Shocking footage from a security camera shows an elderly Filipino woman being kicked in her stomach in broad daylight, as she was walking down a street near Times Square, on Monday. The man yelled at her, “You don’t belong here.” The woman fell over, after which, the attacker stomped on her face thrice, before walking away.
The video released by the New York Police Department went viral online. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio urged New Yorkers to intervene when they see assaults.
President Joe Biden, meanwhile, announced new initiatives to combat anti-Asian prejudice, including taking steps to encourage more people to report them and publish data on hate crime more frequently. In the video of the Filipino woman being attacked, bystanders were seen frozen in place, a New York Times report reads.
The NYPD, on their Twitter account, put up snapshots of the attacker with the tweet reading, “Help identify the below individual wanted in connection to an assault. On Monday, March 29th at 11:40 AM, at 360 West 43rd St, a female, 65, was approached by an unidentified male who punched and kicked her about the body and made anti-Asian statements. Info? 1-800-577-TIPS.”
On March 25, a Vietnamese man, who was out on a walk, in Chicago, was punched on the head from behind. On March 17, eight people were killed in three Asian-owned spas. Most of the victims were women of Asian origin. Between 2019 and 2021, hate crimes against Asian-Americans have risen by 149 per cent.
On March 30, popular K-pop band, BTS shared a statement on Twitter, condemning hate crimes against Asian-Americans. In the statement, the band recounted instances of racism they endured, including “enduring expletives without reason and were mocked for the way we look” and being “asked why Asians spoke in English”. Anti-Asian hate crimes are often underreported due to language barriers and distrust of police.
New York City police officials said that all unprovoked attacks on people of Asian descent will now be investigated as possible hate crimes. According to the New York Police, there have been 33 hate crimes against people of Asian descent so far this year.
In February, an Asian man was stabbed to death in Brooklyn after he tried to stop the attempted robbery of another Asian man, NYPD said.