguna-woods-california-geneva-presbyterian-2022-5">mass shooting</a> at a lunch banquet that followed the morning service. One victim was pronounced dead at the scene while five who were injured, four critically, were transported to the hospital.Orange County Undersheriff Jeff Hallock said churchgoers were able to quickly detain the suspect and tie him up before deputies arrived at the scene."We believe a group of churchgoers detained him and hog-tied his legs with an extension cord and confiscated at least two weapons from him," Hallock said during a press conference.He said the churchgoers displayed "exceptional heroism and bravery in intervening to stop the suspect.""They undoubtedly prevented additional injuries and fatalities," he said, adding there were about 30 to 40 people inside the church at the time of the <keyword id="11922278" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="shooting" source="Orion">shooting</keyword>.Deputies detained the suspect upon arrival and recovered two guns. The suspect has not been named but Hallock said he was an Asian male adult in his 60s. He added that police do not believe he is from the area and are investigating to determine a motive or whether the suspect was connected to the victims or the church.Laguna Woods Mayor Pro Tem Cynthia Conners told reporters at the scene that most of the congregants present at the event where the shooting occurred were Taiwanese, adding that the church building is a shared space.

Churchgoers 'hog-tied' the legs of the gunman with an extension cord and confiscated his guns during California church shooting

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Asian Americans saw two back-to-back mass shootings in their communities.</li><li>On Saturday, 11 people in Monterey Park were killed; 7 more died in Half Moon Bay on Monday.</li></ul>When May Lee asked her University of Southern California students about their initial reaction to Saturday's tragic shooting in Monterey Park, she said the first thought on everyone's mind was the fear that a hate crime occurred. These anxieties have been compounded in recent years due to <a href="https://www.insider.com/aapi-hate-crimes-spikes-more-than-500-in-san-francisco-in-2021">increased violence against the AAPI community</a> as a result of racist rhetoric about the COVID-19 pandemic, Lee, who teaches about Asian Americans in the media, told Insider."It is a collective fear that all of us have gone through and continue to go through," Lee said. "And even though this shooting was not your typical racially charged hate crime, it still was an act of violence. And so that's going to trigger any kind of fear and anxiety."At least <a href="https://www.insider.com/monterey-park-mass-shooting-at-chinese-new-year-celebration-in-la-reports-2023-1" rel="">11 people were killed and nine others were injured</a> after a mass shooting took place a few miles east of downtown Los Angeles on Saturday night during Lunar New Year celebrations. The city of Monterey Park, where the shooting occurred, is <a href="https://www.montereypark.ca.gov/1056/Data-Demographics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">more than 65% Asian</a>. All of <a href="https://www.insider.com/shooting-monterey-park-victims-identified-lunar-new-year-party-2023-1">the victims,</a> patrons of Star Ballroom Dance Studio, were of Asian descent. Just two days later, a second gunman opened fire at two separate locations in <a href="https://www.insider.com/shooting-half-moon-bay-california-2023-1">Half Moon Bay, killing seven people</a>. While the identities of the victims have not yet been confirmed, authorities have <a href="https://abc7news.com/half-moon-bay-shooting-victims-deadly-area-mass/12730537/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> they were of Asian and Hispanic descent. The suspects in both shootings were later revealed to be Asian men, diminishing fears that the attacks were hate crimes, but advocates say the violence adds to the dread that Asian Americans have experienced the past several years."The race of the attacker did not change how deeply Asian Americans have felt about being under threat, or experiencing a lack of safety," Manjusha Kulkarni, co-founder of <a href="https://stopaapihate.org/">Stop AAPI Hate</a> and the executive director of the <a href="https://aapiequityalliance.org/">AAPI Equity Alliance</a>, told Insider. "We know that this is not a hate crime in the traditional sense, but it does feel that these community members were targeted and that race played a role."Despite this, media outlets and pundits have <a href="https://www.insider.com/monterey-park-shooting-suspect-race-aapi-community-violence-hate-2023-1">brought up the race of the Monterey Bay shooter</a> to dismiss fears of violence that the Asian American community faces, Insider's <a href="https://www.insider.com/author/yoonji-han">Yoonji Han</a> wrote."Even if it's not hate related, we're still feeling such sensitivity and fear in the context of what's happened," Connie Chung Joe, CEO of <a href="https://www.ajsocal.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Asian Americans Advancing Justice SoCal</a>, told Insider. "That's hard."<h2>'Anti-Asian hate doesn't always come from the outside'</h2>The Monterey Park shooting occurring during the Lunar New Year, which Lee described as the "biggest holiday" for Asians around the world, added another layer of pain to the tragedy.For the city, this two-day festival was particularly noteworthy — it was the first time the festival was held since the pandemic."It's significant because it is supposed to be about a new year of renewal, fresh start, and especially the Year the Water Rabbit is all about peace and calm and tranquility," Lee said. "And so, of course, people are going to be rattled by the new year starting this way, in the most violent way with loss of life."For many Chinese Americans and other Asian Americans, Monterrey Park is a place in the greater Los Angeles region to gather and find community, which Joe said made the violence feel like an attack on "our community and our culture." The city was once dubbed America's first Chinatown and became the first Asian-majority city in the US in the 1980s."The fact that this has happened in such a large community like Monterey Park that is two-thirds Asian American — this is the San Gabriel Valley region, which is the home of the largest API community in the country — that it happens on one of the most important holidays for our community, it's kind of like the equivalent of somebody cutting down a Christmas Day Parade," Joe said. Kulkarni and Joe both pointed to <a href="https://www.insider.com/hatred-of-the-taiwanese-people-motivated-laguna-woods-shooter-2022-5">last year's Laguna Woods, California shooting</a> as another example of how anti-Asian sentiment can still exist even when the perpetrators of the violence are also Asian.<h2>'If a virus can paint us like a threat, what will the visible picture of an Asian gunman do?'</h2>Before the Monterey Park community had time to identify its victims, the Half Moon Bay shooting occurred on Monday and Asian American communities were once again forced into an unwanted spotlight when the 67-year-old suspected gunman <a href="https://www.insider.com/shooting-half-moon-bay-california-2023-1">opened fire upon his fellow farm workers</a>. The suspected shooter in the Monterey Park shooting was 72 years old. According to statistics from <a href="https://www.rand.org/research/gun-policy/analysis/essays/mass-shootings.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the RAND Corporation</a>, a government-funded think tank, between 1976 and 2018, 82% of all mass shooters in the US were under the age of 45. According to the <a href="https://www.tarleton.edu/ipac/wp-content/uploads/sites/12/2022/09/IPACMassShooterResearch.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Institute for Predictive Analytics in Criminal Justice</a>, a research initiative of Texas A&amp;M University, the average age of 179 mass shootings analyzed between 1966 and 2021 is 34.The unexpected violence, perpetrated by community elders, has been of particular concern among Asian American communities reacting to the news.<a href="https://www.npr.org/2023/01/23/1150667373/monterey-park-shooting-what-we-know-california" target="_blank" rel="noopener"></a>"What is happening to our Asian uncles?" Chinese American author Nicole Ng Zhao <a href="https://twitter.com/nicolegzhao/status/1617755184121413634" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener sponsored">posted</a> on Twitter. Her writings, exploring Asian American assimilation and relationships, have been featured in <a href="https://witness.blackmountaininstitute.org/issues/love-in-the-time-of-racial-reckoning/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Witness Magazine</a> and Roxane Gay's <a href="https://audacity.substack.com/p/why-are-you-stranded">The Audacity</a>. "Thinking about immigrant rage, masculinity, isolation, lack of social infrastructure and community, and America's hyperviolent culture. please check in on your Asian dads, grandpas, uncles and show them love."Preacher Richard Lee, who hosts the popular faith-based interview <a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-pursuit-with-richard-lee/id1449435060" target="_blank" rel="noopener">podcast</a> "The Pursuit with Richard Lee," predicted the shootings would likely result in increased anti-Asian violence and social isolation among a community that has already historically faced discriminatory "othering" in the United States."For the last 3 years, we've watched our Asian elderly be the victims of anti-Asian violence in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. They have been pushed, stomped beaten and murdered," Lee <a href="https://twitter.com/richardl_ee/status/1617989535815831552/photo/2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">posted</a> on Twitter. "The core of the anti-Asian violence was centered on seeing Asians as a threat. If an invisible, microscopic virus can paint us as a threat, what will the visible prominent picture of an Asian gunman do?" <h2>The violence is already affecting the well-being of the community</h2>Kulkarni and Joe said that, right now, their organizations are focused on connecting community members to the services they need, whether that be mental health resources or victim advocacy. Kulkarni told Insider the AAPI Equity Coalition's <a href="https://aapiequityalliance.org/support-for-monterey-park/">resource sheet</a> received several hundred views within hours of being published after the Monterey Park shooting.Joe said that the violence also personally affected her family and her organization, which was supposed to have a booth at the Monterey Park Festival on Sunday."I know a lot of people are choosing not to go out and celebrate Lunar New Year in a public way that they had planned, including my own family," Joe said. "We were going to be at that Monterey Park festival and my organization was supposed to have a booth and, had it not been canceled, I would have still not brought my family to that festival."Kulkarni told Insider that, after years of increased hate against Asians, the fear and pain is compounded by acts of violence like these shootings, making the impact on the community even more palpable. "That caused community members to feel unsafe and to feel like they were under threat," Kulkarni told Insider. "And unfortunately, this tragedy confirmed that, in fact, they were still under threat."

Asian Americans grapple with senseless acts of violence following back-to-back shootings in California

<div type="image" title="Melonie Parker smiles in headshot" height="1600" width="2400" msid="91693655" hostid="261"></div><ul class="summary-list"><li>Three shootings in the past two weeks underscore America's problem with violence and racism.</li><li><keyword id="6355629" type="General" weightage="60" keywordseo="google" source="Orion">Google</keyword>'s head of diversity shared how recent events affect her personally and professionally. </li></ul>A recent trio of deadly shootings in New York, Texas, and California reveal how violent racial hatred embedded in American culture can make corporate diversity advocates' work feel exhausting but more urgent than ever. Melonie Parker, Google's chief diversity officer, who is Black, feels this acutely. "That could have been my mom," Parker said, referring to the people killed in Saturday's <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/live-updates/buffalo-shooting-supermarket-suspect-payton-gendron-may-15/">mass shooting</a> at a grocery store in Buffalo, New York. "What I find horrifying about it, particularly as a Black person, is our wounds are never fully allowed to heal." The violence can be overwhelming: In Buffalo, 13 people were shot and <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/live-updates/buffalo-shooting-supermarket-suspect-payton-gendron-may-15/">10 were killed, all of them Black,</a> in an attack President Biden called "<a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/buffalo-biden-meet-victims-families-after-white-supremacist-shooting-2022-05-17/">domestic terrorism</a>." The following day, one person was killed and at least five others were wounded when a gunman attacked a lunch banquet at a <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2022-05-15/multiple-people-shot-at-church-in-laguna-woods-o-c-sheriff-says">Taiwanese church</a> in Laguna Woods, California. Last week, three people were wounded in a shooting at a Korean-owned hair salon in Dallas that's being investigated as a <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/05/18/us/dallas-hair-salon-shooting-hate-crime-investigation/index.html">hate crime</a>. Many Black and Asian Americans in particular are reeling from the attacks and taking to social media to express <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/posts/aikobethea_today-is-the-official-birthday-i-really-activity-6931698539173478400-j_Hu?utm_source=linkedin_share&amp;utm_medium=member_desktop_web">grief</a>, <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/posts/srdickenson_i-thought-i-would-be-able-to-move-on-today-activity-6931973010518138880-Qubp?utm_source=linkedin_share&amp;utm_medium=member_desktop_web">anger</a>, and feelings of being <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/posts/benhasan_activity-6932095567305011200-RO92?utm_source=linkedin_share&amp;utm_medium=member_desktop_web">overwhelmed</a>. Parker knows that many Google employees are hurting, too. In a time when employees want to feel a sense of <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/30/diversity-equity-and-inclusion-are-important-to-workers-survey-shows.html">inclusion</a> at work and CEOs are being <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/richard-edelman-highlights-key-takeaways-from-the-2022-trust-barometer-2022-1">called upon to speak</a> on social issues, Parker sees her role as only growing more important. In the latest installment of <keyword id="12135333" type="General" weightage="60" keywordseo="the-equity-talk" source="Orion">The Equity Talk</keyword>, Parker reflected on the state of racist hate in America, her growing role advising Google's other C-suite leaders, and the company's <a href="https://about.google/belonging/diversity-annual-report/2022/">progress</a> over the past year to advance diversity, equity, and inclusion. This interview has been edited and condensed. The events of the past several days are extremely disturbing. What are your thoughts about advancing diversity in a society struggling with ugly extremism? The work of diversity, equity, and inclusion has never been more important. These random, senseless events mean we have to do this work in an even greater way. We talk about it, we hold sessions in solidarity where we partner with an external group, and we bring in counselors and we hold sessions for the impacted community. In this case, it's for the Black community to come together to mourn together. We also recently supported our Asian community because of what happened at the Laguna Woods Church in California. The word I will use here is attunement. We're very attuned to what's impacting our communities externally and internally. I do want to push back on characterizing these shootings as random. It's a very fair point to push back on that. I think what I meant when I said "random" was that it caught us by surprise. It just came in ways that were unprovoked. That could have been my mother. She's 84 years old, and she goes to the neighborhood grocery store. These just keep taking us by surprise. I go back to the fact that these wounds aren't fully allowed to heal, and then they're reopened. Let's talk about the work you've done over <a href="https://about.google/belonging/diversity-annual-report/2022/">the past year</a>. Google increased the representation of Black employees. But the percentage is still low, at just 5.3% of your workforce. How do you plan to increase this? We're gonna keep doing what we're doing. When we think about the pipeline, we're not only looking at who's coming into Google over the next one to three years, but also who's coming into Google over the next 15 years. We're going to see that payoff. With our racial-equity commitments, we set goals for <keyword id="34454" type="General" weightage="60" keywordseo="leadership" source="Orion">leadership</keyword> and then we set goals to more than double the population of Black employees at Google. So we're focused on meeting those commitments and then continuing to increase them from there. How do you respond to people interviewing at Google who might say, "The percentage of Black employees at Google, 5.3%, is lower than I would like to see." We are very focused on representation, which is hiring minus attrition. So we're focused on ensuring that we're bringing people in. At the same time, we're focused on addressing internal culture, internal systems, and internal processes. I use an analogy that we're flying a plane. We're putting people on the plane, we're changing the tires, we're doing several things at the same time to make the progress that we need to make. We can't take our foot off the gas and we're not going to. Google has now reached a point where Black employees are not leaving at higher rates than their white colleagues. What culture shift is happening at Google? One of the most significant things that we did was we translated the energy of the global racial-justice movement into action. So our goal has been to build sustainable equity for our Black community, both internally and externally. We've actually used our Black employees, particularly our Black executives, as advisors and consultants to the company's leadership. They've advised on what changes we need to make, and how we can address systemic and structural barriers. Some 80% of employees said they feel like Google is a place where everyone can succeed, but that also means that 20% might feel differently. Why do you think that they might feel this way and, and how are you working to reach that 20%? What we're doing with that additional 20% is getting as close as we can to answering: What's not working well? What's contributing to those lived experiences? Then we're intervening in those particular spots. For example, we recently created a six-month onboarding program for new Black Google employees. Our new Black employees were a part of the regular, three-day orientation process. But what we saw when we looked at the data is that new joiners were leaving earlier. So when we went back, we recognized there was something different that we needed to do to increase retention of Black employees. And so as part of this six-month program, we also train managers and we are equipping managers to lead across differences. The tech sector is in the midst of a contraction right now. Meta is pausing hiring, and Amazon's CFO said some warehouses are overstaffed. Is Google struggling with this contraction? And how might it impact diversity, equity, and inclusion, or <keyword id="684680" type="General" weightage="60" keywordseo="dei" source="Orion">DEI</keyword>, goals? So, thankfully we've been buffered from that. We continue to have very strong hiring and have been able to close the gaps with attrition of our underrepresented communities. It's not just how we're responding to the racial-equity movement, but recognizing the need for <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/google-increases-vacation-days-and-parental-leave-for-employees-benefits-2022-1">extending our caregivers' leave</a> or making sure that we have the right benefits in place to provide support to employees. It's about the work we've done across DEI, which includes work to stop Asian hate, working with our women's community, and our parents' community as well. Over the past two or so years, we've all been trauma-bonded collectively. We're using that to propel forward for good in terms of the trainings and products and benefits we design. Google is no stranger to how difficult and complicated DEI can be. In 2017, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/james-damore-interview-video-2017-8">James Damore</a>, a white engineer, wrote a 10-page memo that went viral for blasting diversity measures at the company. How are you dealing with that pushback from those who might feel DEI measures are unfair? When it comes to diversity, equity, and inclusion, one of the things that I personally say is, "Hey, no Googler's left out." It's a very polarizing society, but we're focused on how we are creating space that your view can be different from my view. I don't have to convince you. You don't have to convince me, but I can accept that your view is different. But we both have to have respect. And so our company values are grounded in respect. But how do you respect people who really believe companies are lowering the standards to get women or to get people of color in. I mean, is there room for respect on that? I'll tell you how we handle that: We embed racial equity into our flagship manager training. What we're saying is that if you want to be a manager at Google, these are the competencies that it takes. We're holding our employees and our leaders accountable to those standards. We are in a difficult time as a country. How are you feeling about the future of DEI? I feel a great stewardship responsibility to my role. It is filled with purpose. I have really hard days, but I am called to stand to uplift and to empower to sustain the momentum in the face of every attack. It just fuels me to do more and greater work to make more impact.

You Searched For "laguna woods shooting" and got 9 results

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Asian Americans grapple with senseless acts of violence following back-to-back shootings in California

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Google's head of diversity opens up about pushing for equity amid violence and racism in America

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