Filmmakers of ‘Rising Against Asian Hate’ honor Atlanta spa victims

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - If you didn’t know who the victims were on March 16, after watching the new documentary, ‘Rising Against Asian Hate: One Day in March,’ you will definitely know a lot more about the eight victims who lost their lives two years ago.

Atlanta News First spoke to director Titi Yu and producer Gina Kim.

“Obviously the victim’s story is very important to what happened but even more so I think the community really came together, and the way that the community was able to really turn this tragedy into something powerful that brought people together is something that needed to be shown,” Film Director Titi Yu said.

Yu and Kim said they felt called to act after seeing what happened on March 16. They wanted to spotlight the resilience of the victims’ families and the entire Asian American community.

“People were devastated, it was just absolutely a horrific day and experience and to witness and we felt we wanted to document this moment,” Kim said.

The film touches on moments of racial insensitivity, the family of the victims, and the way the Asian American community responded.

“When social media posts showed Captain Baker promoting an anti-Chinese message, the community demanded his ouster,” the film narrator said.

The film also highlights the meaningful changes that happened because of the shootings.

“Legislation passed that began to focus on Asian hate crimes and make people realize this is something actually happening in our community,” one viewer of the film said.

Viewers who spoke to Atlanta News First said they enjoyed the educational takeaways as well.

“To show what we’re doing to ensure that in the future we can mitigate those kinds of actions and prevent that kind of hate,” another viewer of the film said after watching.

The documentary is available here.

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