Atlanta Spa Shootings Raise Anti-Asian Violence; Black-Asian Solidarity Discussions

On March 16, 2021, Robert Aaron Long shot and killed eight people at three Atlanta-area spas, six of whom were Asian women. The attack occurred amid a documented surge in anti-Asian hate crimes during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Trump's rhetoric about the 'China virus' had been linked to targeting of Asian Americans. The Atlanta killings prompted discussions of solidarity between Black and Asian communities, two groups that had experienced tension but shared experiences of racism and targeted violence. Activists noted that police initially downplayed the racial motivation. The incident prompted the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act (signed May 2021).