Skip to content
Search AI Powered

Latest Stories

Sheriff's Captain Sparks Outrage After Saying Deadly Atlanta Shooting Spree Was 'Bad Day' For Suspect

Sheriff's Captain Sparks Outrage After Saying Deadly Atlanta Shooting Spree Was 'Bad Day' For Suspect
Fox News

In the wake of the mass shooting in Atlanta last night in which a White man murdered eight people, six of which were Asian women, Cherokee County Sheriff's Captain Jay Baker offered a excuse for the man's murder spree.

It was "a really bad day" for the gunman.


Social media erupted over Baker's shocking comments.

The gunman confessed to the murders.

During his confession, he told law enforcement he suffers from sex addiction, and targeted the spas in order to "take out that temptation." In explaining this alleged motive in a press conference, Sheriff's Captain Baker's description struck many as sympathy for the gunman.

As he put it to the press gaggle:

"He was pretty much fed up, that he'd been kind of at the end of his rope, and yesterday was a really bad day for him and this is what he did."

Baker's comments sparked immediate anger.

As Asian-American writer Marie Lu put it on Twitter:

"A really bad day are you f'king kidding me? Is this a picture book??"

Baker and other law enforcement officials in the area stressed the gunman's alleged sexual addiction was the motivation for his violence, not racism, refusing to label the anti-Asian hate crime a hate crime.

But according to a South Korean media report, the gunman was heard vowing to "kill all Asians" by a witness to one of the shootings.

That aside, Baker's analysis of the murders misses two key factors: the history of racialized sexual fetishization of Asian women and the skyrocketing rates of violence against Asian Americans during the pandemic.

STOP AAPI HATE, an organization that tracks such violence, recorded nearly 3,800 attacks since the beginning of the pandemic. Many believe the increase in violence to be a direct result of former President Donald Trump's and others Republicans' racist rhetoric around the pandemic.

Even without those factors, Baker's sympathetic, humanizing portrait of a White mass murderer as a victim of circumstance should be astonishing, especially given the stark contrast to how law enforcement typically deals with people of color.

And people on Twitter are rightfully incensed.










At the time of his apprehension some 150 miles south of Atlanta, the gunman told law enforcement he was en route to Florida to "do more acts" there.

More from Trending

Willem Dafoe
Mike Coppola/Getty Images

Video Of Young Willem Dafoe In 1975 Resurfaces—And Fans Are Thirsty AF

Willem Dafoe is one of those actors who has been in so many roles that nearly everyone has a favorite version of him.

But where most people might think of more recent roles, some remember Dafoe in his younger years, and some Redditor decided it was time for more people to recognize the actor back when he was taking over the stage.

Keep ReadingShow less
Kelly Clarkson
Craig T Fruchtman/Getty Images

Fans Outraged After Kelly Clarkson Postpones Las Vegas Debut Hours Before Showtime

Fans of singer Kelly Clarkson were disappointed—and then quickly angry—when Clarkson abruptly announced that she was postponing the opening of her highly anticipated Las Vegas residency this past weekend.

Clarkson, who first began her career two decades ago on American Idol and has since been a household name for her entertainment work, including performing and also hosting a daytime talk show, was set to kick off her residency with a debut performance.

Keep ReadingShow less
screenshot of KSAT ABC 12 news anchors  and Stephania Jimenez

Texas News Anchor Slams Noem And Abbott For Using Flood Press Conference To Praise Each Other

KSAT ABC 12 News anchor Stephania Jimenez called out the priorities of federal and state officials during disasters live on air on Saturday.

Jiminez spoke out after a fifth news conference that was supposed to be about the deadly flash flooding west of San Antonio began with yet another mutual admiration society performance by Department of Homeland Security head Kristi Noem, Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott, and nearly everyone else behind the microphones.

Keep ReadingShow less
Screenshot of Mike Johnson
Fox News Sunday

Mike Johnson Blasted After Claiming All Congress Can Do After Texas Floods Is 'Pray'

House Speaker Mike Johnson is facing angry criticism after he appeared on Fox News to remark on the deadly flooding in Texas that has killed hundreds, claiming that all Congress "knows to do at this moment is pray" in response to the disaster.

Speaking during the ongoing search and rescue operations, Johnson spoke as the people of Texas continue to raise mounting questions about the effectiveness of current warning systems and whether more could have been done in advance to prevent the loss of life.

Keep ReadingShow less
Donald Trump; Elon Musk
Omar Havana/Getty Images; Allison Robbert/AFP via Getty Image

Trump Lashes Out After 'Train Wreck' Elon Musk Announces He's Creating New Political Party

President Donald Trump attacked his former ally Elon Musk in a post on Truth Social after the tech billionaire announced over the weekend that he's creating a new political party called the "America Party" amid their ongoing feud.

Musk has made clear that he vehemently opposes the president's One Big Beautiful Bill—and will work to unseat any Republicans who've supported it, saying they've "voted for the biggest debt increase in history." He founded the new political party on July 5, the day after Trump signed the legislation, which adds roughly $3.3 trillion to the national debt.

Keep ReadingShow less