Close to 60 people attended a rally Saturday at the old Roger’s Market parking lot to support the Asian American and Pacific Islander community.
The event was led by Mountlake Terrace Mayor Kyoko Matsumoto Wright, and attended by residents of the community as well as leaders from Mountlake Terrace, Edmonds and Lynnwood.
Mayor Wright spoke briefly to deliver her message: “We gather because of the problems that are going on here in our community, in our state and in our nation,” she said.
“There’s just too many things going on against the AAPI community,” she continued. “For so long, because of our culture, we remain more silent than vocal. Now is the time to get out there and let the world know that we exist, and that we don’t really want the hate to keep happening.”
A moment of silence followed, to honor the eight victims killed in Atlanta on March 16. People bowed their heads and closed their eyes, in silent reverence.
Wright then led the group on a walk south one block around 56th Avenue West, stopping at the new Mountlake Terrace City Hall.
The event was organized by the MLT Anti-Racist Coalition.
— Story and photos by David Carlos
Let us remember this family, Dr. Robert Lesslie was a beloved South Carolina doctor and faith-based author who was murdered along with his wife, two grandchildren, and a worker, by Phillip Adams, a former NFL defensive back. This deserves the same attention.