A FILIPINO man was reportedly a victim of an unprovoked attack at a subway station in Manhattan.
In an ABC7 New York Eyewitness News exclusive, the 52-year-old Filipino from Queens, who asked not to show his face or use his name, said he was attacked around 7:20 a.m. on Tuesday, June 8 after getting off the 6 train at the 103rd Street station on the Upper East Side.
A man, possibly also Asian, was being attacked by another man yelling “go back to where you come from.” When the victim managed to escape, the assailant turned to the Filipino man, cornering him on the platform and then allegedly punched him in the face multiple times.
The suspect also reportedly told the Filipino man to “go back to where you came from.”
“It seemed so random and so sudden,” the victim told Eyewitness News.
EXCLUSIVE: 52-year-old Asian (Filipino) man pummeled on 6 train platform at 103rd St station 7:30a. Says suspect was yelling “go back to where you came from,” while attacking him. Left him with a bloody nose and face bruised. Tonight at 11pm on @ABC7NY H/T @Syissle #StopAsianHate pic.twitter.com/w95yTQZBuH
— CeFaan Kim (@CeFaanKim) June 9, 2021
“Kinda realized it’s potentially a hate crime because of what the man was shouting and what was said,” he added.
The aftermath of the attack left the victim with a bloody nose and a face covered with bruises.
According to the Filipino man, the suspect appeared relatively young, possibly in his 20s or 30s.
He also noted that the suspect “didn’t appear homeless, but he did seem to be mentally ill.”
The victim told Eyewitness News that he was “not afraid” or “even angry,” adding that he’s speaking out to help raise awareness about anti-Asian hate.
“Just a little bit worried that something so random could happen and could happen to anyone else,” the victim said.
The Philippine Consulate General in New York issued a statement as it urged Filipinos in the area “to remain vigilant, especially when taking the subway, due to rising criminality.”
“We strongly condemn this latest anti-Asian hate crime that targeted a member of the Filipino Community in New York City. We call on authorities to take the necessary steps to protect members of the Asian-American and Pacific Islander Community, including addressing the mental health concerns of 40 percent of homeless individuals in New York City,” the statement read.
Stop AAPI Hate, a national coalition that tracks anti-Asian American discrimination, reported that it received 6,603 hate incidents against Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) from March 19, 2020 to March 31, 2021.
Of the 6,603 incidents reported, 4,193 hate incidents occurred in 2020 and 2,410 hate incidents occurred in 2021.
To address the anti-Asian hate crimes that have risen since the start of the pandemic, Congress passed the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, which would expedite the Department of Justice’s review of such crimes. President Joe Biden signed the bill into law last May. (AJPress)
