Asian spa workers reflect on Atlanta shooting one year later –

“I have constantly worked with mentally unstable men at work and have always felt safe,” Lim said. “When I was wasting my hours, I always felt I had to defend myself.”

Lim said she was harassed and tracked down, especially if regulars suspect she has a romantic male partner in her life. Customers said they found out where she lived and waited there.

A year after the shooting in Atlanta, Asian women live in fear: “How can we all be safe?”

However, going to the police didn’t mean harassment. Every day, she feared that law enforcement would come to her workplace and she would raid her on suspicion of offering illegal sex work.

“I have always made it clear before offering any service that the range of services I offer to my clients is limited to regular massage. “I’ve never done sex work,” she said. “But I was always afraid that the police would get me into trouble. It was very stressful. “

When the outbreak began, Lim left the spa industry and “changed all my phone numbers,” he said.

Filming at Young’s Asian Massage, Gold Spa, and Aromatherapy Spa on March 16, 2021 focused on massage work. Suspect Robert Aaron Long reportedly said he had sex and shot to “punish” prostitutes. Six of the eight victims – Hyun Jung Grant, Sun Chung Park, Suncha Kim, Yong Ae Yu, Xiaoji Tan and Daoyu Feng – were Asian women and spa workers.

Although many spa staff do not do sex work, the massage industry has long been stigmatized as being associated with sex work. As Lily reported last year, workers in these types of toilets can be migrants, illegal immigrants or undocumented, which means they have no protection against exploitation or harassment, another reason why there aren’t so many. harassment and discrimination.

He later pleaded guilty to four counts of murder in Cherokee County, where prosecutors said investigators found no evidence of racial bias. In September, he pleaded not guilty to four counts of extrajudicial killings in Fulton County, which prosecutors said were aimed at demanding more punishments for hate crimes in addition to the death penalty.

Pain and organization: 3 activists on the impact of the Atlanta Spa shooting

Amy Fan, a New York City spa employee who has worked in the industry for more than 30 years, said she shared a similar experience with Lim. When the now 55-year-old immigrated from Malaysia in 1989 and started working in Chinatown to support a family, he feared he would be targeted. Organized crime networks.

“Just because I wasn’t their target, I had to pay the tax I paid for organized crime. I was very calm when they were released, “she said.

But the pandemic has returned to its old fears, he said. Seeing the headlines about the “Chinese virus” and growing dissatisfaction with Asian Americans made him extremely worried. The establishment of a Pew Research Center in 2021, 81% of Asian Americans said violence against them has increased. And earlier this year, preliminary data from the San Francisco Police Department showed that the number of anti-Asian hate crime victims in the city increased 567% last year from the previous year. .

“People have the perception that we Asians are not strong and cannot defend ourselves, so they are targeting us,” Fan said, adding that in the past two years he has seen other Asian Americans robbed and shops destroyed near his workplace. .

Knowing her perceived vulnerability as an elderly Asian American worker, Fan said she took many precautions during the pandemic. For example, she rarely sees new customers beyond the trusted customer base she has built over the decades and she stops taking orders.

“My colleagues and I worked until 7-8 am. “We will now be leaving work for a while at 5pm because we fear it will not be safe for us to travel alone on the subway afterwards,” she said. “Most Asians went home before sunset because we were afraid to go out.”

Fans are delighted that the Asian community has come together to protect people like him. Received Brochures Welcome to Chinatown, a local advocacy organization that advertises free walking at home in Mandarin.

“When I want to quit my job, I can call them and a young Asian volunteer from the organization will pick me up on the subway,” he said, adding that he has used the service several times. .

Others focused on the Asian American community. Space, the organization focused on advocating for Asian American women, has organized numerous events and activities to help the community cope with increasing reports of violence.

“We’ve always had to be vigilant, but it’s gotten worse in recent years,” said Cassandra Lam, co-founder and CEO of the group, adding that it’s especially bad for people like Lim and Fanny. , Those who are older and those with limited knowledge of the English language.

Speaking and understanding the roots of the extreme sexualization and marginalization of Asian women in the United States as part of the group’s work, Lam said, “We need to understand that many of us have been somehow displaced from our homeland. The result of US imperialism in the Asia-Pacific region.

The United States has a long history of discrimination and exclusion of Asian Americans. Throughout the history of the United States, Asian American women have been barred from entering the country under the pretext of “adultery” and for fear of being found “whores”. Experts say this discriminatory policy illustrates the racist and misogynistic stereotypes prevalent today.

On the first anniversary of the shoot, Lim believes the most important part is ensuring better workplace protection for spa workers.

“I hope spa owners take the time to understand the reality of their staff and implement policies to help us deal with difficult customers,” he said. “It helps me feel more confident at work.”

Now that he is aware of the situation, he hopes the other staff members at the spa “keep their eyes and ears open.”

Source: Washington Post

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