Yesterday, there was a terrible attack on an Asian American man at 72nd Street and Lexington Avenue. Several things about this current attack tell us the story about what is happening in our world under siege by racist attacks.
First, an Asian man was body-slammed by a homeless African American. He definitely was following the Asian American. The large majority of the attacks lately have been this type of attack.
The ABC 7 anchor called him a “Whacko!”
Second, when I heard the Asian man interviewed, my heart almost broke. He declined help, but imagine how scared he was. He was holding it together, and his strength helped me to hold it together also. Maybe, he was a little in shock, maybe not. I was, in shock.
Third, the attacker wasn’t too choosey about which racial/ethnic group he would attack. “I’m gonna kill somebody, get out of my face,” the suspect shouted.
One woman says he went after her too and yelled about Chinese people, Spanish people, and White people before asking her if she wanted him to kill her.
We know that several other White, Hispanic, and African Americans have lately been attacked in similar ways.
Fourth, it appears that several Good Samaritans were White Americans. This, of course, undercuts the false narrative that White Americans don’t come to help Asian Americans. In fact, there are recent several videos that show Asian Americans running away from several Asian American victims. People get scared, but working together they can get bravery.
Fifth, several people mill about on the sidewalk giving psychological support to each other. It is quite clear that some of them wouldn’t win a fight with the attacker, but their shouting and milling helped to change the whole situation. Take a look at it and see how you would fit into this situation. Those standing more cautiously further away could yell, Police, police! Help!
Sixth, the hyperbole that these situations are the product of systematic racism or White evangelical Christian nationalism are just epithets with no scientific basis. Nor does it provide any evidence relating to any of the history of racist acts. The recital of these acts is mainly to engender racial solidarity and to permanently punish White Americans. Frankly, such racist discourse doesn’t help to solve the problem of racist hate crimes. It spreads a vile spirit, causing repugnance against others to be part of our culture.
In fact, a notice of the multi-racial response in this incident is true to American history. Do you think that the Civil War was fought only by African Americans? Of course, you don’t. You know that is nonsense thinking. White, Hispanic, Black, Native Indian and Asian Americans fought together to uphold the anti-racist tradition of America.
Seventh, the rising blame directed toward African Americans because they have been the main attackers is misdirected. You can see that this guy could have been a drifter of any race. Because many homeless in NYC are African Americans, we should pay attention to particularly figuring and the causes and best pathways to help this group–not because they are “Black” because they are currently a large portion of the victims of homelessness.
I would add that I have known some of these homeless from the days that they were solid, steady citizens with good jobs and friends thru the times when they fell into disaster again, and then, returning to solid ground. You would never guess that some of my most solid friends who seem intelligent, lively, balanced, and firmly directed used to be sleeping on the streets and having a disturbing appearance.
The very first person to shout out a welcome-back to the Columbia area was a friend who had been steady in his life and then homeless but returned to working as a newsstand operator on the corner of 116th Street and Broadway. He said, “Tony, when did you get back! Have you talked to Dave? He came by to buy a newspaper the other day. He works in XXX building.” Much later, he slipped back into homelessness, and I saw him on the Upper East Side, near where this current crime took place. I can’t help but cry over his fate (he is not the perpetrator and his homelessness followed the helpless, peaceful style.)
Eighth, the police were not there but they responded in a timely fashion. So far, they seem to have a pretty good record of apprehending these hate criminals. We need policing to back up the good Samaritans.
More community support for the police will help. Their spirit has been pushed toward the bottom by the hostile anti-policers. We need to get rid of the bad police without attacking the whole police community. They are a community and right now some people are intent on destroying it.
Ninth, the response to this type of criminal activity also needs other tools like mental health and compassionate spiritual strategies. For the humanitarians, how do you recognize violence-prone individuals and what should you do to help? Every one of us has encountered these people, but most of us cross the street and move on.
Tenth, the best aid to understanding this current wave of racist attacks is good reporting. Thanks to reporters Josh Einiger and CeFaan Kim of ABC-7!
We have an opportunity here to come together and stop using these incidents as opportunities to promote racist narratives to divide us all. Instead, we can work together to solve the problem of racist attacks. So, what side of the street do you stand on? The anti-racist tradition of America or the racist tradition of America?
Well, my afternoon has been adventurous and a sign of the times. I step out of my house in Queens to run some errands.
As i was looking at my cell phone, an Asian American woman stops across the street, turns and starts scowling at me. I don’t know her, and she isn’t a neighbor. So, I went back looking at my phone and talking to a neighbor on my side of the street. Ten minutes later, the woman is still staring at me with a scowl. I thought, well, better that I don’t cross the street to get to my car.
Later, I park my car on the way to do a bit of business.
As I am walking down the sidewalk, an Asian American man stops suddenly about 20 feet away. turns quickly to his right and walks across the street. Then, he keeps on going the same way. He passed other Asian Americans as he walked toward me and several when he walked on the other side of the street away from me. Was he racial profiling and shunning? I will let you decided.
I think that the immense amount of anti-White rhetoric that is going on is spreading fear, hate, and division in American society.