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Asian seniors find 'sacred space' in ballroom dance, even after mass shooting

Published March 21, 2023 at 8:40 AM EDT
A makeshift memorial for victims of a mass shooting is pictured in front of the Star Ballroom Dance Studio in Monterey Park, California on Jan. 26, 2023. (Frederic J. Brown BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
A makeshift memorial for victims of a mass shooting is pictured in front of the Star Ballroom Dance Studio in Monterey Park, California on Jan. 26, 2023. (Frederic J. Brown BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)

Here & Now‘s Deepa Fernandes speaks with San Francisco Chronicle reporter and podcast host Cecilia Lei, who spoke with Asian seniors in the San Francisco Bay area, two months after 11 people were killed at an Asian ballroom dance studio in Monterey Park.

Lei discovered that “this isn’t just about mental or physical exercise, it’s about community connection” and joy in the face of tragedy.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.

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