BY SIMMONE SHAH
ONE YEAR AFTER A MASS SHOOTING LEFT 11 DEAD AND nine injured at Star Ballroom Dance Studio during a Lunar New Year dance party, Monterey Park, Calif., is preparing for its annual festival. But the festivities will carry a different weight this year.
The city—typically the first in the region to kick off Lunar New Year—pushed back its annual festival by a week, to Jan. 28, still about two weeks ahead of many New Year celebrations.
“We’re trying to be very mindful of the fact that there are going to be residents in this community who were impacted by the shooting last year, who might not have a friend or family member to celebrate with them, and that it also might bring back thoughts of grief,” says Jose Sanchez, mayor of Monterey Park. “That’s OK, that’s part of the healing process.”
The city plans to bring back its typical two-day Lunar New Year festival—shutting down a busy street for entertainment and activities that draw thousands of visitors. But it also plans additional events, including a training on “red flag” laws, and held a citywide vigil on Jan. 21 to honor the victims and create space for those who are still healing.
Other cities are looking to Monterey Park to show what it means to move forward from a tragedy without forgetting. Known as the first suburban Chinatown, the city of 60,000 has become a destination for many Asian Americans in the Los Angeles region looking for Chinese food, groceries, and a sense of community.
“[It] has a very central role in the Asian American community, which is why the Jan. 21st shooting impacted so many people,” says Henry Lo, a council member and former mayor of Monterey Park. “A lot of communities look to us as a leader, and I think it’s important to show that we will not forget the victims, but also acknowledge important events in the community.”
For Kevin Leung, a resident who ran his martial-arts school out of Star Ballroom before the shooting and knew two of the victims, last year’s events are hanging over Lunar New Year, even as he plans to attend the festival with his kids.
“Every day when I’m driving to work, I pass the building and I’m reminded that there’s still nothing there. The sign has
