Protests Across U.S. Call for End to Anti-Asian Violence

Xiaoxu Zheng, a 36-year-old medical researcher at Georgia State University, said he came to the protest, his first political event, because he was worried about a rise in anti-Asian prejudice in the past year.

“We live here. We pay taxes. We work here. This is our life,” said Mr. Zheng, who has been in the U.S. for 10 years and lives in suburban Atlanta with his wife and two children. “This is a country of immigrants, all of the immigrants, so there is nothing we can do better than love each other, than work together.”

Eight people, including six women of Asian descent, were killed in shootings at three Atlanta-area spas on Tuesday night. Robert Aaron Long, of Woodstock, Ga., was arrested in the attacks and has been charged with eight counts of murder and one count of aggravated assault, officials said. He is being held in Cherokee County without bond. He waived his right to an attorney, officials said.

The fact that six of the eight victims were women of Asian descent has prompted calls for the suspect to be charged with hate crimes.

Law-enforcement officials in the suburban county where the first shooting occurred have said that Mr. Long told them he was lashing out at his sexual addiction in the attacks. Officials with the Atlanta Police Department said they were still investigating the attacks to determine whether Mr. Long should be charged with hate crimes.

In New York City, hundreds of protesters gathered in Times Square to march to Manhattan’s Chinatown.

Wayne Huang, 42, who was born in New York City and lives in Chinatown, brought his two boys to the demonstration. He said his children were attending their first march.

“It’s hard to explain the hate to them, and the evil, but they have to have that awareness that it is time to support the community,” Mr. Huang said.

In a separate event in Manhattan’s Washington Square Park, hundreds of people, including many dressed in white and holding candles, held a vigil for the Atlanta victims.

Fred Chu, a 30-year-old paramedic who lives in Manhattan’s Washington Heights, brought a bouquet of white flowers to the vigil. He said he came to show his support. Asians, as well as other minorities, he said, often feel unheard and in some cases, unwanted. “So I think this is a simple, physical way of showing, ‘Hey, we’re here, we do want to hear your voices.’”

Police and government officials in New York City and other U.S. cities have said hate crimes against Asian Americans have risen since the Covid-19 pandemic, which first emerged in China.

President Biden on Friday met with Asian-American leaders in Atlanta and urged Congress to pass the Covid-19 Hate Crimes Act. The legislation would expedite Justice Department reviews of race-related crimes linked to Covid-19. Mr. Biden also called on the Senate to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act.

Heidi Ng, a 28-year-old college budget officer, was…