you got to see what happened in atlanta as an opportunity. i don't know what we're going to find out, about what this shooter understands of his own motives. i am, certainly, not giving him any excuses. but, is there any, other reason, other than the obvious here, for why he targeted asian-american women? even if it was a sex thing, why did it have to be them? why were they the object of his desire? or his affliction? and even if the analysis is strained -- >> i could tell you. >> it's not your turn, yet. even if the analysis is strained, we have to recognize their reality because it's on the rise. the attacks are on the rise. absolutely, no matter what the finding is in atlanta. "cnn tonight." the big show. its big star, on screen right now, d lemon. >> i've got so much that i want to say, and so much that i want the viewer to see. i am sorry that i was encroaching your time. i am sitting here raising my hand, and you know i never do that. i wait for you to finish. i can tell you why. because he not only saw these women as fetishes. but he saw them as obstacles to his, because they said he did it because he wanted to -- they were temptations. he saw them as ob -- obstacles to his christian purity. therefore, they were expendable by mass murder. that is the real-racist part. he saw them outside of himself, as a way of hindering him from being, what he thought that, he was supposed to be. >> inherently, less than. >> a way to go to heaven and not face the consequences. he didn't see them as human. and i -- talking to a psychologist. he had to preserve his christian purity, at all costs. it's incredibly sexist, my therapist says, because it's objectifying women. a double-marginalized group of women, even that they weren't doubly marginalized. he perceived them as sex workers even though they weren't, right? because he thought they were there to fulfill an obligation to him. he perceived them as sex workers, therefore, a double-marginalized group of women. he perceived them as sex workers and asian, even though they weren't sex workers, they were working in a spa. but that was his perception of them. that is the racist and sexist part. just because someone is not saying, oh, well, you know, i don't like asians. or i'm doing this because of calling, you know, racial epithet or saying the n word or anything like that. that is -- that's overt, obvious racism. >> right. >> these are things that we need to -- these are things that we need to -- to dig into, as both of us do, in therapy, to figure out what is actually going on. go on, sorry. >> also, you know, there's so much strain to fit it into the box. >> exactly. >> and to check all the things. when sometimes, it's kind of like importanporn, right? you know it when you see it. it doesn't matter to me, because the fetishizing of asian women is well known. >> right. >> and is, you know, was that his thing? whatever it was, it is what it feels like. now, not legally. if you want to charge a hate crime, fine. find your criteria. but we're talking about society and its morays and people are attacking our asian brothers and sisters and we know why they are doing it. it's a malignancy of the other. >> led me say this. i lived in atlanta many years. and worked there, part time, for nbc news, when they needed people to fill in for their bureau. so, probably, about ten years, off and on. there are plenty of places where you can go to get massages or strip clubs, or whatever, that don't involve asian women, in the atlanta area. plenty of opportunities. so, the fact that he picked those places says something about his psyche, and his motivations were. even if he is not saying it out loud, to investigators. now, if you will allow me to move on, because, chris, i interviewed an officer, tonight. that i just -- i just want to, like, interrupt and run it now. but i got to give people the news of the day. from the capitol insurrection. who was so emotional during the interview, he didn't even realize how emotional he was going to get. and he talked about his plight, as an american, as a patriot. but as a black man, who had to protect the capitol, and the people in it. and then, being called racial epithets. he said, there are people out there, we love this country, but it was surprising, to him, to see the hate coming out of the people, at that capitol, that day. it is an unbelievable interview. >> and he still kept other people safe, at his own risk. >> and all -- all of it -- this is the same thing. we have been dealing with these topics of race and bigotry and unconscious bias, a lot, lately. and we need to do something about it. i'm going to run. i love you. i am going to get to it. >> all the hate, all of it, directed at minorities, directed at others. you know what it makes me do? makes me love you more, d lemon. >> i love you, brother. i love you. more relationships like this, so that we treat people as humans. we see the humanity, in each other, and not as some other and demonizing other people. so thank you, chris, i love you, brother. so, this is "cnn tonight." i am don lemon. as i just said to chris, a lot of these issues that we have been dealing with, everyone, and you have to stay around and watch this interview. because it sums up everything that we are dealing with right now. and so, i am going to take you through the news of the day, which a lot of it's relatable. similar topics. okay? so, first, i want to take you to atlanta, and i want to tell you what we know tonight, about the crime that is spreading fear in the asian communities, across this country. and that's, the deadly shootings at three atlanta-area spas that killed eight people. six of them, asian-american women. here is the suspect. okay? he is a 21-year-old, white man. he's been charged with eight counts of murder, one of aggravated assault. authorities say that he took responsibility for the shootings, indicating that he had a sexual addiction. and may have gone to the spas, in the past. i want you to listen to -- this is the terrifying, 911 call from one of the crime scenes. here it is. >> do you have a description of him, ma'am? >> need to hide right now. >> is it a male or female? they have a gun, you said? >> some guy came in, and shoot the gun. so, everybody heard the gunshot. and um, some ladies got hurt, i think. you know, everybody's scared, so they hiding. >> and in a sign of just how seriously the white house is taking this, the president, joe biden, is asking two-top advisers. he is asking susan rice, he is asking cedric richmond to hold community-listening sessions and calling the rise in violence against asian-americans troublesome. >> but, whatever the motivation here, i know, that asian-americans are in -- very -- very concerned. because, as you know, i have been speaking about the brutality against asian-americans for the last couple months. and i think it is very, very troubling. >> hmm, so, kamala harris. the first black and south asian vice president condemning the violence. here she is. >> our country, the president, and i, and all of us, we grieve for the loss. our prayers are extended to the families. of -- of those who have been killed. and um, it speaks to a larger issue, which is the issue of -- of violence in our country. and -- and what we must do, to never tolerate it, and to always speak out against it. >> the former president of the united states, barack obama, tweeting out, tonight, although the shooter's motive is not clear, yet, the identity of the victims' underscores an alarming rise in anti-asian violence that must end. investigators say, it is too early to tell whether this was a hate crime. whether it was motivated by race. but six of the eight people killed were asian women. and we have to look at the full picture here. whether or not the suspect has a sex addiction, gender is a hate-crime category under georgia's new law. i talked about that, just moments ago, a little bit, with chris. so, if the women were targeted out of hatred for them, or scapegoating them for his own problems. it could, potentially, be a crime. the shootings don't have to be racially motivated the way you think about it to constitute a hate crime in georgia. and i just want to be very clear, right now. very clear. we don't know, yet, what the motive was, in this case. but i mean, really? but, we do know what happens when hate is allowed to fester in this society, as it has been over the last few years. we have seen it, in charlottesville. jews will not replace us. blood and soil. we've seen it, in the capitol insurrection. and we have seen it in the deaths of ahmaud arbery and breonna taylor, george floyd, that drew millions of americans into the streets to protest, last summer. and in the face of the violence in georgia, eight people shot to death, in cold blood. there's this. and it's from captain jay baker in the cherokee county sheriff's office. >> he understood the gravity of it. and he was, pretty much, fed up and kind of at the end of his rope. and yesterday was a really bad day for him, and this is what he did. >> he had a bad day? eight people are dead, and he had a bad day? that's something you say, if things didn't go so well at work. maybe, you were cranky with your partner or your kids. you got into a disagreement with a boss. i mean, that, you know, that's a bad day. a flat tire. you're late. traffic ticket. it was a bad day for eight people who were shot to death. it was a bad day for their families. it was a bad day for asian-american people, all across this country, who are terrified that they'll be the targets of the next explosion of violence. it was a bad day for the people across this country, who are horrified by the hate and abuse of asian-americans. nearly-3,800 hate incidents were reported to stop api hate, between march of last year and february of this year. like i said, we know what happens when hate is allowed to fester, right? we know the danger to every one of us. homeland security secretary, alejandro mayorkas, testifying, just today, that lone-wolf domestic terror is the greatest threat to this country. >> are you currently more worried about domestic-violence extremist, lone wolves than you are about foreign-terrorist lone wolves? >> right now, at this point in time, domestic-violent extremism, the lone wolf, the loose affiliation of individuals following ideologies of hate and other ideologies of extremism. that are willing and able to take those ideologies, and execute on them, in unlawful, illegal, violent ways, is our greatest threat, in the homeland, right now. >> how long you going to continue to ignore it and try to make excuses for it? how long are you going to continue to say that people, who point that out, are being racist? or discriminating against the domestic terrorists? specifically, the right-wing, white-domestic terrorists. you heard the fbi director, and you heard him. it's hate that endangers all of us. the kind of hate that poisoned america's conversations. it poisons it. even after we learned about the shootings in georgia last night, the former president was still using, still doing it, using a racist slur over on the fox-propaganda network. >> we were the envy of the world. and then, when we got hit by the, as i call it, the china virus, covid, it was -- it, obviously, went down along with every other economy. >> let me apologize. i'm sorry for insulting your ears, with that dribble. that racist dribble. because, you know what? you voted to get rid of him. i am sorry for playing the sound bite, but, you know, sometimes i have to show you just how terrible the former, one-term, disgraced, insurrection-inspiring, twice-impeached president is. how terrible his behavior is. he's still blaming covid on china, even with hate against asian-americans spreading all across this country. still, up to his old, terrible, dirty tricks. we all -- we saw all kinds of hate allowed to fester, under the previous president. and it came to a head, on january 6th. that brings us to january 6th, right now. there it is. we all saw it, with our own eyes. but i have to tell you, some in the gop want you to ignore what you have seen, with your own eyes. case in point. congressman louie gohmert. one of just-12 republicans to vote against the bill to award the congressional gold medal to police officers responding to the insurrection at the capitol. and why? why would he vote against honoring these american heroes? why don't i let him tell you? >> i'm all for the medals. but the speaker's legislation contained language that was neither fair, nor accurate. we now know there was no-armed insurrection. nobody had arms. so, just trying to keep it honest so that we only put truthful things in the bill. >> no-armed insurrection? what do you call the flag -- flags and flagpoles that the officers were beaten with? what do you call the bear spray and the toxic spray? those are arms. and how do you know how many people were armed? because they were allowed to go home. they weren't arrested. most of them were not arrested that day. they weren't armed. i want you to tell that to the five people who were killed. tell that to the police officers, who were beaten within an inch of their lives. even using those bike racks, those barricades, as weapons. those are arms, too. gohmert. tell that to an american hero, like capitol police officer harry dunn. i'm getting to him, right now. have a seat, because i want you to hear what he says. harry dunn, who battled those rioters, and was called the n word dozens of times. listen to what he told me. this was just a short time ago. here it is. >> i want to make it clear, that this isn't about me. this isn't about me. this is about standing up for what's right. and i spoke to some people that i trust, some close friends of mine. and i said i don't want to miss the mark today. i want to make sure that my point gets across, and it doesn't get diluted with, i'm playing the left, i'm playing the right, i am playing the race card because that comes up a lot. oh, why you playing the race card? i didn't wake up that morning, and want to be called [ bleep ]. plain and simple. i didn't ask to be called that. so, i didn't bring race into it. i just wanted to do my job. so, i wanted to talk to my co-workers and some of my closest friends. and say, this is a moment and we need to grow from this, as a country. as a people. as a race. as a profession. it's so much -- so many teachable moments here. and i don't want those to get away. >> that is a small part of the interview. you're going to want to hear the entire interview with officer dunn, in just a short moment here. and believe me, you don't want to miss it, because there is a lot of emotion from officer dunn, as he talks about what happened that terrible day. that is next. plus, the latest on the deadly-spa shooting in atlanta. in the area -- atlanta area, that killed eight people. six of them, asian-american women. authorities say it is too early to call it a hate crime. but fear is spreading, all across this country. >> who could be more vulnerable than immigrant-asian women, which these women were. so, yes, i am connecting the dots here. and saying that this kind of anti-asian hate has to stop. [ "could have been me" by the struts playing ] ♪ don't wanna wake up on a monday morning ♪ ♪ the thought of work's getting my skin crawling ♪ hey, mercedes? -how can i help you? ♪ i can't fear you, i don't hear you now ♪ ♪ wrapped in your regret ♪ ♪ what a waste of blood and sweat ♪ ♪ oh oh oh ♪ ♪ could have been me ♪ the 2021 e-class. motortrend's 2021 car of the year. ♪ ♪ [drum beat and keyboard typing] ♪ ♪ ♪ [keyboard typing] ♪ [trumpet] [keyboard typing] whitney and jane are always sharing tips on ways to save money. cvs carepass... it's my savings secret. carepass members get 20% off cvs health brand products. free 1-2 day shipping... plus, a $10 promo reward. thanks for sharing! join carepass today and get yours. the harry's razor is not the same our razors have 5 german-engineered blades designed to stay sharp so you can enjoy lasting comfort and we never upcharge you for high quality harry's. available in store and at harrys.com tonight, the house voting, overwhelmingly, to award congressional gold medals to the officers who put their lives on the line, on january 6th, to defend the capitol. 413 members of congress, voting in favor. but, 12 republicans, including louie gohmert, voting against. instead, gohmert introduced competing legislation earlier today for the awards. why? because he's not happy the current legislation calls the capitol attack an insurrection. gohmert's version, also, obscures the nature of the deaths of officers, like brian sicknick, by only saying that the officers, quote, passed in january, 2021. it's part of a broader effort, by republicans, who want us all to whitewash our memories of the insurrection, and who continue to push the big lie of widespread fraud in the 2020 election. well, my next guest is a capitol police officer, who defended lawmakers from insurrectionists that day. he's a 13-year veteran. he was called a racial slur, more than a dozen times, by rioters, as he helped fend off that mob. capitol police officer, harry dunn joins me, now. he is speaking for himself, not on behalf of the department. and i am so grateful that you are here, and i thank you for your service. and i thank you for defending democracy and the rule of law. thank you so much. >> thank you. thank you for having me. i -- it's -- really appreciate you having me on. thank you. >> officer dunn, we all saw those symbols of hate on display, in that crowd, that day. but you were there. you were facing them. now -- now, as a police officer, not just as a police officer but, also, as a black man, as well. tell us about the hell that you went through, that day. >> where do i start? um, first of all, that isn't and wasn't normal. nobody should be subject to, have to go through, what me and my colleagues went through. we dealt with terrorists who were hellbent on changing the results of an election. and, sorry, i messed that. i -- i've got a little emotional right now. just that intro, kind of, whoo, man. took me back, though, for a minute. >> i want you to be honest. let's be honest about this. why is that, officer dunn? >> just today, i guess, it was a -- it was a bittersweet kind of moment. it's great that we were acknowledged for getting the gold medal. that's an amazing honor. and if i could say so, humbly, it's well-deserved for my co-workers and myself. but the -- the circumstances in which we got it. it didn't come without a great loss. we lost some colleagues. and just -- just thinking about it, it's fresh now. you have good days, and you have bad days. but just thinking about it, just ta takes you back to that, like you said, that hell day. and it's tough -- it was tough to live through. and it's, also, tough to relive talking about it. so, that, yeah. so -- >> well, you know, i have seen some interviews with you. i've never seen you this emotional. do you think, in the beginning, it was -- were you in a state of shock? and then, now, all of a sudden, you're coming to the realization of what happened? what is it? why emotional, this time? >> i think that's just part of the healing process. if you allow yourself to be honest about your feelings. stages of grief, also. there -- there's no timeline for how you heal. and talking about it, honestly, has been therapeutic, for me. and honestly, that's kind of why i'm still talking. there's more to say. i want to tell stories of the heroes, that day. my co-workers. we fought some fights. and honestly, after my first interview, a lot of them came to me and expressed their gratitude for me speaking out for us, and giving us a voice. and some more shared, with me, stories of their hells, that