By Kim Tong-hyung
Staff Reporter
Korean communities in the United States have joined in mourning for the victims of the massacre in Virginia, Monday, the worst in U.S. history.
Leaders of Korean communities in Washington D.C., and the states of Virginia and Maryland also formed an emergency committee to raise funds for the victims and organized memorial services for them.
Korean ambassador to the U.S. Lee Tae-shik suggested Korean Christians go on a 32-day fast to mourn for the 32 victims of the shooting spree.
However, Lee’s suggestion was ridiculed by a large number of Koreans who read the story on the Internet, with some questioning whether the diplomat’s comments would only renew the focus on the killer’s ethnic background.
``It is a tragedy that is beyond any description. What we can do now is to reach out to the families of the victims and the rest of the United States with sincerest condolences,’’ the Korean diplomat was quoted as saying during a speech at a Korean church in Washington yesterday.
Lee, who had been on a trip to Seoul with U.S. Ambassador to Korea Alexander Vershbow, hurried back to Washington late Tuesday after the killer was identified as a Korean.