U-T En Español: Peridico Electrnico Copyright © 2023, The San Diego Union-Tribune 3 California mass shootings force grieving Asian Americans to ask painful questions Mourners take part in a vigil for victims of a mass shooting at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio in Monterey Park. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times) Asian Americans across the country are anguishing over the recent mass shootings, in which older Asian men have allegedly opened fire on other Asians Jeong ParkDebbie TruongSummer LinCindy Chang Their motives for mass murder appeared to be different workplace enmity, law enforcement officials said, or personal resentment, or a political conflict in a homeland across the ocean. But they were all Asian men of retirement age, who within the past year have been accused of expressing their bitterness by sprayingfellow Asians with bullets, in the very places where Asian immigrants go to escape isolation. Even as they grieve the victims, Asian Americans across the country are grappling with a new reality. Someone who looks like their grandfather, who traveled a similar immigrant path, is suspected of committing a singularly American act opening fire on a group of innocent people, at a Taiwanese church last May, at a ballroom dance studio in Monterey Park on Saturday and in the coastal agricultural community of Half Moon Bay on Monday. A gunman opened fire at a dance studio in Monterey Park, killing 11 people and wounding 9 more. Tens of thousands had gathered earlier nearby for a Lunar New Year festival. For a community already reeling from a rise in anti-Asian hate crimes during the pandemic sometimes with senior citizens as victims the Asian-on-Asian violence feels like too much to bear, especially with the two most recent shootings occurring around the Lunar New Year holiday. Only three men are accused of committing these horrific acts, but the isolation and mental health struggles that may have sent them spiraling are common threads for some older Asian immigrants, who may have experienced war back home and who have experienced the dislocation of settling in a foreign country. Among friends and family on social media, sons and daughters are anguishing over whether they were doing enough for elders who have been through so much but often do not have the vocabulary to open up about problems even in their native language. They dont speak English. Their kids dont speak their mother tongue. Older generation cannot connect to younger generation. That is a picture of the typical Asian American working class family, especially East Asian, said Sonny Le of Oakland, who has worked as a medical interpreter for Vietnamese and Chinese Vietnamese senior citizens for more than 20 years. Stoic. Bottling it up. Its a way to cover for our shortcomings, our inability to articulate what we are thinking or feeling. A note is seen at a makeshift memorial at Mac Dutra Park on Tuesday in response to the Half Moon Bay mass shooting the day before. The suspect, 66-year-old Chunli Zhao, was arrested in what investigators believe to be workplace violence. (Stephen Lam / San Francisco Chronicle via AP) Some groups have organized virtual grief circles because of the recent massacres for people to be together, if only online. Know that you are not alone in your pain, your fears, your anger, your urge to disconnect, your need to be with your people, said an online message Tuesday from 18 Million Rising, an Asian American advocacy group. Peggy Huangs parents attend the Taiwanese Presbyterian church in Laguna Woods where a gunman fired into a lunchtime banquet in May, injuring five elderly parishioners and killing a 52-year-old doctor. David Wenwei Chou, 68, who has pleaded not guilty to murder and attempted murder with hate crimes enhancements in the case, grew up in Taiwan but had recent roots in China. He left notes in his car indicating that he did not believe Taiwan should be independent from China, said authorities, who believe he specifically targeted the Taiwanese community. Huangs parents were not at the church that day, but Huang, the former mayor of Yorba Linda, acted as an unofficial spokesperson for victims and survivors. When Huang heard about the Monterey Park shooting, which killed 11 and injured nine, she feared another possible hate crime as she exchanged texts with family and friends. It soon emerged from law enforcement sources that the shooter, identified by authorities as Huu Can Tran, 72, may have been motivated by a personal dispute. With another older Asian man as a suspect, Huangs thoughts turned to the difficulty of getting treatment for immigrants who may not conceive of their problems as mental health issues. When elders lose their jobs or retire, that makes for a tough transition, especially for men who had a life of hard work, said Huang, 52. Theyve been working all their lives, and they really dont know what to do with their lives, she said. Chou, the accused Taiwanese church shooter, lived a life of isolation and resentment in Las Vegas. His critically ill wife had left him; he was unable to pay his rent, which was twice his monthly income; and he struggled to find work as a 68-year-old casino security guard. Tran too appeared to struggle, twice reporting to police in Hemet that family members had tried to poison him. Law enforcement sources are looking into whether Tran, who they believe frequented the Monterey Park dance studio as well as an Alhambra one where he was disarmed by an employee, was driven by jealousy or some other resentment. Tran, who was born in Vietnam, shot himself in a parking lot in Torrance the day after the shooting and died at the scene. People embrace at the scene of a deadly shooting where several fatalities occurred off state Highway 92 in Half Moon Bay on Monday. (Gabrielle Lurie / San Francisco Chronicle via AP) Chunli Zhao, 66, who is suspected of killing seven people and injuring one in Half Moon Bay on Monday, lived and worked on a mushroom farm. The victims may have been Zhaos coworkers, said San Mateo County Sheriff Christina Corpus, who characterized the shooting as an instance of workplace violence. The San Francisco Chroniclereportedthat a former co-worker accused Zhao of trying to suffocate him and filed a restraining order against him in 2013. Paul Hoang, a licensed clinical social worker, said he felt deep sorrow at the news that all three shooting suspects were older Asian American men. Hoang, founder and CEO of Moving Forward Psychological Institute in Fountain Valley, with clients statewide who are Vietnamese or Chinese, said male Asian immigrants are saddled with expectations to be successful yet are not encouraged to share their feelings. If theyre not succeeding or able to give the best to their families, that can be devastating, Hoang said. In his practice and as a volunteer delivering home-cooked meals to the elderly, Hoang has seen the isolation that many senior citizens are experiencing during the pandemic, which is compounded for immigrants with language issues. They wont go to shelters or other institutions for help, because those places may not have anyone speaking their language or the food that theyre used to eating, Hoang said. Many of the services that are available right now are not culturally sensitive to our communities. Older immigrants have a tendency to keep it inside and say less and are not as open to discussions about mental health as younger Asian Americans, said Jason Huang, 49, who is Taiwanese American and lives in Monterey Park, where Saturday nights shooting tore through Lunar New Year celebrations. On Monday, Jan Alejandro, center, and his daughter, Arlene Alejandro, right, leave after bringing a plant while other mourners streamed in to pay their respects to victims of the Monterey Park mass shooting at the Star Ballroom Dance Studio. For those reasons, gathering places such as the Monterey Park dance studio where the shooting happened, or parks where immigrants do tai chi and other exercises, are especially important, Huang said. The dance hall is a place people knew they could go, he said. The older generation who go to the park, they all know to go there. The lack of community gathering spaces for senior citizens is an issue in Koreatown, said Steve Kang, director of external affairs for the Koreatown Youth and Community Center. A McDonalds on Western Avenue has become a quasi-community center. That McDonalds, God forbid if it goes away, thats going to be detrimental to our senior population, Kang said. A lot of our low-income seniors congregate at that McDonalds because its cheap, they can afford the drinks and the meals, and its relatively safe and warm and hospitable. But even as they are grieving and struggling to make sense of the shootings, people should avoid making sweeping generalizations about elderly Asian men, said Glenn Masuda, senior clinical director of the Asian Pacific Family Center in Rosemead, part of a network of clinics that provide mental health services in California. The question that Im already getting from Asian and non-Asian alike, is what in the heck is going on with these Asian elderly men shooting people? he said. It makes no sense. And until we get more data, its going to be hard to make sense. Get Essential San Diego, weekday mornings Get top headlines from the Union-Tribune in your inbox weekday mornings, including top news, local, sports, business, entertainment and opinion. You may occasionally receive promotional content from the San Diego Union-Tribune. Former Supreme Court Chief Justice Earl Warrens name is on the U.S. Navys newest fuel ship Republican National Committee Chair Ronna McDaniel is fighting for re-election in a bitter leadership feud thats testing former President Donald Trumps grip on his own Make America Great Again movement Authorities say a man was shot and killed after pointing a handgun at Los Angeles County sheriffs deputies In less than 48 hours, two gunmen went on shooting rampages at both ends of California that left 18 dead and 10 wounded President Joe Biden says the nations prayers are with two California cities where 18 people were killed in separate mass shootings over the last week Conservative attorney John Eastman a lead architect of some of former President Donald Trumps efforts to remain in power after the 2020 election is facing disciplinary charges in California that could lead to his disbarment |
