Fatal North Carolina shooting by Chinese doctoral student stirs anxiety among Asian-Americans
Mark Magnier, Amber Wang
1 hour ago
Tailei Qi, charged in the fatal shooting of a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faculty member, appears at the Orange County Courthouse in Hillsborough, North Carolina, on Tuesday. Photo: AP
As first-degree murder charges are filed against Tailei Qi in killing of Zijie Yan, some in community fear deepening of 'outsider' status
Tragedy 'does not help' the US and is 'just another thing that drives us crazy', says Chinese-American business leader
The fatal shooting of a professor on Monday by a graduate student, both of Asian descent, at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was greeted with anxiety and trepidation on Tuesday by members of the minority community over concerns it would only fan more stereotypes and racial hatred.
On Tuesday, Chinese doctoral candidate Tailei Qi, 34, was charged with first-degree murder and possession of a firearm on educational property in the killing of Zijie Yan, an associate professor in the applied physical sciences department.
UNC chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz remembered Yan as a "beloved colleague, mentor and father of two".
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Qi made a brief court appearance on Tuesday afternoon. He was ordered held without bail until his next scheduled court appearance on September 18.
Flowers are seen piled up in front of Caudill Labs in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, where the fatal shooting took place on Monday. Photo: AP
His motive was unknown, he did not enter a plea and the weapon had not been recovered as of Tuesday afternoon, law enforcement officials said at a press conference.
The officials added that they were still "exploring" the relationship between the men, saying the two knew each other.
Qi was one of three graduate students working for Yan's group in Caudill Labs, a chemistry studies building on the UNC campus. Qi worked together on at least two research papers with other members of the team, the most recent released on July 30, according to the group's website.
Qi joined the group in January 2022. A last "group news" posting on the website dated October 2022 read: "Tailei published his first paper in Nano Letters. Congratulations!"
Asian-Americans should prepare for more hate, committee warns
Members of the Asian-American community expressed deep sympathies for the victim and those who mourn his loss before adding that this was the last thing they needed right now.
"We should think first of the terrified staff members and UNC students," said Merlin Chowkwanyun, assistant professor of sociomedical sciences at Columbia University and an expert in ethics, community health and racial inequality.
"But to see another person who looks like this, playing into the narrative, all I could think of was: 'Oh my God, why does it have to be another Asian?'"
Chowkwanyun, who is of Chinese-Thai descent, said the tragedy would fan stereotypes of Asians as the eternal outsiders, even if they have lived in the US for six generations, leading people to think: "This is why we shouldn't let them in."
The latest incident dovetails with a host of issues buffeting the Asian-American community, including the coronavirus pandemic; US-China trade, espionage allegations, geopolitics and the battle over semiconductors, all of which have fuelled suspicion and blame affecting the minority community.
Mark Magnier, Amber Wang
1 hour ago
Tailei Qi, charged in the fatal shooting of a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faculty member, appears at the Orange County Courthouse in Hillsborough, North Carolina, on Tuesday. Photo: AP
As first-degree murder charges are filed against Tailei Qi in killing of Zijie Yan, some in community fear deepening of 'outsider' status
Tragedy 'does not help' the US and is 'just another thing that drives us crazy', says Chinese-American business leader
The fatal shooting of a professor on Monday by a graduate student, both of Asian descent, at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill was greeted with anxiety and trepidation on Tuesday by members of the minority community over concerns it would only fan more stereotypes and racial hatred.
On Tuesday, Chinese doctoral candidate Tailei Qi, 34, was charged with first-degree murder and possession of a firearm on educational property in the killing of Zijie Yan, an associate professor in the applied physical sciences department.
UNC chancellor Kevin Guskiewicz remembered Yan as a "beloved colleague, mentor and father of two".
Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team.
Qi made a brief court appearance on Tuesday afternoon. He was ordered held without bail until his next scheduled court appearance on September 18.
Flowers are seen piled up in front of Caudill Labs in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, where the fatal shooting took place on Monday. Photo: AP
His motive was unknown, he did not enter a plea and the weapon had not been recovered as of Tuesday afternoon, law enforcement officials said at a press conference.
The officials added that they were still "exploring" the relationship between the men, saying the two knew each other.
Qi was one of three graduate students working for Yan's group in Caudill Labs, a chemistry studies building on the UNC campus. Qi worked together on at least two research papers with other members of the team, the most recent released on July 30, according to the group's website.
Qi joined the group in January 2022. A last "group news" posting on the website dated October 2022 read: "Tailei published his first paper in Nano Letters. Congratulations!"
Asian-Americans should prepare for more hate, committee warns
Members of the Asian-American community expressed deep sympathies for the victim and those who mourn his loss before adding that this was the last thing they needed right now.
"We should think first of the terrified staff members and UNC students," said Merlin Chowkwanyun, assistant professor of sociomedical sciences at Columbia University and an expert in ethics, community health and racial inequality.
"But to see another person who looks like this, playing into the narrative, all I could think of was: 'Oh my God, why does it have to be another Asian?'"
Chowkwanyun, who is of Chinese-Thai descent, said the tragedy would fan stereotypes of Asians as the eternal outsiders, even if they have lived in the US for six generations, leading people to think: "This is why we shouldn't let them in."
The latest incident dovetails with a host of issues buffeting the Asian-American community, including the coronavirus pandemic; US-China trade, espionage allegations, geopolitics and the battle over semiconductors, all of which have fuelled suspicion and blame affecting the minority community.
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Summary
Chinese doctoral student Tailei Qi charged with first-degree murder for the fatal shooting of UNC professor Zijie Yan. The incident has stirred anxiety within the Asian-American community over potential racial bias and stereotypes. Motive unclear, weapon not recovered as of Tuesday.