Indian-origin Sikh Taxi Driver Assaulted, Turban Knocked Off At JFK Airport; Video Goes Viral
The undated 26-second video was uploaded on micro-blogging site Twitter on January 4, showing a man assaulting the Sikh taxi driver outside the airport. The user said the video was shot by a bystander at the airport.
An Indian-origin Sikh man was assaulted by an unidentified man earlier this week at the John F. Kennedy Internation Airport in New York in a case of suspected hate crime. A video of the incident has gone viral on Twitter after a clip was posted on the platform on Tuesday.
The undated 26-second video was uploaded by Navjot Pal Kaur on micro-blogging site Twitter on January 4, showing a man assaulting the Sikh taxi driver outside the airport. She said the video was shot by a bystander at the airport.
Video recorded by a bystander
Another Sikh cab driver assaulted. This one at JFK Airport in NYC.
¡ª Simran Jeet Singh (@simran) January 5, 2022
So upsetting to see. But it¡¯s crucial that we don¡¯t look away.pic.twitter.com/43s0jXMLSt
The person can be heard allegedly using expletives against the victim. He repeatedly hits and punches him and knocks off his turban.
¡°This video was taken by a bystander at John F. Kennedy International Airport. I do not own the rights to this video. But I just wanted to highlight the fact that hatred continues to remain in our society and unfortunately I¡¯ve seen Sikh cab drivers get assaulted again and again,¡± Kaur tweeted.
Further details about the driver or the cause of the incident were not available yet.
Social media irked
The video evoked sharp reactions from Twitterati. Many users condemned the incident and demanded strict action.
We¡¯re not sure who captured the video. My friend @navjotpkaur shared it with me.
¡ª Simran Jeet Singh (@simran) January 5, 2022
What I am sure of is how painful it is to watch our fathers and elders get assaulted while they¡¯re just trying to live an honest life.
Sikh gentleman is only defensive because he's a decent law abiding citizen making an honest loving and doesn't want to risk losing his license. A disgusting attack made even more traumatic by knocking off his turban. Hope the perpetrator was arrested..
¡ª Abid Ali (@abidaliluton) January 5, 2022
That humble man is on defensive because he is on a foreign land and he doesn¡¯t know if he will have community support. You try this here!
¡ª Partho Chakravarty (@ComPartho) January 5, 2022
Please let us know if a report is filed with the police & this assaulted us arrested, Justice is required here.
¡ª JaguarPower (@power_jaguar) January 5, 2022
This is disgusting and painful to watch. I don¡¯t have to be Sikh to feel your pain. This is WRONG!
¡ª ??Kim Coney??? (@KimberlyConey7) January 5, 2022
Similar incidents in the past
This is not the first time a Sikh taxi driver has been assaulted in the US. An Indian-origin Sikh Uber driver was in 2019 assaulted and racially abused in the US state of Washington in a suspected hate crime. The driver told the police that he believes his race promoted the attack.
In 2017, a 25-year-old Sikh cab driver in New York was assaulted and his turban knocked off by drunk passengers.
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