Victims of hate crimes in New York lament their cases

NEW YORK – Filipino nurse Potri Ranka Manis used to regard the subway as the “safest” mode of transportation, but her view changed radically after a traumatic incident last year.

“A long time ago, I would sleep there and the conductor would wake me up. Times change. After COVID, there are a lot of changes,” Manis, who works at the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, said in an interview yesterday here.

“I no longer use the subway. I experienced trauma... In fact, I have become paranoid,” she added.

A year has passed since Manis was assaulted by a young couple while distributing face masks in a New York subway. She offered a face mask to the couple, whom she described as “people of color,” but her gesture of goodwill was repaid with blows and racial slurs.

“They said, ‘Mind your own business chink. You go home to China’... The woman hit me on the head. I hid my face... I considered fighting back. I would have kicked her knees. But if I do it, what would happen to her child?” Manis said in Filipino.

Manis endured the blows but did not remain silent. Her story made headlines after she informed then New York City mayor Bill de Blasio about her ordeal.

But despite the media buzz generated by her experience, her attackers remain free.

“No one has been charged because there has been no arrest. But I have two lawyers who are supporting me right now through the Asian-American Federation. And they still follow up on the case,” Manis said.

Manis is one of the Filipinos affected by the more than 40 cases of race-based violence and other criminal incidents since January 2021. And while various politicians and sectors have condemned Asian hate – a phenomenon that became more pronounced during the pandemic – some victims are still seeking justice.

Frustrated

Broadway actor Miguel Braganza just got out of his Uber ride when he was robbed at gunpoint by two unidentified men in front of a building at the Upper West Side in Manhattan.

“They tried to get my bag. But they couldn’t get it. So later on, I think out of frustration, this big man... he hit me with a typical, ‘You f****ng Asian.’ And then I saw blood really spurting out of my head. I was wet with my own blood. And then I screamed. And then the neighborhood came out,” Braganza said.

He said detectives had interviewed him about the crime but nothing significant has happened since.

Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Manuel Romualdez said the embassy has been coordinating with New York authorities to ensure the safety of Filipinos in this city.

The New York city government has also increased the number of police personnel and security cameras in subways, he added.

“We are also working with other associations, not only Filipino associations but also other Asian associations... to try and come up with a more accurate (report) of what happened,” Romualdez said.

According to Romualdez, a lot of crimes are being committed in New York, but some are not really Asian hate crimes.

“It’s just random, mainly coming from either displaced people, mentally challenged individuals and some of them are really frustrated. They are jobless, homeless,” he said.

“Rampant is not the right word. It really happens. It’s a random type of thing.”

The envoy advised Filipinos to be careful and to be always on the lookout because crimes can happen anytime.

“We can really try to show that it is a continuing problem that we have to face... Do not just walk around and feel like it is just the way it is. There is always a potential problem,” Romualdez said.

?However, Manis believes increasing police visibility won’t solve the problem entirely.

“The mental health issue is supposed to be the one we should look at. And also economic. It’s easy to pull anger from your pocket if you have no food, if you have no housing. The world collapses on you... Hate crime is a manifestation of discontent (in) society,” Manis said, noting the COVID-19 pandemic only triggered the pent-up frustration.

“Hate crime is a pandemic itself. It is a disease. You cannot see the virus. The more you cannot see a crime because it’s in the mind. It’s a mental health issue,” she added.