A vigil befell Wednesday night time in Oakland because the neighborhood remembered the victims of the latest mass shootings in California.
The two Bay Area vigils befell Wednesday night time at Wilma Chan Park in Oakland and Santa Clara University.
This comes after three horrific acts of gun violence in Monterey Parok, Half Moon Bay and Oakland.
“I was born in Monterey Park. I was born in the hospital like three blocks away from the shooting,” stated Oakland resident Timmy Lu.
Lu stated he wished to be together with his neighborhood.
“Events like this have a way to make me afraid and I don’t want to be afraid,” he stated.
The worry is compounded by the Lunar New Year, celebrated by some Asian cultures.
“I think it’s rocked all of us it’s been a tough couple of years dealing with AAPI hate and then these two shocking events on the days of the year when we most think about our families and coming together,” stated former Oakland Mayor Jean Quan.
Dr. Jennifer Tran with the Oakland Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce and helped arrange the town’s vigil.
She stated that some weren’t on the vigil as a result of they take into account this week a time to solely speak concerning the good.
“But gathering is absolutely necessary for our healing,” Tran stated.
While a majority of the victims in these shootings have been of Asian descent, Tran added that the vigil is about extra than simply the AAPI neighborhood.
“That same fear and devastation is shared across non-AAPI communities as well you know given the recent like loss of Mario Navarro 35 understanding that gun violence isn’t just affecting our communities but other communities as well,” she stated.
There have been greater than 30 organizations in that made the Oakland occasion attainable and occur in a short time.