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NYPD Investigates Alleged Howard Beach Hate Crime
By
Jen Chung
Published Nov 2, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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By
Jen Chung
Published Nov 2, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
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Howard Beach residents are probably shaking their heads over reports of yet another allegedly racially motivated attack in their neighborhood. The police say that a group of white teenagers claims they were attacked by a group, who were made up of Hispanics and blacks.
At Cross Bay Boulevard, a the group of white teens noticed the group of black and Hispanic teens; according to the Post, "The apparent leader of the black group walked up to his white counterpart and circled him while staring menacingly." The following events were described by Police Commissioner Kelly:
"When the black or Hispanic young man leaves the area, as he walks away, eggs are thrown at him. As he walks away, eggs are thrown at him. Again, last night being Halloween. A few minutes later, a group reported to be anywhere from 30 to 40, mostly black and Hispanic, some of them carrying sticks, arrive back and go into a McDonald's where two of the young men apparently from the initial group were assaulted. One was punched in the face, the other one was hit with what appeared to be a stickball bat."
Now, where the hate crime may come in: The mother of a 14-year-old victim told reporters that one of the attackers told her son, "I'm going to kill you white boys. I'm going to kill you white m-----f-----s."
Five people were arrested and charged with gang assault; criminal mischief, and resisting arrest - and they were just 15 and 16 years old. The police are still investigating whether the attack was indeed a hate crime. The recent increase in hate crime complaints has prompted City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and the Reverend Al Sharpton to launch a "Day Out Against Hate" on November 29. Quinn said, "The one way to drown out hate is to have a loud and consistent drum beat for tolerance."
Howard Beach is no stranger to race-related crimes: In 1986, a black man, who was chased by a group of whites into the highway, was killed by a car. And in 2005, a group of white men attacked a group of blacks. The ensuing trial debate the meaning and power of a racial epithet and one of the white attackers was sentenced to 15 years for the hate crime.
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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