Whereas, on March 16, 2021, a shooter murdered 8 people and injured 1 person in the Atlanta, Georgia, region in 3 separate shootings that took place at Asian-owned spas;

Whereas the victims included—

(1)

Xiaojie Emily Tan;

(2)

Daoyou Feng;

(3)

Delaina Ashley Yaun;

(4)

Paul Andre Michels;

(5)

Yong Ae Yue;

(6)

Soon Chung Julie Park;

(7)

Hyun Jung Grant; and

(8)

Sun Cha Kim;

Whereas 2026 marks the fifth year since the loss of these innocent lives, 7 of whom were women, 6 of whom were women of Asian descent, and several of whom were immigrants;

Whereas communities continue to grapple with grief, trauma, and the long-term mental-health impacts of anti-Asian hate, and require access to culturally responsive mental health services, trauma-informed care, and language-accessible support services to heal and rebuild;

Whereas the Atlanta spa shootings occurred amid an alarming surge in anti-Asian hate crimes and incidents nationwide fueled by the use of anti-Asian rhetoric that scapegoated Asian Americans for the COVID–19 pandemic;

Whereas the use of rhetoric that portrays Asian countries, and by extension, Asian nationals or those of Asian descent, as enemies of the United States continues to contribute to the scapegoating of innocent Asian Americans;

Whereas such rhetoric exists in the context of historic and ongoing discriminatory policies, including alien land laws and other measures that have targeted Asian communities, like the so-called China Initiative;

Whereas the latest Federal hate crime statistics for 2024 show that anti-Asian hate crimes were nearly 3 times higher than the prepandemic average and anti-Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander hate crimes were at the highest number ever recorded since the Federal Bureau of Investigation began disaggregating this category in 2013, confirming persistent risk, underreporting, and ongoing community harm;

Whereas language access barriers, immigration status concerns, and fear of law enforcement or deportation can contribute to underreporting of hate crimes and limit access to services for survivors;

Whereas 40 percent of Americans believe that Asian Americans are more loyal to their countries of origin than to the United States, a belief that has doubled since 2021, compounding suspicions of dual loyalty that perpetuate the narrative that Asian Americans are foreigners in their own home;

Whereas Asian-American women have been historically marginalized and faced specific threats of violence linked to misogynistic narratives and sexual objectification;

Whereas anti-Asian hate remains elevated and increasingly intersects with xenophobic, anti-immigrant, and anti-Asian narratives, particularly in online spaces, and is more frequently directed at South Asian communities;

Whereas community reports and media accounts underscore that anti-immigrant rhetoric and disinformation portraying Asian immigrants as economic or security threats continue to fuel hostility and can translate into real-world intimidation and violence; and

Whereas Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander communities have contributed immeasurably to the cultural, civic, scientific, and economic life of the United States, and deserve safety, dignity, and equal protection under the law: Now, therefore, be it