Mexican Immigrants Denounce Port Richmond Attacks
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On the same day that thousands of immigrants marched for reform, hundreds turned out on Staten Island to rally for an end to street violence, in light of the recent beatings of three Mexican men in the Port Richmond community. NY1’s Amanda Farinacci filed the following report. Saying they want to take back their Port Richmond neighborhood, about 100 Mexican immigrants gathered Saturday morning to call for immigration reform and denounce what they say is an uptick of attacks against Mexicans.
“There is a lot of fear in our community; people coming home from work at night are nervous about walking the streets, men and women alike,” said Gabriela O’Leary of the immigrant advocacy group Make the Road New York. “It's a really tragic situation and we were trying to show that we just can't accept that; that really needs to change.”
The rally, organized by Make the Road New York, comes after three separate attacks on Mexican men in less than two weeks.
The first, caught on surveillance tape, was against 26-year-old Rodolfo Olmedo.
Four teenage boys were arrested for beating him with two-by-fours. And despite claims they shouted anti-Mexican slurs against him, a grand jury did not vote for a hate crime.
Two other attacks in which Mexican men were beaten with bats are being investigated by the NYPD Hate Crimes Unit as possible bias crimes.
The incidents have residents on edge.
“If I’m going to go outside, I'm gonna go with somebody else,” said resident Tomas Solamo. “If I don't have to go out, I don't go out. If I had to go out, I'm gonna go with somebody.”
The rally ended at Faber Park, where a shortened Cinco de Mayo celebration was held. Organizers shortened the event to guarantee no one would be out late at night and residents could get home before dark.
“We don't want to contribute to the hysteria or the fear because nobody should live in fear, as we have police presence, we have people in the community getting involved to help solve this issue,” said immigrant advocate Gonzalo Mercado.
The NYPD has beefed up its patrols, and the Justice Department is also getting involved, scheduling meetings with community groups in the coming weeks. One idea that's being strongly considered is creating special patrols where residents work with the NYPD to detect potential problems before they escalate into violence.