For Immediate Release:
November 24, 2021

GAPABA and NAPABA Statement on the Verdict in the Trial over Killing of Ahmaud Arbery

WASHINGTON- NAPABA and GAPABA have expressed our solidarity with the Black community in Georgia and across the nation in the wake of multiple tragedies that have taken too many innocent lives from our communities. Georgia, sadly, has been at the epicenter of racial violence in this country following the killings of Ahmaud Arbery in February 2020 and in March 2021, eight victims–six of whom were Asian American women.

We humbly lend our voice and support as fellow humans, allies, and upstanders, with a reaffirmation of our commitment to stand together in these tumultuous and troubling times where senseless killings of Black Americans and hate and vitriol against Asian Americans continue to happen with shocking frequency. This is not acceptable and must stop.  

Today, a jury in Brunswick, Georgia, has convicted three defendants accused of murder and other charges for the killing of Ahmaud Arbery. Although the judicial system has spoken, we know that this does not bring back Mr. Arbery and that so much more needs to be done to ensure that the fight against hatred and bigotry is a movement rather than a moment.  

Racism against any person is the oppression of all persons. As one of the greatest Georgians, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., wrote in 1963, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny.”     

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The National Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA), represents the interests of over 60,000 Asian Pacific American (APA) legal professionals and nearly 90 national, state, and local APA bar associations. NAPABA is a leader in addressing civil rights issues confronting APA communities. Through its national network, NAPABA provides a strong voice for increased diversity of the federal and state judiciaries, advocates for equal opportunity in the workplace, works to eliminate hate crimes and anti-immigrant sentiment, and promotes the professional development of people of all backgrounds in the legal profession.