A Murderous Rampage in Georgia

<p>The pandemic has precipitated a rise in anti-Asian violence in the U.S. However, the full extent of this violence may be obscured by the difficulty in classifying attacks against Asian-Americans as hate crimes. </p><p>A recent shooting at three spas in the Atlanta area, in which the eight victims included six women of Asian descent, has heightened anxiety in the Asian-American community. Many see this as a further burst of racist violence, even as the shooter has offered a more complicated motive. </p><p>Today, a look at why it’s proving so difficult to reckon with growing violence against Asian-Americans and whether the U.S. legal system has caught up to the reality of this moment. </p><p>Guest: <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/by/nicole-hong">Nicole Hong</a>, a reporter covering New York law enforcement, courts and criminal justice for The New York Times. </p><p> </p><p><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/newsletters/signup/NTTD?smid=pc-thedaily">Sign up here</a> to get The Daily in your inbox each morning. And for an exclusive look at how the biggest stories on our show come together, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/newsletters/the-daily?module=inline">subscribe to our newsletter</a>. </p><p>Background reading: </p><ul><li>The suspect in the Atlanta spa attacks has been charged with eight counts of murder. Six of the people killed were women of Asian descent,<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/17/us/atlanta-shooting-spa.html"> setting off a new wave of outrage and fear</a>.</li><li>The killing of eight people in Atlanta and suburban Cherokee County has come amid a<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/17/us/georgia-asian-population.html?action=click&module=RelatedLinks&pgtype=Article"> rising tide of anti-Asian incidents nationwide</a>.</li><li>Hate crimes involving Asian-American victims <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/26/nyregion/asian-hate-crimes-attacks-ny.html">soared in New York City last year</a>.</li></ul><p>For more information on today’s episode, visit </p><p><a href="http://nytimes.