Before the deadly spa shootings in Atlanta last year, Korean community groups in north Atlanta had built relationships with local police departments through a simple program. When tragedy struck, they were quickly in the loop.
Clayton Lee is a Korean immigrant who came to the U.S. when he was 16. The former banker is a community leader who wanted to build relationships between immigrant business owners and the local community, including the police department. So, in 2019, he started a monthly meeting.
“Doing a ‘Coffee with a Cop’ program to invite residents and business owners to talk with the police department if they have any issues,” Lee said. “So, our focus was — is there any Asian hate crimes going on that area that you need to come up and talk to the police department?”
The relationships built through “Coffee with a Cop” were crucial for communication during the spa shootings. Because on the night of March 16, 2021, the police knew how to reach out.
“You know, first thing, when the spa shooting happened … first thing, I got these emails from various police departments, saying that this is what happened, what’s happening right now. And don’t worry, you know, we will go out and do extra patrol to Korean business owners,” Lee said.
