Officials offer condolences for Monterey Park shooting victims

As Monterey Park grieves the lives of 11 victims senselessly cut short by a mass shooter who opened fire at a dance studio on defenseless people, most of whom were seniors, elected officials from President Joe Biden and Gov. Gavin Newsom to those on the local LA-area level offered words of condolence in public statements following the Lunar New Year tragedy.

Arcadia Mayor Paul Cheng said:

“I was deeply saddened to learn of this senseless act of violence occurring in Monterey Park. During a time of the year that is intended to be a celebration of new beginnings and life, I awoke to panicked phone calls and messages of people searching for their loved ones, hoping they had survived this heartbreaking event. 

“The weeks ahead will be tough for all, but especially the Asian-American community. Please know the City of Arcadia is grieving with you and extends its unwavering support to Monterey Park — we are strong, resilient, and we will find light in the face of this darkness.”

Rosemead Mayor Sean Dang said:

“On behalf of the entire Rosemead community and my colleagues on the City Council, I offer my sincerest condolences to the City of Monterey Park, and the families and victims of this terrible act of violence. The Lunar New Year is a time for family, friends, and community to come together to celebrate new beginnings. The Rosemead family stands in unity with our friends and neighbors in Monterey Park.”

Duarte officials said in a joint statement:

“The City of Duarte expresses our condolences to the community members of Monterey Park for the senseless acts of violence and lives lost last night.

“The Lunar New Year and the City’s celebrations are meant to be a time of family, unity, and hope for prosperity in the new year for the Asian American Pacific Islander community, and for all those who join these festivities. No matter the reason for this violence, the safety of the community and this joyous time was marred by this tragedy in Monterey Park. …

“As a member of the greater San Gabriel Valley community, the City of Duarte grieves alongside its neighbors and our hearts go out to the victims, and their friends and families.”

Los Angeles City Council members adjourned their meeting Tuesday in honor of those killed in the Monterey Park mass shooting.

“One single person’s instability devastated an entire community and shook the entire country,” Councilman John Lee said. “On a holiday that is celebrated throughout the world, and one that is focused on peace, love and prosperity, to hear the news that a mass shooting took place next door in a neighboring city and in a city that is predominantly Asian is truly heartbreaking.”

Lee added that the victims “were guilty of nothing beyond wanting to celebrate the festivities with their friends, at a place they had gathered so many times before.”

More than 100 people attended a vigil Monday night at Monterey Park City Hall, and separate vigils are planned for Tuesday and Wednesday in Monterey Park.

Councilwoman Nithya Raman said: “We must at this moment reach out to all of our Asian siblings with love, embrace them, hold them up during this moment that has come in the wake of a significant rise in anti-AAPI hate.”

Council President Paul Krekorian called for the “madness” of mass shooting incidents to stop and to “turn our grief and anguish into actual action.” Another mass shooting in Half Moon Bay on Monday, south of San Francisco, killed seven people.

“Every member of this City Council, every member of the city family stands in solidarity and unity with Asian Americans in Southern California and across the country who are grieving over this horrendous tragedy,” Krekorian said.

Vice President Kamala Harris was scheduled to visit Monterey Park Wednesday to meet with families of victims killed in the weekend shooting at a dance studio that left 11 people dead.

“I will visit Monterey Park to stand and mourn with the community,” Harris wrote on her Twitter page Tuesday.

President Joe Biden said earlier Tuesday that Harris would be making a trip to California following the Saturday shooting and two additional shootings Monday in Northern California.

“Our hearts are with the people of California,” Biden said at the White House, adding that “the vice president’s going to be going out.”

Biden said he has been having discussions with local officials including county Supervisor Hilda Solis and Rep. Judy Chu, D-Claremont, in addition to Gov. Gavin Newsom.

“We’re working out a number of things that we can and are going to be doing,” he said.

In her Twitter post Tuesday, Harris said she and husband Doug Emhoff “continue to pray for healing and recovery for all those impacted.”

Harris spoke out about the Monterey Park shooting during a Sunday appearance in Florida, saying “yet another community has been torn apart by senseless gun violence.”

“All of us in this room and in our country understand this violence must stop,” Harris said. “And President Biden and I and our administration will continue to provide full support to the local authorities as we learn more.”After a candlelit vigil Tuesday evening, the city of Monterey Park tweeted: “As we mourn those lost & comfort the grieving, we are grateful for the overwhelming show of compassion & generosity.”