Hundreds gather to grieve over slayings in Georgia
Decry rise of hatred that targets Asians
Hundreds gathered at the steps of the City-County Building in Downtown on Sunday evening for a tearful candlelight vigil remembering the victims of a shooting spree at Atlanta-area massage businesses last week that killed eight people, six of whom were Asian Americans.
Various groups of people spoke, sharing their stories of being an Asian American and sharing ways to move forward.
“We are collected here today to remember those lost to us, hold space for their lives and their stories, as well as the grief of their loved ones. We are also here to be in community together,” said anupama jain, the executive director for Pittsburgh’s Gender Equity Commission. “This is Pittsburgh. We are a human rights city, and we will stay stronger than hate.”
The crowd, which varied in age and diversity, took up the majority of the sidewalk in front of the City-County Building, carrying signs that read “I’m proud to be Asian American” and “#StopAsianHate.” Police closed down that block of Grant Street so people could maintain social distance amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Advocates and activists say the rise in attacks on Asian people in the past year is linked to rhetoric that blames Asian people for the spread of COVID-19.
One attendee, Lia Warburton 20, of Sewickley, who came with her family and their neighbors, said that even though the shooting was in Georgia, it still hits home.
“I’ve started carrying pepper spray when I go places, and I worry about my mom going to
the Asian grocery store,” she said. “Because it’s places like those that are targets.”
As attendees lit their candles, Itha Cao — who currently serves on Gov. Tom Wolf’s Commission for Women and was a former staff member for Mayor Bill Peduto — read the names of the eight people killed in the Tuesday attack, followed by a moment of silence.
Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald and Mr. Peduto both took to the podium during the vigil.
“We stand in solidarity with our Asian American friends in Atlanta. Pittsburgh is certainly no stranger to the type of racism, type of intolerance, the type of bigotry that was on display in Georgia [last] week,” Mr. Fitzgerald said. “Mayor Peduto and I stand here together, city and county, to say we are a welcoming region.”
“Today we stand together, in order to be able not only to call out what happened, but to demand change, “Mr. Peduto said. “There is no us and them. There is only us.”
Other organizations, like the Muslim Association of Greater Pittsburgh, Casa San Jose, the Pittsburgh Cultural Center and the Jewish Community Center of Greater Pittsburgh, had representatives speak as allies to the Asian American community.
Many of the speakers throughout the vigil called for solidarity and demanded change. Part of that, they said, was engaging “difficult conversations” that called out racist behavior and actions.
“We have to build trust and that can feel risky, but join us in making the effort, taking the risk together,” Ms. jain said. “We are just a small example of all the people who will stand together.”