Asian American communities mark the Atlanta area spa shootings a year ago

Asian American communities mark the Atlanta area spa shootings a year ago

Transcript¹

Asian Americans in Nashville are building stronger ties, partly sparked by the deaths a year ago of eight people shot in Atlanta area day spas. Six women of Asian descent were among those killed.

A MARTINEZ, HOST:

Today marks one year since eight people, including six women of Asian descent, were shot and killed at spas and massage² parlors³ in metro⁴ Atlanta. Events have been happening across the country to remember the victims and rally against anti-Asian violence. Some communities, including cities such as Nashville, with smaller Asian populations, say they're more determined⁵ than ever to unite. From NPR's member station WPLN, Juliana Kim reports.

(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)

JULIANA KIM, BYLINE⁶: In a small, dimly lit bar in East Nashville, a group of Asian Americans mingle⁷. They sip⁸ on lychee⁹ cocktails¹⁰ and munch¹¹ on sriracha-splattered fries. On stage, a Chinese American country singer named Andrei belts a cover of Chris Lane.

ANDREI: (Singing) I don't know about you, but I never come into this bar.

KIM: The get-together¹² is organized by API Middle Tennessee. For over a year, the group has been hosting a monthly happy hour for fellow Asians and Pacific Islanders. The founder¹³, Joseph Gutierrez, says spaces like this are rare in Nashville.

JOSEPH GUTIERREZ: A lot of people, I think, were like myself, recognizing, you know, there just - there wasn't a place to feel like you were connected to people.

KIM: He's originally from Los Angeles, which is one of the largest Asian populations in the country. Meanwhile, in Nashville, Asian Americans make just shy of 4% of the city.

GUTIERREZ: There's one story that really sticks out from one of our community members that kind of had typed in that exact question on Google. Like, where are the Asian people at in Nashville? And their No. 1 result for a while was, like, P.F. Chang's. I was just like, this is terrible.

KIM: For Gutierrez, it was only on rare occasions that he would meet fellow Asian Americans, either through work or friends of friends. He thought to himself, there must be a better way. All of this unfolded at a time when there was a resurgence¹⁴ of anti-Asian violence, some of it tied to the COVID-19 outbreak. From March 2020 to this December, over 10,000 attacks against Asian Americans were reported in the U.S., according to the group Stop AAPI Hate. The FBI also reported a spike¹⁵ in anti-Asian hate crimes since 2019.

GUTIERREZ: One of the immediate¹⁶ things after the shootings was recognizing that an organization like this now has a dimension of safety to it, right?

KIM: After the attack, his group organized a vigil downtown. For some, it was the first time in Nashville they saw so many Asian Americans gathered in one place. Gutierrez and others realized there's a lot more work to do.

And it's not just Nashville. Other places with relatively¹⁷ small Asian populations have channeled their grief and anger to spur progress. In Indianapolis, organizers have been pressing elected officials to recognize and denounce anti-Asian hate. In Milwaukee, advocates have been pushing for more Asian American history to be taught in schools.

CHRISTINE LAI: People are recognizing that we can't be just an island.

KIM: Christine Lai is the president of the Greater Nashville Chinese Association. The group has been around for decades, but only recently have they started to protest, track legislation and brainstorm¹⁸ ways the city can be more inclusive. Lai says their WeChat group has never been so active.

LAI: We're not shy to speak out or ask for respect to protect our community.

KIM: She and other Asian Americans are asking themselves what progress would look like in Nashville. For Daniel Yoon, a Korean adoptee, all of these discussions are happening while he's learning to embrace his heritage and identity. But he says one thing is already clear.

DANIEL YOON: I want Asian American Pacific Islanders to join other people of color in this city and state and truly be powerful.

KIM: Until then, Yoon says, he won't be satisfied.

For NPR News, I'm Juliana Kim in Nashville.

(SOUNDBITE OF ROHNE'S "TWELVE")

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 massage   

n.按摩，揉；vt.按摩，揉，美化，奉承，篡改数据

参考例句：

• He is really quite skilled in doing massage.他的按摩技术确实不错。
• Massage helps relieve the tension in one's muscles.按摩可使僵硬的肌肉松弛。

3 parlors   

客厅( parlor的名词复数 )； 起居室； （旅馆中的）休息室； （通常用来构成合成词）店

参考例句：

• It had been a firm specializing in funeral parlors and parking lots. 它曾经是一个专门经营殡仪馆和停车场的公司。
• I walked, my eyes focused into the endless succession of barbershops, beauty parlors, confectioneries. 我走着，眼睛注视着那看不到头的、鳞次栉比的理发店、美容院、糖果店。

4 metro   

n.地铁；adj.大都市的；(METRO)麦德隆(财富500强公司之一总部所在地德国，主要经营零售)

参考例句：

• Can you reach the park by metro?你可以乘地铁到达那个公园吗？
• The metro flood gate system is a disaster prevention equipment.地铁防淹门系统是一种防灾设备。

5 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

6 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

7 mingle   

vt.使混合，使相混；vi.混合起来；相交往

参考例句：

• If we mingle with the crowd,we should not be noticed.如果我们混在人群中，就不会被注意到。
• Oil will not mingle with water.油和水不相融。

8 sip   

v.小口地喝，抿，呷；n.一小口的量

参考例句：

• She took a sip of the cocktail.她啜饮一口鸡尾酒。
• Elizabeth took a sip of the hot coffee.伊丽莎白呷了一口热咖啡。

9 lychee   

n.荔枝

参考例句：

• A touch of lychee is also present.还有一点荔枝的味道。
• Lychee is a tropical fruit from southeast China.荔枝是一种源自中国东南部的一种热带水果。

10 cocktails   

n.鸡尾酒( cocktail的名词复数 )；餐前开胃菜；混合物

参考例句：

• Come about 4 o'clock. We'll have cocktails and grill steaks. 请四点钟左右来，我们喝鸡尾酒，吃烤牛排。 来自辞典例句
• Cocktails were a nasty American habit. 喝鸡尾酒是讨厌的美国习惯。 来自辞典例句

11 munch   

v.用力嚼，大声咀嚼

参考例句：

• We watched her munch through two packets of peanuts.我们看她津津有味地嚼了两包花生米。
• Getting them to munch on vegetable dishes was more difficult.使他们吃素菜就比较困难了。

12 get-together   

n.(使)聚集；(使)集合

参考例句：

• Well,Miss Huang,we are planning to have a casual get-together.嗯，黄小姐，我们打算大家小聚一番。
• Will you help me prepare for the get- together of the old classmates?你能否帮我为这次老同学聚会做好准备工作？

13 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

14 resurgence   

n.再起，复活，再现

参考例句：

• A resurgence of his grief swept over Nim.悲痛又涌上了尼姆的心头。
• Police say drugs traffickers are behind the resurgence of violence.警方说毒贩是暴力活动重新抬头的罪魁祸首。

15 spike   

n.长钉，钉鞋；v.以大钉钉牢，使...失效

参考例句：

• The spike pierced the receipts and held them in order.那个钉子穿过那些收据并使之按顺序排列。
• They'll do anything to spike the guns of the opposition.他们会使出各种手段来挫败对手。

16 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

17 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

18 brainstorm   

vi.动脑筋，出主意，想办法，献计，献策

参考例句：

• The women meet twice a month to brainstorm and set business goals for each other.她们每个月聚会两次，在一起出谋献策，为各自制定生意目标。
• We can brainstorm a list of the most influential individuals in the company.我们可以集体讨论，列出该公司中最有影响的人员的名单。