by Vee Hua 華婷婷
by Amanda Ong
On March 16 from 9 to 11 a.m. in Hing Hay Park, the Massage Parlor Outreach Project (MPOP) will be hosting its third annual vigil commemorating the eight lives lost in a shooting in Atlanta on March 17, 2021. Those killed were Soon Chung Park, Suncha Kim, Yong Yue, Hyun Jung Grant, Xiaojie Tan, Daoyou Feng, Delaina Ashley Yaun Gonzalez, and Paul Andre Michels. Six of those lost were Asian women and massage parlor workers.
Continue reading Massage Parlor Outreach Project Holds Third Annual Vigil for 2021 Atlanta Shootingsby Susan Fried
Content Warning: This article contains discussion of gun violence.
Editor’s Note: It seems incomprehensible that while still reeling from the Buffalo, New York, killings on May 14, another tragedy took place yesterday when 19 elementary school children and two teachers were slain in Texas. The epidemic of gun violence and the targeting of Black, Brown, Indigenous, and People of Color is one of the most devastating and horrific elements in our country. The Emerald recognizes these harrowing events and acknowledges the difficulty in reporting on what feels like a constant cycle of tragedy.
After recently wrapping up our partnership with the Beloved campaign, which examines gun violence as a public health crisis, we will remain committed to covering this issue of critical importance to our local communities and beyond.
A week after an 18-year-old self-proclaimed white supremacist shot 13, killing 10 Black, mostly elderly people in Buffalo, New York, Seattle held two vigils on Saturday, May 21, to honor those whose lives were taken.
Continue reading Seattle Stands in Solidarity With Buffaloby JM Wong
To Coco, Feng Daoyou, who crossed over on March 16, 2021. Our ancestor, who left home at a young age to work in the factories and the nail salons and massage parlors. Who sent money back to build a home for your elders, one massage at a time. Who landed in New York, LA, and then Atlanta. Who died in anonymity. Whose body cannot return home, I remember you. We remember you.
Rest in peace.
Continue reading OPINION: 悼念冯道友, A Tribute to Feng Daoyou, Victim of the 2021 Atlanta Massacreby Susan Fried & Emerald Staff
Around 100 people turned out for a rally, march, and vigil for Kaloni Bolton on Saturday at Westlake Park. The 12-year-old died after suffering an asthma attack at Valley Medical Center (VMC) Urgent Care in December and being forced to wait an extended period of time after being turned away from the first clinic before receiving treatment. Bolton went into cardiac arrest and passed away after two days on life support. Bolton’s family alleges her death was due to anti-Blackness, medical racism, and negligence.
Since Bolton’s passing, there have been consistent community demands for justice. Black Nurses Matter held a Renton march in Bolton‘s honor this spring. This past Saturday, July 24, the Westlake Black Health Equity Rally was hosted by The Breathe for Kaloni Foundation and Decolonizing Science, a podcast run by Ashley Paynter, a Black scientist currently obtaining their Ph.D. in the field of biological sciences. It was attended by many members of Bolton’s large extended family with one message: #BreatheForKaloni. Speakers included her cousin Zipporah White, her mother Kristina Williams’ attorney James Bible, and Claude Burfect, a vice president of the Seattle- King County Branch of the NAACP. After a rally, protestors marched through downtown Seattle to Capitol Hill. The march was followed by a vigil for Bolton back at Westlake Park.
To learn more, listen to Bolton’s family tell her story on podcast Episode #6 of Decolonizing Science and follow @breatheforkaloni on Instagram.
Continue reading PHOTO ESSAY: Family and Community Remember 12-Year-Old Kaloni Bolton, Demand Justiceby Ari Robin McKenna and Makayla Miles
When Conner Dassa-Holland was in middle school at Orca K–8, his English teacher there, Donte Felder, would often present students with two questions:
“What is your story? What is your future?”
Years later, Donte would run into Conner from time to time in South Seattle, where they both lived. Usually, after getting an earful of Conner’s recent achievements, he would ask Conner what had become a predictable question:
“What is your story? What is your future?”
Responses varied over the years. Having spent both 7th and 8th grade in Donte’s English classrooms, Conner was ready with a variety of off-the-cuff answers over the years.
Donte remembers their final exchange:
“What is your story? What is your future?”
“Change the world. Our systems are wrong.”
“How?”
“I’ll figure that out later, but one step at a time.”
Continue reading Rainier Beach Community Pays Tribute to Conner Dassa-Hollandby Bunthay Cheam
photos by Susan Fried
Exactly one week after he passed away, more than 100 people gathered in MLK Memorial Park to celebrate the life of rapper, philanthropist, and community organizer Nipsey Hussle. On Sunday March 31, he was murdered in front of The Marathon Clothing, a store he owned on the intersection of Crenshaw Boulevard and West Slauson Avenue in South Los Angeles.
Continue reading Nipsey Hussle vigil gives community a space to grieve, reflect
Story and photos by Susan Fried
More than a thousand people crowded into Temple De Hirsch Sinai while at least as many filled the street outside the synagogue during a vigil for the 11 people killed at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on Saturday, October 27.
Continue reading PHOTOS: Seattle Mourns Eleven Killed in Pittsburgh Shooting at Tree of Life
